summary chapter 21

Ericka talks to AJ about his relationship to Ruthie and he declares that there´s noting with her and that she is only a good friend. Ericks thinks that he lies and so she ran away. Because a lot of things (the quarrel with her mum; she doesn´ know if AJ loves her and if she should go to college and if she gets the role in the musical) she is very depressed and has a bad time at the moment.

summary chapter 20

AJ and Anthony come too late to the seconde dinner. While this AJ is absorbed in thoughts and he is also thinking about something while learning. The reason for this is that he doesn´t know what he should do to keep Anthony away from Franco when he is one week in Florida. Rhthie says that he could spend this week in the house of her parents. When she asks her parents they wonder if it is fair for Anthony because this time is enough for such a young child to become attached to someone and the Ruthie´s parents doesn´t want this but finally they agree with her. AJ and Ruthie are very happy about this.

summary chapter 19

AJ is at the cemetary and sits near the grave of his mum to talk to her what he could do that Anthony doesn´t become like Franco. AJ is at the cemetary every day of the week and feels peacefully. Then Ruthis appears there and talks to AJ about his mum and she gets to know that Anthony shouldn´t be born and was a misstake. Therefore AJ mum fought with his dad and after that she shot herself. AJ is surprised that Ruthis can understand his state of mind and for the first time he has feelings for her. Ruthie invites him and Anthony for a dinner at her house. AJ sees that Ruthie respects her parents and that they are a good family. While a walk outside AJ says to her that he worries about Anthony beuase he plays gangster with his friend and sees it just like a gme and he done a drug walk for Franco who pays Anthony for it. AJ doesn´t know how to keep Franco away form Anthony and what he is going to do next year when he´s in Florida. Also a problem is that AJ is going to a workout next week so that Anthony is alone with Franco at home. This shouldn´t be and AJ doesn´t know what to do. Anthony askes AJ about their mum and AJ Tells him that she was like Ruthies mum, who Anthony likes much, becuase he doesn´t want to tell his little brother that their mum had problems with her psyche and killed herself. Next day Ruthis invites AJ and Anthony to another dinner about which he´s very glad.

summary chapter 18

Ruthie has some kind of competition because she would be the one who makes the speech at the end of the high school year. She hasn´t saw AJ since a week and she askes herself where he could be...

comments, thoughts etc....

Something about AJ Ruthie and Erika:
In the beginning AJ is shown as a great football-player who doesn´t really care about the feelings of othe persons. He´s only interested in sports parties and something like that. When he get to know Ruthie his mind changed. He becomes another person who sees that ther are more important things than alcohol and girls. Now he also express his feelings and talks about it with Ruthie. Probably he could fall in love with Ruthie because she is a good girl and had a good education what stands in contrast to AJ. I don´t know why but it could be that this contrast is the start for a love. I think Erika isn´t a good grilfriend because she had trouble at school with other girls and fought with them. This can´t be the way for AJ to become a better person who has a real future. She is a real egoist. Erica gets jealous very fast. Probably she becomes a better person, too but I think it´s not realistic. I think AJ changes his character.

summary chapter 17

AJ tells Ruthie all about his problems concerining family and friends. He also tells her that it is a bit strange for him that Ruthie is so close with Anthony. She´s no social-worker. Ruthie talks about her problem,too. She says that she can´t associate with black people because she doesn´t know how she can respect a person who doesn´t respect himelf. Mot of the black people are thugs, MG´s, dope dealers, criminals or wanna-be gang menbers.This conversation is very hard for AJ and he also gets to know that Anthony broght some kind of stuff for Franco to a friend of him.From this moment AJ decides that the treatment with Franco is very bad for Anthony. He doesn´t want that Anthony takes drugs like Franco. AJ bans Anthony the contact with Franco. As AJ told this his older brother they fight and AJ gets hurt a bit.

summary chapter 16

Ruthis gets to know that Anthonys mum killed herself. When she talks about it with AJ, who doesn´ want to hear something about this theme, they have a very big discussion which end in a fight.Ruhtie is a bit hurted and she says to Mr. Ferris, their teacher, that AJ react in this way because she talks with him about a theme which is very hard for him. Ruthis want AJ to telle her everything because it is very bad for someone to keep his bad experiences inside without talking about it with someone.

summary chapter 15

Ruthie tries to improove Anthony´s reading skills with a special book in which he´s interested. When AJ comes home seeing thar Ruthie is learing with Anthony he doesn´ really know if he should find it good or bad. He thinks that she really cares about him, but it´s AJ´s brother nit hers. When Franco comes home AJ allowed his brother to eat ice-cream with Ruthie.

summary chapter 14

Here we get to know that Erika has the lead, the main role, in the school-musical. She is very happy about it but the only matter is that Shanice, the black girl she "hates", has this role, too. That´s a problem because Erika knows that the musical-teacher, Mr. Pauly, doesen´t like her very much... Erika wants to be better than Shanice.

