Scorpions

Walter Dean Myers

Oct 2009 · Sold by Harper Collins

About this ebook

The Scorpions are a gun-toting Harlem gang, and Jamal Hicks is about to become tragically involved with them in this authentic tale of the sacrifice of innocence and the struggle to steer clear of violence.

This Newbery Honor Book will challenge young men to consider their own decisions as they come of age in a complex and often frustrating society.

Pushed by a bully to fight and nagged by his principal, Jamal is having a difficult time staying in school. His home life is not much better, with his mother working her fingers to the bone to try to earn the money for an appeal for Jamal's jailed older brother, Randy.

Jamal wants to do the right thing and help earn the money to free his brother by working, but he's afraid to go against the Scorpions. Jamal eventually pulls free of the gang's bad influence, but only through the narrowest of escapes.

Walter Dean Myers, five-time winner of the Coretta Scott King Award, sensitively explores the loyalty and love between friends faced with hard choices. Scorpions is 25 years old, but the issues of poverty and violence make it a timeless powerful read—sadly as relevant as ever.

Ratings and reviews

this book is about a young boy who lives with his mother and younger sister sassy whom seems to be sassy most of the time. Jamal's older brother is in jail because he was cought selling drugs and other sorts of stuff. His friend got let out , and jamal thought it was cause he squiled on randy ,jamals brother. Randy Jamals older brother wants him to be the leader of the scorpions. tHATS ALL I GOT TO - SALLEY JANE

the book i read was scorpion's. i didn't choose this book my english teacher did it for me. when i walk into the room she gave to me so i had to read it.when i see the book and saw the front page and the tittle i though that it was about scorpion's and people but when i read the first two pages it was tight. i did like this book because it was about gangs,mafia and people fightinh and killing each other so i keep reading the book. as i was reading the book i saw a lot of gangs fighting for places and trying to kill each other so they don't have to fight again.i read on the book a lot of the things that black people do just to get food or money they kill each other so they can eat them food and get their money. they still cars so they can sale them and get money.i was reading about this one fight that it was like 4 black people fighting vs one mexican but the mexican guy knew that it was too much people for him.so he run and the black people was trasing and shuting at him and they kill him.in conclusion i really like this book becaue it was very interesting. this has been the only book that i red and like. it was about the things i like. i really recommend this book to those guys that like things like gangs,kill and stuff like that. but is a really nice book i recommend everybody to read it.

This book is super duper good. Like me and my classmates are reading it and when are said stop at one chapter we can't hear her cuz where so deep into the book

About the author

Walter Dean Myers was the New York Times bestselling author of Monster, the winner of the first Michael L. Printz Award; a former National Ambassador for Young People's Literature; and an inaugural NYC Literary Honoree. Myers received every single major award in the field of children's literature. He was the author of two Newbery Honor Books and six Coretta Scott King Awardees. He was the recipient of the Margaret A. Edwards Award for lifetime achievement in writing for young adults, a three-time National Book Award Finalist, as well as the first-ever recipient of the Coretta Scott King-Virginia Hamilton Award for Lifetime Achievement.