The Usual Suspects

Starred review from March 1, 2019
When a gun is found near their school, seventh-grade pranksters Thelonius Mitchell and his best friend, Nehemiah Caldwell, must work together to solve the mystery before being blamed for something they didn't do. Thelonious narrates: "I've seen this movie play out many times before. Something goes missing? Must be one of us. Something gets broken? Must be one of us." On the other hand, their innocence is not so easily proven given their track record of pranks. How do they manage to pull off such hijinks as borrowing the homeroom teacher's credit card to pay for online poker? They are severely underestimated as students "warehoused" in the Special Ed room, where the revolving-door administration hopes to "fix" them instead of listening to and supporting them. This old-school system of rules enforced upon them, which Thelonius frequently compares to prison, ignores their gifts, such as Nehemiah's computer wizardry. There is righteous rebellion within their mischief; as Thelonius explains, "sometimes we have to turn the system on itself for us to get by." But that gun in the park is much more intense than their usual antics. Yet and still, they ain't no snitch. Broaddus spins a hilarious, honest tale that sees Thelonius wrestle with circumstances beyond his control and grow into a leader while doing so. His cleareyed narration describes an unjust system too many kids know intimately.Readers will love watching these two uniquely gifted black boys explore the complicated tensions between impulses and choices, independence and support, turnin' up and getting through. (Fiction. 8-13)

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April 1, 2019

Gr 6-8-Middle-school pranksters Thelonius Mitchell and his best friend Nehemiah have been labeled "emotionally delinquent" and put in Mr. Blackmon's special education classroom, where they feel they're always taking the heat for things that aren't their fault (in fairness, they take the heat for some that are, too). When a handgun is discovered on the grounds of a nearby playground, the students in the special education class are the first ones hauled in for the principal's line of questioning. As Nehemiah and Thelonius work together to clear their names, they uncover information that has the power to exonerate them-but it also implicates a classmate who may not deserve to take the fall. Broaddus's experience as a teacher is front and center here; Thelonius's world and his self-awareness as he interacts with the adults around him (particularly Mr. Blackmon) provide insight into contemporary special education, and the thought processes of neuroatypical students and students with learning disabilities. Though the large cast of characters and uneven pacing makes narrowing down the culprit of the gun incident difficult, fans of whodunits with a social conscience will find lots to like here. VERDICT Broaddus's first foray into middle grade fiction is an overall success that provides a rare and much-needed glimpse into the world of exceptional learners.-Katherine Barr, Cameron Village Regional Library, Raleigh, NC

Copyright 2019 School Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

June 10, 2019
Broaddus’s middle grade debut, a dramatic exploration of middle school from the perspective of its most “troublemaking” students, brings his personal experience volunteering in special education classrooms to bear. Thelonius Mitchell, an African-American attendee of Persons Public Crossing Academy, is a “disruptive” seventh grader and special ed student prone to school pranks that don’t please school administrators. When a gun is found near the school, and Thelonius and his compatriots stand accused (“you just bring in the usual suspects”), he takes it upon himself to search for the real culprit. Broaddus peoples his Indianapolis academy with all manner of adults, from well-meaning to apathetic. Its students demonstrate similarly varied motives, many of them trapped in a system ill equipped to offer the support or protection they need. Though the story captivates, the voices and characterization given to the juvenile protagonists can at times feel a touch adult. Broaddus surprises readers with an ending that avoids a tidy, just resolution, and his portrayal of complex dynamics, particularly from the perspectives of faculty, administrators, and students alike, sheds revealing light on the nature of systemic profiling, based on class, race, and neurodiversity, at schools and within society. Ages 8–12. Agent: Jennifer Udden, Barry Goldblatt Literary.