Customer Reviews

Fist Stick Knife Gun: A Personal History of Violence in America

5 star:		(37)
4 star:		(20)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

Mr.Canada grew up in the 60's in the Bronx. In this book he talks about what it was like to live there. He talks about having to prove yourself or face the prospect of getting your ... kicked in the future. You get a VIVID description of what he was up against as a young person. I mean, I grew up a long way away in a much less dangerous place, and I knew exactly what he was getting at. That's a testament to his writing, and the universality of the subject. Mr. Canada recalls one episode where he is walking a few blocks out of his neighborhood, and you get a detailed view of how dangerous this was. Just walking down the street! All I can say against the book is that I would have liked even more of the authors autobiography. Later on in the book, he gets more polemical about what can be done. I agree with what he says, but as far as literary quality goes, that stuff isn't really in the same league as the earlier part of the book. Also, let me say, the author has an excellent, direct writing style, which makes what he has to say that much more powerful.

I grew up on the southside of Chicago. While reading this book I could relate to every experience that Mr. Canada relates. The book is easy to read. I think he identifies the problems well. Everyone who cares about children should read this book and help our children.

This is a must read for all who work with children of the inner cities. It should be compulsory for martial artists desiring a road map for teaching conflict resolution to young adults and children. I have never before read a depiction that was so lucid about my growing up in NY City. Cananda describes the tight rope that is walked for us who grow up on or around the mean streets and end up in ivy league schools and corporate environments that leave us still disengaged, alienated and disenfranchised. To be healed we must become healers. Cananda outlines the why and how to make a difference. We need now to heed the call. There are solutions......

This is one of the best books I have read. Not only does Geoffrey Canada explain in gritty detail the inner workings of ghetto society, he also lists solid solutions, which would enable inner city youth and residents to rise above poverty and despair. We, the people, have turned a cheek for much too long. This book should be required reading for high school and college-level students.

As a graphic novel in the traditional sense, "Fist Stick Knife Gun: A Personal History of Violence" is not a particularly exciting read. However, FSKG is not a traditional graphic novel, but an illustrated memoir and examination of the street culture that gave rise to the violence that plagues our ghettos and causes hardship for so many who find themselves unable to extricate themselves and succeed in life when life has taught them nothing but aggression. The story sidesteps many opportunities to be preachy and allows the reader room to connect the dots themselves as the author simply recounts his life experiences growing up in the South Bronx and the social structure and cultural change that would eventually lead to what we now know as gang violence. Author Geoffrey Canada has spent his life educating people and attempting to offer children the chance to grow up free of violence by starting the Harlem Children's Zone, which is a program that seeks to provide the adult role models and supervision that he and so many other urban youths did not have growing up. That's what you "call putting it where your mouth is". Universal praise is hard to come by in these politically-divided times, but Mr. Canada has indeed earned it.

FSKG is really not so much a graphic novel as it is illustrated autobiographical expositionary prose. This is to say that there is very little dialogue from the characters and the story is told via narration rather than unfolding based on character interactions. As a story it lacks many things (including a climax or even a proper conclusion), but one thing it has in spades in believability. After all, one can hardly expect real life to unfold like a fictional Hollywood production or classic novel. The purpose of this comic is not to entertain, but to educate. And those who look down their noses from ivory towers at what they see as crude street culture could use this particular class. Canada's experiences are interesting in that they predate the wide availability of firearms in urban areas so in that sense he got out before things got really bad. A lot of what is within thee pages are what we'd call "boys being boys". However, the lack of father figures or adult supervision leads to an almost tribal atmosphere where combat is the only way to establish a pecking order and neighbors band together to prove their street is the toughest. It's a crude system, but one with it's own with ethics and honor. But -just like in business, career, and politics- growing up and succeeding on the streets means escalation and an eventual discarding of any pretension of integrity. The title says it all.

