7.6 /10 1 Votes
Cover artist Andy Bacha Subject Harlem life, gangs Publication date 1988 Originally published 20 June 1988 Preceded by Fallen Angels Awards John Newbery Medal | 3.8/5 Goodreads Language English Publisher Amistad Pages 216 pages Country United States of America | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Genres Young adult fiction, Children's literature Similar Walter Dean Myers books, John Newbery Medal winners, Children's literature | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Scorpions is a young adult novel written by Walter Dean Myers, first published in the United States by Harper & Row on June 20, 1988. It was a Newbery Medal honor book in 1989.
Contents
Plot
The plot centers around Jamal trying to get his brother, Randy, out of jail. Randy is a 17-year-old who is the leader of the Scorpions, a local gang of drug dealers in New York City.
Jamal's family includes himself, Randy, his mother, his 8-year-old sister Sassy, and his father, Jeovon Hicks. Jamal's father used to be an alcoholic after losing his job, and began abusing Jamal's mother until she moved away with her children. Now Jamal's father only comes to visit the family "once in a while".
When the story begins, Randy only needs $500 to appeal his conviction. His mother is working to the bone in order to earn enough money to get an appeal for Randy. His mother soon finds out that his brother has been attacked and stabbed while in jail and is in medical care. Some members of the Scorpions want Jamal to join them until Randy is freed from jail. They believe this will help make a connection by having orders directly from Randy to Jamal back to the members; the other members feel through they should just vote on a new leader because they feel Randy is dead to them and that letting a 12-year-old joining a gang would not be beneficial. Jamal wants to earn money the right way by working, but is scared to go against the Scorpions. Eventually, Jamal breaks free from the bad influence and does the right thing.