Hands: The ‘tender and funny’ debut memoir

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The local community, however, want to see him take a different path to nurture his art instead of learning to box. Luckily, Trev is able to reassess his life and realize that the best way to live up to his promise is to use his hands for positive things like drawing.

His problems with his stepfather were very heavy, but Maldonado did a nice job of keeping the text appropriate for his audience. In fact, a few of the adults come together to make sure they can meet Trev at his level to figure out how to best to make him feel safe. This book for middle level males is a great choice for struggling male readers because Maldonado, a teacher himself, really understands the young, urban male voice.

This is presented in a positive light, as this man has a lot more money than other people in the community and a fancy car. After a boy shares a painful family secret with a friend, the other boy displays empathy in consoling him.

The hourly pay of bus and coach drivers has risen by just 22% since 1975, compared with a 111% rise for advertising and public relations managers. But everyone isn't a fan of his plan, because Trev's a talented artist, and his hands could actually help him build a better future.But as he attempts to learn how to box at a neighborhood gym, he begins to question if that is the best solution. Hands asks us to consider the choices we make with our hands, when we think that there is only one best answer, and provides us with a beautifully nuanced portrayal of toxic masculinity, while also snatching the attention of kids from the very first page. There is also a double-page spread to find the animals in a scene and a visual line up of the number of animals to count along at the end.