the bronx masquerade

When starting this book it reminded me a lot of the story freedom writers about teens California who live troubled lives and express there emotions through journal entries. Tyrone Bittings, a student in the Bronx Masquerade wrote a poem instead of an assigned essay. He read it a loud to his class and "open mic Friday" was born. This gives students a chance to read poems they wrote that express how hard their lives are in the bronxs.