summary chapter 13

The principal of Ruthis school wants to talk to her. he tells her that she is is a finalist for the Negro Students competition. She is very proud about it and calls her parents who are proud, too. After that Ruthis talks to Anthony becuase it´s her first day tutoring a class. She wants to help Anthony because of his trouble with reading but he rather wants to play nintendo but Ruthie knows how she can help him...

summary chapter 12

AJ signed his letter of intent and now he play football for Florida State University. His friends signed a letter of intent , too but they are on different universities. They celebrate it with drinking beer and they talk about old times and remember what they have done in the pat together. Anthony telles AJ that their class talk about the decision of AJ, Kevin and co. where they go to college and all of Anthony´s classmates want to have AJ´s autograph. AJ is proud about it and hugs Anthony. After that Erika comes and wantsto sleep with AJ.

summary chapter 11

In this chapter the reader gets to know that Ronell has problems with AJ. He talks about it with Franco who isn´t very interested and smokes his pipe.

summary chapter 10

AJ becomes famous. Everybody is asking him at which college he will go to play football professional. Also TV teams vistit him at home. He doesn´ t know where he should sign. So he askes Ruthie that get gets another impression about it. She can´t give him an answer and she told him that she will tutor Anthony because of his trouble with reading. After that he talks to Ronell, a thug, about his football future.

summary chapter 9

Ruthie goes to AJ´s house that they can learn chemistry. She is very scared because she doesn´t like the area where AJ lives. When she knocked on his door and went in his room she sees that AJ plays cards with two of his frinds. He tells her that he forgot that they want to learn on this day. She´s angry about it because therefor she couldn´t go to the aerobic-course. Anthony, AJ´s little brother, went into his room and asks if Ruthis is AJ´s girlfriend. Anthony says that Erika is just in there to take her clothes off. AJ is embarrassed and brings Ruthie to her car.

summary chapter 8

Erika asks AJ if he loves her. For a moment he doesn´t really know what to say because he didn´t expected that Erika asks him such a thing. She asks him because he does a lot of shit an flirts with other girls. AJ says that he guess that he loves her. After that Ruthie and AJ agree that Ruthie will help him with his homework because he went too late to the lesson. Ruthie want to be AJ´s friend. He asks her how it fell when she loves a guy. She answered that she never had a boyfriend.

summary chapter 7

Erika is in the church because she sings there with the choir. She is very excited because she doesn´t want to sing when AJ is at church. Finally he doesn´t come and she can present the people her beautiful voice.

summary chapter 6

In this chapter Ruthis tells her problems compared to the treatment with black people. She just have friend who are white because she thinks that black people have a bad character or something like that. She has got this opinion because she didn´t life in a ghetto like a lot of black people and so she has got another character which is different to the character of black people. She doesn´ know what she wants...

summary chapter 5

In this chapter the reader gets to know backgrounds about AJ life and his situation at home. hHe lifes in a dangerous neighborhood where and the MG´s and other gangs. The consume of drugs is normal in his neighborhood. His mother is dead and his father doesn´t really care about him and his two brothers. So AJ is like a father for his litte brother Anthony. His older brother is a bit stranger because of the drugs and AJ dosen´t really talk to him very much. After that to reader gets to know that AJ is on a party where he meets Erika. She wants to make him jealous because of the story with Ruthie.Therefore Erika kisses a guy from the MG-gang and when AJ sees this he goes to Trina and does the same, too.

summary chapter 4

In this chapter Erika is very jealous. She has a fight with a gang of black girls at school. When she go home she has another conversation with her mum because her mum tells her that she hates black men like Erikas dad. They dont life together.

summary chapter 3

After two days Ruthie comes back to school. She is okay again. She gets to know that Erika is jelous of her because of the contact with AJ. She searched for him to tell him that she finds that the attitude of Erika is very childish. She also talk about it with her friends. One of them, Kevin Blane, says that AJ is a dump-ass, but Ruthie doesn´t think so. On this day she sees that AJ is a very good-looking guy and he tells her that a lot of student think that Ruthie is a snob because of her way to dress her and her character.

summary chapter 1-2

In the first two chapter we get to know three of the main characters: AJ, a excellent football-player, Erika, his girlfriend and Ruthie, a hard working student and AJ´s classmate.
The plot starts with a chemistry lesson in which AJ holds a dangerous chemical over a bunsen burner which explodes in Ruthi´s face. Because of this AJ has to drive her in the hospital to check if she is really hurted. After that AJ drives her home and there they have to wait for Ruthie´s mum that she can drive AJ back to the school.
Back at school AJ meets his girlsfriend Erika who gets him on nerves. She tells him that her friends saw him with another girl (Ruthie). AJ says that they are right and he tells her the whole situation which Erika doesn´t really belive. She tells him that she keep an eve on him...

coming of age

dies ist nur ein test um mich hier überhaupt mal zurechtzufinden ^^