Punching the Air — Content Guide for Parents
Found in this book
- ViolenceSupporting
- Scary contentBrief
- ReligionSupportingIslamic
- Race & cultureCentral
- ProfanityBrief
Not found
- Climate
- Sexual content
- Gender roles
- Gender & orientation
Content themes
Factual summary of themes present in this book. No opinion — just the facts.
Get the full theme breakdown in the app
Summaries and source quotes for every theme.
Download for iOSExample theme card
Religion
PRESENTContains references to prayer and church attendance. A minister character plays a supporting role in two chapters.
About this book
New York Times and USA Today bestseller * Goodreads Finalist for Best Teen Book of the Year * Time Magazine Best Book of the Year * Publishers Weekly Best Book of the Year * Shelf Awareness Best Book of the Year * School Library Journal Best Book of the Year * Kirkus Best Book of the Year * New York Public Library Best Book of the Year
From award-winning, bestselling author Ibi Zoboi and prison reform activist Yusef Salaam of the Exonerated Five comes a powerful YA novel in verse about a boy who is wrongfully incarcerated. One of the most acclaimed YA novels of the year, this New York Times and USA Today bestseller is a must-read for fans of Jason Reynolds, Walter Dean Myers, and Elizabeth Acevedo and is now available in paperback!
The story that I thought
was my life
didn't start on the day
I was born
Amal Shahid has always been an artist and a poet. But even in a diverse art school, because of a biased system he's seen as disruptive and unmotivated. Then, one fateful night, an altercation in a gentrifying neighborhood escalates into tragedy. "Boys just being boys" turns out to be true only when those boys are white.
The story that I think
will be my life
starts today
Suddenly, at just sixteen years old, Amal is convicted of a crime he didn't commit and sent to prison. Despair and rage almost sink him until he turns to the refuge of his words, his art. This never should have been his story. But can he change it?
With spellbinding lyricism, award-winning author Ibi Zoboi and prison reform activist Yusef Salaam tell a moving and deeply profound story about how one boy is able to maintain his humanity and fight for the truth in a system designed to strip him of both.
Frequently asked questions
Is Punching the Air appropriate for a 7-year-old?
A fistfight leaves a white teen in a coma, and later there are fights among prisoners and beatings by guards and other prisoners. The story includes a boy left clinging to life, prison fights, beatings and solitary confinement.
Does Punching the Air have violence?
Found (Supporting): A fistfight leaves a white teen in a coma, and later there are fights among prisoners and beatings by guards and other prisoners.
Does Punching the Air have scary content?
Found (Brief): The story includes a boy left clinging to life, prison fights, beatings and solitary confinement.
Does Punching the Air have religion?
Found (Supporting, Islamic): Amal, the narrator, is a Muslim teen whose faith, including daily prayer, is part of who he is and how he copes in juvenile detention.
Does Punching the Air have race & culture?
Found (Central): The story is about a Black teen convicted after a fight between Black and white teens, and it deals with racism and a biased justice system throughout.
Does Punching the Air have profanity?
Found (Brief): The parents' guide lists some strong language, including two common swear words and a milder one, along with racial slurs.
Does Punching the Air have climate?
Not found in the sources we checked.
Does Punching the Air have sexual content?
Not found in the sources we checked.
Does Punching the Air have gender roles?
Not found in the sources we checked.
Does Punching the Air have gender & orientation?
Not found in the sources we checked.
