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Ok, I feel by this point that I was perhaps a little harsh on this book. The main themes are written REALLY well, even though I was taken aback by the wild tone shifts in the beginning. I think I'm coming around to seeing why it's a Newbery contender even though I personally don't love some of the characters or the framing at the beginning of the book.

"My words...ain't for anyone, and I mean no one, but me."

Gonna be kinda hard to be a famous rapper then, Manny

The really serious parts of this book are well done. It's just cut with REALLY low brow "humor" to lighten it and it feels so dramatic in how it swings

The librarian character is working at a school with a visible tattoo that says "I don't WATCH smut...I READ it like a frakking [sic] lady", is a Swiftie, and into Dungeon Crawler Carl. I don't think I could dislike the idea of a person more.

Literally EVERYONE in this book is an awful person, except maybe Manny's grandparents and Calvin.

I really think it's irresponsible in a time period when kids are coming out of school unable to read, write, do basic tasks, etc. to reinforce "school sucks and the teachers don't care" attitudes, as well as using slurs for people with mental disabilities. THIS is what people think is Newbery quality??

Young boys will love this. Immediately, I don't like it.
Child A is writing lyrics that seem too wise for his age.
Child B is telling his story in Pilkey-esque cartoons full of "middle grade boy humor" that's just gross.
Child C put a quote from DEREK SHEPARD on his notebook, which immediately makes me think he's the worst and probably pretentious.

"I don't want to be a vacant house, but I don't know how to not feel like time is running out before I'm just another thing in Marshall Grove that was *almost* something great."

I haven't read any of Randall's other books, but if there are some more, I will DEFINITELY be checking them out.

"Maybe that was true. Maybe it *was* in his nature, and perhaps he would have become exactly what Death had been countless times before -- murder, slaughter, and pain. But because of two people he had been raised with kindness and love. And that had made all the difference."