Darius and Twig Written by: Walter Dean Myers Published by: HarperCollins Publishers Published Date: April 23, 2013 Courtni Carter

Basic Information The story takes place in today’s time in Harlem. Two teens, Darius and Twig, are faced with college decisions. Darius, who is a writer, wants to get out of Harlem, but his GPA is to low for a scholarship. Meanwhile, Twig who is a great long-distance runner only hopes for athletic success. Darius and Twig have to struggle to overcome an uncle who is abusive and two school bullies.

Protagonist and antagonist The protagonist in the story is Darius. He attends Phoenix for high school. Darius has an alter ego named Furry who he feels is his only way to escape the real world. Darius is also very hopeful and never gives up. Through out the story he remains hopeful that he will one day get out of Harlem. Because Darius doesn’t want his Harlem roots to define who he is, he never gives up his dream of becoming a writer. The antagonist is Midnight, the lead bully. Just like Darrius, he also attends Phoenix. Midnight is slow and mean. He is hated by all the teachers. His eyes are about the same color as his skin. Darius Midnight

Conflict in the story The main conflict in the story deals with Darius and himself. Darius wants to get out of Harlem , but he has many obstacles that he faces in doing so. He struggles with trying to live his dream and being who he wants to be in life, rather than what others expect and want him to do. So, will Darius ever leave Harlem or just be one to follow the crowd? Maybe he will discover something other than just writing?

Minor characters Tall Boy: Tall ball is friends with Midnight. He is Midnight’s follower and does whatever Midnight does. Mr. Ramey: Mr. Ramey is Darius’s counselor. He tells Darius they his chances of getting a scholarship aren’t likely and that Darius should just get a day job and go to school at night for a while. Twig: Twig is Darius’s best-friend. He is very athletic and runs track. Twig Mr. Ramey Tall Boy

Book reviews Myers hits another home run with this story about being true to yourself and becoming more than your surroundings. The amount of emotional punch packed into such a tiny novel is impressive, but that is simply a testament to Myers’ skill. Readers will root for Twig and Darius as they struggle to succeed in a world that seems determined to hold them back.-Raven Haller "This is an inspiring story about friends supporting each other as they each dig deeply to find out what is important and not relinquish hope for the future." - Children's Literature

My Review Overall I think it was a good book. Darius and Twig is a novel about being who you want to be and not what society tells you to be. This novel shows you that even though you may go through some hard tribulations in life, with determination and dedication anything is possible. This was the first book I read by Walter Dean Myers, and I’ll probably read more.