Review of Church and School Days

[AntonelaMaria]

[Following is an official OnlineBookClub.org review of "Church and School Days" by charlie green.]

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3 out of 4 stars

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Church and School Days: A Clifton Bullock Story from 1972 by Charlie Green is a coming-of-age novel with crime, love, and family topics set in the 70s. We follow Clifton, a young African American boy, as he grows up in the poor and crime-riddled neighborhood of Washington, D.C. He has a house full of brothers and sisters that seek his guidance and help. What starts as a simple paper delivery job soon takes Clifton on a journey of crime. When he reaches puberty, he discovers girls. How did that aspect impact Clifton's life? What will become of his life filled with vice?

Interwoven and complex tales of love and crime are told from the first point of view. Clifton is the narrator of this story. Because of that, I had the impression I was reading Clifton's autobiography. I liked that the author kept my attention throughout the story. For the most part, the storyline is realistic. There were a couple of moments when I had my eyebrows raised in disbelief. Even though Clifton loved the life of crime, he also had many girlfriends that filled his life with drama and children. He is a confident, charming character that makes his own rules in life and relationships. There is something utterly addictive and likable about imperfect characters.

My main dislike of this book is that there were some plot holes in the storyline. On one page, we are learning how Clifton is dealing with one thing, and then, out of nowhere, on the next page, we learn that the situation is different because we have new circumstances. I don't want to give anything away, but there were some inconsistencies. For example, we never learn where his father went and what he did when he left their family for a little while.

This book was professionally edited, and I noticed only two errors. But I think that this story lacked cohesiveness, and there were a couple of plot holes. The ending could have been more elaborate too. Because of that, I can't rate it with a perfect score. Nonetheless, I think it is a book worth readers' attention, and I give it three out of four stars.

I would recommend this book to all readers interested in historical fiction books set around a family. If you are interested in coming-of-age stories, boyhood, or fiction stories masquerading as realism, check this book out too. Keep in mind that sex scenes are not overly descriptive, but there is profanity used throughout the book.

 

 

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Church and School Days
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[Peace10]

Clifton sounds like an an independent-minded person which is interesting. Nice review!

[Frank Mutuma]

Love and crime already caught my eye. This will probably be my next read. Great review

[Ruthwriter]

I don't think I will fall for this . the story lines does Not resonate with my likeness.good review anyway.

[Amy Luman]

How are church or school involved or was it just a nice title? I will really try to understand what motivates Clifton. You would hint it would be having so many siblings that look up to him.

[NetMassimo]

I have mixed feelings about this novel, as some of its contents are interesting to me while others are much less interesting. The fact that the storyline is a bit disjointed isn't good. Regardless, thank you for your great review!

[Lindokuhle Mhlongo]

This Novel is not too good but too bad either but mostly enjoyable since I managed to read it twice but that's because somewhere in between I get lost in the story and have to pick up