Dark: A Novel

by Kenji Jasper

Thai Williams is walking a thin line between two worlds. On one side he has his job as a filing clerk for the Washington, D.C., Department of Public Works, his girlfriend Sierra, and his plans for going to college. But on the other, darker side there are his friends Snowflake and Ray Ray, men who run the neighborhood streets dodging the dangers of the criminal life and its after-effects. But that thin line disappears when Thai walks in on Sierra with another man, whom he eventually kills in a haze of jealousy and confusion. From there Thai finds himself on the run and away from the five-block stretch where he’s lived for all his life. He finds his way to Charlotte, where Enrique, his closest friend of all, has moved in search of a better life. In the course of the week that follows, Thai encounters a series of men and women who show him aspects of life he never dreamed of in his narrow ghetto existence. All of them are looking for answers, but it is Thai who must find his own path out of the dark and into the clear light of moral responsibility and repentance for his actions.In his first novel, Kenji has written a haunting portrait of his own urban generation, shadowed (and often erased) by violence, but determined to make their own mark on the world.

Genres: Fiction, Contemporary, African American

258 pages, Kindle Edition

First published January 1, 2001

About the author

Kenji Jasper has also written under the pseudonym D.

Reviews

[Shanae · Rating 4 out of 5]

Kenji Jasper's DARK is well written and intriguing. Being a DC native I found the descriptions of the area and the conversations accurate. Jasper tells the story of so many young Black boys and men in DC, stuck in an urban area with high crime, poor schools, absentee parents and a feeling of hopelessness. Jasper offers a simple, but useful suggestion to these young men, and all readers actually, Pursue your dreams, take the way out, and do right by yourself. The advice is so simple that it's easy to miss. Jasper's ability to write Thai's story with a promise of hope is motivational and what many people need to hear about second chances. I think this is probably a better young adult novel and recommend it to teens parents of teens.

[Amelia Rucker · Rating 5 out of 5]

This story is indeed one every black king should read. I personally will add it to my Recommended Reading List. This story gave me so much inspiration and I couldn't help but to think about the black Kings I write about. Thank you, Kenji.

[R i da ♥ · Rating 5 out of 5]

Just Finished this book Today & i loveeeeeee it i couldn't put it down like all the rest of the books i read i fell in love with it ;)

[Brina R · Rating 4 out of 5]

I really enjoyed this book i just wonder if a sequel was made. If there was what's the name of it?

[Monique · Rating 2 out of 5]

“I was too busy dwelling on the fact that he had been stupid enough to show up at a party after he’d let off shots at four dudes he didn’t know in the middle of one of the biggest malls in the DC metropolitan area. Our city was too small for that. That was the underlying rule in DC. The enemy was everywhere except for on your own block. But he was always at parties, especially that one party where you least expected him to show up.” (Pg. 11)

I have been reading so much for the school I decided to try an adult book LOL..I do have a bunch of those to read too, and I need to fit them in where I can..This one has been on my shelf for a long time and hey--its set in D.C...The lively urban city I have called my stomping grounds for almost two decades jeez..A D.C. story set in NW (the Shaw neighborhood) that tells of a group of friends: E, Thai, Snowflake and Ray Ray and how they navigate street life…
The story starts with Thai feeling the need to retaliate on his cheating girlfriend by going up to the guy’s job and fighting him..Only problem is the guy had a gun and starts firing off at them--then shows up at a party later that night…
The events of that night alter Thai’s life as now he is a murderer fugitive on the run and on his first night he ends up at the apartment of a white girl--

“I’d never had dinner with anyone white before. To me all white people were like her, ghosts that lit candles in their apartments and felt uncomfortable in my neighborhood.” (Pg. 24)

Thai spends about a week in North Carolina where he meets girls--the sexy and nonchalant Robin and then the emotional and damaged Alicia who ends up making his time in Charlotte a learning experience----he gets punched in the face, his house broken into, he shoots someone, learns the truth about his mother and grows up from the naive nineteen year old all in a week. In a rare turn of events killing someone makes him a better person...This book was easy to read and read well with a taste of urban and then some religious and philosophical moments..overall it was good but not memorable, glad I finally can say I read it though...

[Gregory Johnson · Rating 5 out of 5]

Shoutout to one of my oldest dearest friends and one of my biggest inspirations and mentors as a writer, since we met as kids on Morehouse campus. A real joy watching this novel and subesquent career come alive.