FSKG in a brief glimpse into the street culture of days past that led to the violence we see in ghettos around the country. Canada lays his experiences out for the world to consume and Jamar Nicholas' art effectively visualizes the tale. As a story unto itself, it's not really outstanding, but as a look into a world your average suburban businessman has never bothered to consider while complaining about hip-hop attitudes and fashions and paying no mind to the large number of young people losing their lives in these inner-city warzones, it's essential. Mr. Canada has spent his life combating the things he grew up with in an attempt to better the lives of those who may not be as lucky as he has been. Is it too much to ask that we listen to the man's story?

This book is incredibly powerful. Fist, Stick, Knife, Gun integrates real stories with tangible solutions. It is an incredible testament to the power of nonviolence in contemporary urban America. I think everyone in the country should read this book.

The Late Harvey Pekar created a comic version of his life is his many incarnations of his comic American Splendor (one of the best of this series is Best of American Splendor). It was one of those books you could read over and over again and get more and more out of it.

Jamar Nicholas adapted Geoffrey Canada's memoir into a graphic novel to urban memoir to be an African American Splender. Nicholas makes the text and art jump off the page.

Canada story of life in the streets will make you take notice.

My grandmother Esther use to say "Comic books are for kids: After reading this, Maus, Lone Wolf and Cub, Preacher and Pekar's Splender..i can say these graohic novels are not for kids..BUT worth getting!

Bennet Pomerantz
AUDIOWORLD

So: I guess I am *not* the primary intended audience.
I don't generally go for graphic novels. I grew up shielded from neighborhoods like South Bronx.
But as one more educator who's craving some way to give our underserved American populations some leverage to realize "the American dream," I found Canada & Nicholas little book to be eye-opening. And it is reassuring to read reports from other reviewers (who have more first-hand experience) that the enticing traps of street violence depicted in FSKG are realistic.
I highly recommend this to educators, parents, social strategists, etc. who want to understand more about what inner city youth are facing.
It's also a richly personal window into the needs that fuel Geoffrey Canada's passion to open up educational opportunities to inner city youth.
Be sure to follow up with Paul Tough's details on Canada's work: Whatever It Takes: Geoffrey Canada's Quest to Change Harlem and America

I loved Geoffrey Canada's book Whatever It Takes: Geoffrey Canada's Quest to Change Harlem and America. An examination of America's most toughest neighborhood and the struggled to reform the educational system inside of it proves for an amazing read. A group of educators are making a difference in the lives of the people who live there, which all started with the unique vision of Canada himself. How he got his start, somewhat, is covered in this chilling and complex graphic novel, "First Stick Knife Gun".

The novel is an examination of Canada's youth, and his reflections on the violence that grew up around him. His father left him, and his mother and two brothers, in the Bronx in the 1950's, not the safest place to be. Even just walking down the street proves to be a challenging event. Canada responds to the violence around him by adapting to it and becoming a part of it. It was simply a matter of survival, not aggression. In order to live, you must learn to fight. While Canada learns to protect himself physically, I couldn't help but think that much of his current determination and drive comes from perseverance that he learned growing up.

We have a lot of people in our country that speak about our inner cities, and pontificate about what is best for them and the people who live there, who have never set one foot in those areas. This book could serve as a wake-up call to those that think they know best. Canada's voice is strong, challenging, persistent and ultimately, compelling. A must read!

Fist Stick Knife Gun: A Personal History of Violence
Geoffrey Canada
adapted by Jamar Nicholas
Beacon Press
2010

A Librarything Early Reviewer Advanced Copy.
Based on the best selling book of the same name, Fist Stick Knife Gun is the true story of a boy growing up in the Bronx, surrounded by gangs and violence. Mr. Canada shares with the reader how children in his neighborhood were indoctrinated to violence at a young age and how each year the violence escalated.

The prose is simple, straight-forward, and moving. The illustrations are successful in depicting the ugliness and horror that is children fighting and carrying weapons.

While written at a level that upper elementary and middle school students could understand, the adult content, violence, and profanity may aim this book at high school and adult readers. This is a thought provoking book that should be read in any area/city/town with gang/teen violence/crime.

4 stars. I enjoyed the book and was hooked, but I wanted more. I wanted to see what Geoff did after giving up the gun. Instead, there is an afterword, but it does not have the power of the rest of the graphic novel.