My Story Starts Here

Voices of Young Offenders

Kids, School Tools, Law and Crime, My Family, My Feelings, My Friends, Family, Social Issues
Cover of the book My Story Starts Here by Deborah Ellis, Groundwood Books Ltd
View on Amazon View on AbeBooks View on Kobo View on B.Depository View on eBay View on Walmart
Author: Deborah Ellis ISBN: 9781773061344
Publisher: Groundwood Books Ltd Publication: September 1, 2019
Imprint: Groundwood Books Language: English
Author: Deborah Ellis
ISBN: 9781773061344
Publisher: Groundwood Books Ltd
Publication: September 1, 2019
Imprint: Groundwood Books
Language: English

Jamar found refuge in a gang after leaving an abusive home where his mother stole from him. Fred was arrested for assault with a weapon, public intoxication and attacking his mother while on drugs. Jeremy first went to court at age fourteen (“Court gives you the feeling that you can never make up for what you did, that you’re just bad forever”) but now wears a Native Rights hat to remind him of his strong Métis heritage. Kate, charged with petty theft and assault, finally found a counselor who treated her like a person for the first time.

Many readers will recognize themselves, or someone they know, somewhere in these stories. Being lucky or unlucky after an incident of shoplifting, or the drug search at school, or hanging out with the wrong kids at the wrong time. The encounter with a mean cop, or a good one, that can change the trajectory of a kid’s life. Couch-surfing, or being shunted from one foster home to another. The effect of youth crime on families (the book includes the points of view of family members as well as “voices of experience” — adults looking back at their own experiences as young offenders).

The kids in this book represent a range of socioeconomic backgrounds, genders, sexual orientations and ethnicities. Every story is different, but there are common threads — loss of parenting, dislocation, poverty, truancy, addiction, discrimination.

Most of all, this book leaves readers asking the most pressing questions of all. Does it make sense to put kids in jail? Can’t we do better? Have we forgotten that we were once teens ourselves, feeling powerless to change our lives, confused about who we were and what we wanted, and quick to make a dumb move without a thought for the consequences?

View on Amazon View on AbeBooks View on Kobo View on B.Depository View on eBay View on Walmart

Jamar found refuge in a gang after leaving an abusive home where his mother stole from him. Fred was arrested for assault with a weapon, public intoxication and attacking his mother while on drugs. Jeremy first went to court at age fourteen (“Court gives you the feeling that you can never make up for what you did, that you’re just bad forever”) but now wears a Native Rights hat to remind him of his strong Métis heritage. Kate, charged with petty theft and assault, finally found a counselor who treated her like a person for the first time.

Many readers will recognize themselves, or someone they know, somewhere in these stories. Being lucky or unlucky after an incident of shoplifting, or the drug search at school, or hanging out with the wrong kids at the wrong time. The encounter with a mean cop, or a good one, that can change the trajectory of a kid’s life. Couch-surfing, or being shunted from one foster home to another. The effect of youth crime on families (the book includes the points of view of family members as well as “voices of experience” — adults looking back at their own experiences as young offenders).

The kids in this book represent a range of socioeconomic backgrounds, genders, sexual orientations and ethnicities. Every story is different, but there are common threads — loss of parenting, dislocation, poverty, truancy, addiction, discrimination.

Most of all, this book leaves readers asking the most pressing questions of all. Does it make sense to put kids in jail? Can’t we do better? Have we forgotten that we were once teens ourselves, feeling powerless to change our lives, confused about who we were and what we wanted, and quick to make a dumb move without a thought for the consequences?

More books from Groundwood Books Ltd

Cover of the book Becca at Sea by Deborah Ellis
Cover of the book Almost Invisible by Deborah Ellis
Cover of the book Far From Shore by Deborah Ellis
Cover of the book Mother Number Zero by Deborah Ellis
Cover of the book Becca Fair and Foul by Deborah Ellis
Cover of the book Cold White Sun by Deborah Ellis
Cover of the book Avis Dolphin by Deborah Ellis
Cover of the book Sidewalk Flowers by Deborah Ellis
Cover of the book The Mosaic by Deborah Ellis
Cover of the book Genocide by Deborah Ellis
Cover of the book Letters to My Mother by Deborah Ellis
Cover of the book Flannery by Deborah Ellis
Cover of the book Buddy and Earl Go to School by Deborah Ellis
Cover of the book Skud by Deborah Ellis
Cover of the book Middle of Nowhere by Deborah Ellis
We use our own "cookies" and third party cookies to improve services and to see statistical information. By using this website, you agree to our Privacy Policy