THERE ARE NO CHILDREN

HERE
By Alex Kotlowitz

GLONDY RAMIREZ
FIRST PERIOD
31 CHAPTERS
AMERICAN LITERATURE
 Table of contents:
1. Reading Logs
2. Book Review..2-5
3. Literary Analysis.6-7
4. Connection..8
5. Works Cited Page.9
6. Rationale.10
7. Parent Contract

1
 Book Review:

Title: There are no children here

Author: Alex Kotlowitz

Published by: Anchor books, New York, 1992.

Genre: Non-fiction (Case Studies)

Intended Audience: Young Adults

Biography: Born and raised in New York City, Alex Kotlowitz was a son of a writer, Robert

Kotlowitz. Alex Kotlowitz grew up in a house full of books and knowledge. He graduated from

Wesleyan University and started working in a ranch before getting his first job as a reporter at an

alternative weekly paper in Michigan. Later in 1984, Kotlowitz was hired in Chicago by the Wall

Street Journal. In 1991, Kotlowitz published one of his best seller books and the one he is well

known for, There are no children here, a story of two boys living in the inner city. In addition,

Alex wrote another book named The other side of the River and a collection of audio essays.

Background and Context: There are no children here, its a book based on the lives of two

poor boys living in the inner city of Chicago. The book uncovered all the things the people and

media decided to ignore from what they called the other America. The book its a recording of

the author about two boys, Lafayette and Pharaoh, who lived in a low income public housing,

where they are faced with drugs, violence and the pressure of gangs in the community which is

segregated from the entire city.

Thesis:

2
Themes:

The book reveals many themes through out the story, but three of them are the most

outstanding and identifiable. The author reflects reveals the poverty, racism and that parts of

America are war zones. Poverty is reflected through most of the story, families in the complex

are people who are not able to find jobs due to the lack of education and the eyes depend on food

stamps. Kids often dont have food on their table or clothes to wear, this making them very

vulnerable enable to join gangs as an easy way. Racism is other of the major themes, the Rivers

and the poor families are often faced with struggles because of the color of their skin.

White people in the city ignore the violence and the gang activities in the neighborhood, and

tend to pointed out the poor families for crimes sometimes they have not done just by the fact

that a they are black. War zone is the last theme, this book shows the parts of the United States

that are faced with gang violence, kids often grow with one parent and almost in every case is a

female. Kids have low self stem and do poorly in school. All this being hidden from the rest of

the country.

Conflict: The two major characters are daily faced with obstacles in their lives. Living in the

housing project its a risky place for the kids to grow up. They are often faced with violence and

struggle to keep out of it, gangs recruit little kids to do their jobs and for the police to not suspect

of them. But for Lafayette and Pharaoh, the eyes want something different, they dont want to

follow the footsteps of their older siblings who ended up in jai. They want to make their mom

worry less and products of them.

Characters and Roles:

3
Lafayette Rivers: One of the two boys who lives are exposed by the author, Lafayette or Lafie,

he is one of the most affected by the violence and loss of his friends. He tries his best to not fall

under the gangs but fails to do so.

Pharaoh Rivers: The other brother who live is written for a period of two years by the author.

Hes the smartest but more sensitive out of the two. He steps away from trouble every time he

see it coming.

LaJoe Rivers: The mother of the kids and the head of the family.

Literary Analysis:
4
Connection:

5
Works Cited

6
Rationale:

7
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