[Chris brown · Rating 2 out of 5]

I put it down for two days because I needed a break this book by the time i got to the last chapter. I would say that im not the target audience for this book. I would recommend it for someone 15-25 it would probably be more relatable on that level seeing as the main character is a very young and slightly immature nineteen years of age. Thai is that dude from the block we all knew that we knew hung around with people that did more and got into more trouble than he did, but he was just as willing to make the same mistakes they did if the opportunity presented its self to him yet we hope that he is mature enough to not make those mistakes yet he does anyway. The events of the book are told from a point of view. The first chapter flooded you with information and people which, i felt could have been sprinkled through out the first few chapters. I also found that the majority of the things that were quickly told to the reader as, "matter of facts" and "just so you know" were in fact more interesting than what was being told to me. I connected to the character in that he reminded me of that time of youth where i might have imagined what one of my cousins might have been going through in their lives. There were times where it was just flat out preachy and insulting, again this is not a bad book I just believe that this book was not intended for me as a reader.

[Georgina · Rating 3 out of 5]

The novel Dark by Kenji Jasper is interesting and good. I recommend this novel to anyone who wants to learn about how some young people live, or anyone who can relate to it. The character Thai was weak because he was influneced by the wrong crowd. He had fights and he did choices that he was going to chase him for the rest of his life. The book takes place in a poor neighborhood where theres violence and drugs. I don't really like the characters because they have caused a negative impact in Thai's life, and that has caused him to make the wrong choices. The book is very interesting and entertaining because you dont know what is going to come next. The book has made me think abouo how young people struggle with problems like Thai does. Its not no fairytale or made-up it is real and alot of people can realate to it in so many ways.

[Kelly · Rating 4 out of 5]

I thought this book is very catchy , because just by reading the first page it makes you want to keep going and going to the next pages. This book made me feel that theres people out there that do crazier things and what we think is bad. The thinng that i like about this book was that it makes you feel like youre in the book and in the same time it makes you feel that you want to help them out in whats going on.I feel that this book will grab a reader's attention a lot because of the way the book is written.

I would recommend this book to people that change their life and struggles to forget about something because this book is shows how someone struggles and is will to change his life around.

[Sarah · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book had a very interesting concept wrapped within a seemingly deus-ex-machina-esque plot. The start of the book gripped me, held me by the throat, but as the story went on, it seemed there was not enough development to fit the enormity of the situation. The characters are real as bone, but some of the dialogue was out of place for where they come from. There was so much to be done with this book, and I left with the feeling as half-empty and half-full; dissatisfied with how poorly threshed out it was towards the end, enormously pleased with the rolling language with which the book was presented. Jasper is an excellent writer, and I look forward to works he puts out as he matures.

[Joe]

In Dark by Kenji Jasper there was many different situations that were hard to understand but if u keep reading you understand it in the process. Thai Williams has a decent life before his girl betrays him he then goes off to start trouble and in the process he does something that he really doesent regret but knows he did wrong but he was ok with what he had done. I didnt like how it took so long to get to the point but it made me keep reading and thats what i look for in a book. I would recomend to anyone to read this book

[William · Rating 5 out of 5]

the choice book that i was reading was called dark. by kenji jasper. but i abbondanded it like 1 day ago. thats because it lost all of its action. even though when i started to read it had akot of action. and i like stuff like that. to me i would recommend this book to a person thats likes violence, drama, action and suppence. dark to me is a good book and has special exciting parts in it. i would rate it a 4 out of 5 stars.

[Toniya Mckniqht · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book is basically about a boy named Thai william. He never meet his mother befor and he and he never been in love. But one day something had change that when he walk in the house and saw his baby mother and the next dude having sex. He was very upset and hurt so he killed the other guy. Being that he killed the man he had to leave town and go wiff his old best friend E. Where he had to stay for a week. For that whole week he had already found some body. and thats what i read up to.

[Cynthia B · Rating 4 out of 5]

So i Figure That This Book is Really Good And interseting i Talks about the Kid Hood Life And Happens in Teenage Lifes . How Thai Lives His Life And what Really happen. He Mores Out Of Town So Try too See The Different Life . He Has Friend that Live a Crazy Life And Do Crazy Thats Such As Crimals , Spend High School Together and everything and still Are Good Friend.

[Jhoanna · Rating 3 out of 5]

interesting.. i live in chicago and while things here aren't as bad the Shaw, I would have the high school students read this. It gives those without a glimmer of hope of another, the ability to see things differently while not being cheesy. I can see a 14-20 youth reading this.

[RK Byers · Rating 5 out of 5]

loved this book. thought it was brilliant.

[Ivo Temelkov · Rating 2 out of 5]

Meh.