The 57 Bus
A True Story of Two Teenagers and the Crime That Changed Their Lives
Published on 31. May 2018
Book
Paperback/Softback
320 pages
978-1-5263-6123-3 (ISBN)
Description
Winner of the Stonewall Young Adult Literature Award
One teenager in a skirt. One teenager with a lighter. One moment that changes both their lives forever.
Two teenagers growing up in Oakland, California. One, Sasha, was born male but identifies as agender, wears skirts and attends a private school. The other, Richard, is an African American from a poor part of Oakland who attends a rough public school.
They have no reason to meet, except for eight minutes every day, they catch the same bus home. And one day, messing about, Richard spies Sasha napping. He flicks the flame of his lighter to Sasha's skirt, and Sasha wakes up in a ball of flame.
What happens next, as the victim, the perpetrator and the community struggle to come to terms with their sadness and shock, is a story of recovery, reconciliation, forgiveness and, above all, hope. It's about the power of being true to yourself, bravery and the good and bad in all of us.
And, remarkably, it's all true.
One teenager in a skirt. One teenager with a lighter. One moment that changes both their lives forever.
Two teenagers growing up in Oakland, California. One, Sasha, was born male but identifies as agender, wears skirts and attends a private school. The other, Richard, is an African American from a poor part of Oakland who attends a rough public school.
They have no reason to meet, except for eight minutes every day, they catch the same bus home. And one day, messing about, Richard spies Sasha napping. He flicks the flame of his lighter to Sasha's skirt, and Sasha wakes up in a ball of flame.
What happens next, as the victim, the perpetrator and the community struggle to come to terms with their sadness and shock, is a story of recovery, reconciliation, forgiveness and, above all, hope. It's about the power of being true to yourself, bravery and the good and bad in all of us.
And, remarkably, it's all true.
Reviews / Votes
A sensitive study of an incident wrapped up in so many modern conundrums -- Suzi Feay * The Financial Times *More details
Language
English
Place of publication
United Kingdom
Publishing group
Hachette Children's Group
Target group
Young adult
Interest Age: From 14 to 18 years
Product notice
Paperback (UK-B)
Dimensions
Height: 199 mm
Width: 132 mm
Thickness: 27 mm
Weight
281 gr
ISBN-13
978-1-5263-6123-3 (9781526361233)
Copyright in bibliographic data and cover images is held by Nielsen Book Services Limited or by the publishers or by their respective licensors: all rights reserved.
Schweitzer Classification
Other editions
Additional editions
E-Book
05/2018
1st Edition
Wren & Rook
€3.99
Available for download
Person
Dashka Slater is an award-winning journalist, who has written for Newsweek and The New York Times, among other publications. This is her first YA non-fiction book, but she also writes fiction for adults and picture books for younger children.