Description

In his first novel, the Coretta Scott King Author Honor winner evokes the bittersweet summer of transition for an LA teen, shooting the breeze with his boys, tightening his D on the court, and doing a colour check – making sure nobody s wearing blue or red, which some Crip or Piru carrying a cut-down golf club could see as disrespect. Then back to Auntie s, hoping she isn t passed out from whiskey at the end of the day. Now that Shawn is headed for high school, he wonders if he d be better off at the school in Mama s neighbourhood, where he d be free of Compton s hassles. But then he wouldn t be with his fellas – cracking jokes, covering each other s backs – or the fine Marisol, who s been making star appearances in his dreams. Dad says he needs to make his own decision, but what does Shawn want, freedom or friendship? With teasing, spot-on dialogue and an eye to the realities of inner-city life, Chameleon takes on the shifting moods of a teenager coming of age.