It's a very unique book that really gets the reader into it. AHS/TR

Reviewed by LadyJay for TeensReadToo.com

Lil J is running away from his problems. His alcoholic mother can't seem to get straight, he can't find a decent job, and now the cops are breathing down his neck. A drug deal has gone sour, and Lil J finds himself holed up in an abandoned crack house, wounded and afraid.

He meets Kelly, a young man who asks a lot of questions and wields a television remote control. The entire situation doesn't make sense to Lil J, and things really start getting crazy when Kelly begins to play segments of Lil J's life on the TV screen.

"If you could do it all over again, and change something, what would it be?," Kelly asks Lil J.

Lil J sifts through his memories, attempting to pinpoint the moment in his life that changed him forever. Many secrets are unearthed and Lil J comes to the realization that it wasn't just one thing; it was all the little things that added up and multiplied into this mess he calls his life.

Lil J is searching for redemption, but can he find it in time - and does he even deserve it?

Walter Dean Myers is a masterful storyteller who takes ideas about urban life and morphs them into something that is truly original and unexpected. His ability to use surrealism in a very real, life-altering situation shows that you can make a point without shoving it in your face.

DOPE SICK is an excellent piece of writing that will keep you questioning until the end.......and after. ( )

Myers blurs the fine line between reality and surreality in his latest. Lil J has gotten caught up in a drug deal he never intended to be a part of. In fact, his intentions for the day were to get a real job to help support his mom. Chased into a run down apartment building, he runs into a strange man who seems to know way more about Lil J than he should. This novel is fast-paced, strikingly rich, and important. ( )

Seventeen-year-old Lil J is in trouble, big trouble. He's living a hard life in Harlem with his drug addicted mother. Out of money and without a job he looks for some easy cash. When a drug run goes bad, an undercover cop is critically wounded and his buddy is caught. Lil J goes on the run. With the police in pursuit he hides out in a crack house. He's been shot in the arm and is desperate to escape but sees no way out. A television is playing in an upper apartment where a spooky man named Kelly sits and waits. He knows Lil J and he knows his life because he's watching it on TV.

His life is a mess and he would do anything to change it. Kelly may just give him the chance. With a flick of the remote control he shows Lil J his future if he tries to run to the roof. He's surrounded by cops and is holding his own gun to his head. Unsure of what he is seeing but with few options he is forced to stay. As he hides out in increasing pain and needing a fix his desperation builds. Unable to leave he is reluctant to answer Kelly's questions but he is persistent and somehow he can play Lil J's past, present and future. As he watches the TV his story unfolds but can he identify where his life went wrong? If he had the chance to change just one thing, what would that be and could he prevent this moment?

This was a short, intense read that pulls you into a young man's despair. The descriptions and dialogue depict a bleak life in the inner city but the hope of redemption and the possibility of a second chance is intriguing. Through Lil J's introspection he is forced to confront his reality. We may be a victim of circumstances but we all have choices to make in how we handle it. The author provides a very creative and effective story about those choices in today's society. This is the first book I've read by Myers but it won't be the last.

Thank you to HarperTeen (HarperCollins) for an ARC of this book.

author website - www.walterdeanmyers.net ( )

Lil J was involved in a drug deal that turned bad and ended with a police officer being shot. On the run, he hides in an abandoned building and finds a guy named Kelly, who he takes for a squatter. But Kelly has a TV, and a remote control that he can use to show pictures of Lil J's life and choices, past, present and future. ( )