Slater, Dashka. The 57 Bus.

Slater, Dashka. The 57 Bus. Macmillan/Farrar Strauss  2017  300p.  $17.99  ISBN 978-1-374-30323-5  hs  Nonfiction  E-BN           

Sasha is agender, a term referring to people who do not identify as either male or female. Born as a boy named Luke, Sasha picked their own name, loves wearing skirts and has found a wonderful group of friends at their private high school. Notice the use of “their” instead of “he” or “she”: Sasha prefers these pronouns. Richard is a 16-year-old African-American boy whose mother had him at the age of 14, who has been locked up once for fighting, but who has a good heart and wants to do better. When Sasha falls asleep on the bus and Richard’s friend suggests lighting their skirt on fire, Richard does it, thinking it will be a harmless prank causing no real damage. Subsequently, when Sasha needs several surgeries and Richard is incarcerated, the story may seem to be over.

But it is not over, for this book goes into detail about the types of people Richard and Sasha are. Their background stories at the beginning will lead readers on a journey that is much different from simply hearing that “a black kid set a white boy in a skirt on fire on a bus”. Because this is a true story, the ending is no secret, but getting to know Richard and Sasha through short chapters that touch on many aspects of their lives and of the case will make readers look at the world differently. Slater has written something that will inspire readers to stop judging, to forgive, and to hope.

Summary: The 57 Bus is the true story of an agender teen whose skirt was set on fire on an Oakland public bus.

            
Gender identify, hate crimes, law                                     --Erin Daly