Ever wonder what life would be like if everything around you was strictly hip-hop? For Theresa Anderson (Tee Aye) life is just like that. In Hip-Hop High School, written by Alan Lawrence Sitomer, it’s all about the hip-hop in California.
The story is told from Tee Aye’s point of view. Here’s a little taste of the book: “My life is weird. It’s like I speak two languages. In my head I talk a normal kind of English, but when I chat with my friends or any of my peers I rap to them in this kind of ghetto slang. It’s like I purposely mispronounce words and disobey all them rules of grammar. Like, I never say “with.” I say “wit’.” And I don’t say “that.” I say “dat.” And I sort of slur my “what’s up” too and turn it into “wuzzup.” One of my favorite things to say to my friends is, “Wuzzup wit’ dat?” It makes me sound cool. Actually, it makes me fit in. And fittin’ in ‘round here is huge. Your clothes got to be fresh, your attitude has to be stlyin’, and if you talk too proper, you might get jumped by a crew or four or five. That’s because people will think you’re trying to act white. They’ll take you down for that. We got all kinds of unspoken rules like this ‘round here and people who violate them end up paying the price. It may not make sense to an outsider, it may not be reasonable or rational, but it is what it is and only stupid people don’t play along. And I ain’t stupid. At least not like that I ain’t.” If that don’t make you want to just go out and get this book keep reading.
Tee Aye is really smart, but no one knows it. Her parents don’t trust her, and her friends are dropping out of school. Her classmates are haters because they try to put others down if they let their dreams be known, and to top it off, her brother goes to Stanford. How can she compete with that? So, with no one to comfort her, she turns up the hip-hop.
Tee Aye decides to take the SATs. Her friend Devon helps her. They secretly study for the SAT to get into college. Preparing was hard, but taking it was harder. She has too much to worry about, colleges, friends, and maybe even a “developing situation.” Then, she receives bad news that Devon is shot. With Devon down, she has to tackle their college applications alone. Want to know more? Go read the book Hip-Hop High School. You can check it out at your local library or go out and buy it.

I’m telling you Hip-Hop High School is a must read! It really relates to my life and how hard it can be to achieve your dreams. These characters are true to every word. The story is off the chain, and the plot twists and turns. I was laughing, and then I was in tears. I recommend this book for people who feel that nothing can keep them from following their dreams. Urban high schools across the nation should be required to read this book. When I think of hip-hop, I think of dancing but is that all hip-hop is really about? This book can show you that hip-hop is about success and making it in the world, growing up to be somebody. It helped me see that hard work can turn a life of poverty into a life of success.

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Created Jan 29, 2007 at 10:51am • Submit your own review...