Synopsis of Scorpions: Walter Dean Myers

Synopsis:

Scorpions. 0-06-4406237. Walter Dean Myers. 1988. Newberry Honor Book. Ages 12-16. African American.

Twelve-year-old Jamal Hicks cannot escape stressful situations no matter where he goes or how much he tries. At home he deals with his brother Randy being in jail for murder, his sister’s pestering remarks, his mother’s exhaustion from trying to provide, and his absent father’s comments that berate him. At school he deals with troubling assignments, teachers sending him to the principal, and fights with an older boy named Dwayne. Mixed in with all of this is pressure from the gang his brother used to lead called the Scorpions. Doing what he can to raise money for Randy’s $2,000 appeal, Jamal joins the Scorpions and unintentionally involves his best friend Tito, who ends up killing another gang member in self-defense. Overwhelmed by what he has done, Tito confesses his actions to his grandmother as well as the police, is charged as a juvenile delinquent, and returns to Puerto Rico, leaving Jamal to face a world that hasn’t changed much for himself.

Scorpions, like Monster, is a good book to discuss real-life issues with students in middle school. Peer pressure to join gangs and get involved with very serious problems such as guns, drugs, murder, and jail time is a realistic pressure teenagers deal with. Making sure students know safe places to go and people to talk to could make all the difference in their lives, especially if they are unaware of the options but desperately need them or know someone who does.