They take away your shoelaces and your belt so you canโt kill yourself no matter how bad it is. I guess making you live is part of the punishment.
Walter Dean MyersThe idea of voluntary segregation went against every value I had been taught. What did being born black have to do with excellence?
Walter Dean MyersBut in the end, we learn we can forgive most people. The cushion of mortality makes their wrongdoing seem less dark, and whatever roads they traveled seem less foolhardy.
Walter Dean MyersWeโre suggesting that [kids are] missing something if they donโt read but, actually, weโre condemning kids to a lesser life. If you had a sick patient, you would not try to entice them to take their medicine. You would tell them, โTake this or youโre going to die.โ We need to tell kids flat out: reading is not optional.
Walter Dean Myers