Snitch

The deal was no gangs. Ever since seventh grade, Julia and her friends have determined not to allow the gang-permeated culture of Sheepshead Bay High School to ruin their futures. But that resolve wavers after Julia falls in love with newcomer Eric, a Crip, and joins the gang herself. She feels protected by the Crips, but drugs, sex, and violence are rampant, and when Eric begins to lie to her, Julia’s carefully planned future dims. The author of Street Pharm (2006) exposes another teenage counterculture, realistically depicting the world of the gangbanger and the insidious nature of lifelong protection, with no escape. Julia and Eric are poignant, authentic characters in a continuously looping, real-life tragedy. Although their stories offer hope, their friends are not so lucky. Snitch presents an important object lesson for today’s teens.