Ghost by Jason Renolds (208 Pages) is the story of Castle “Ghost” Crenshaw. This book recalls the events that happened in his early teenage life. This book takes place in a city about the life of this Middle Schooler. Castle had two best friends in middle school, but that changed once he joined one of the best track teams in the city, “The Defenders.” One day after school, he got sunflower seeds (his favorite snack) and watched the team do practice drills, and everyone was talking about how Lu was the fastest one on the team. Castle took his sunflower seeds, put them down, got on the track, raced Lu, and beat him by a couple of seconds. Everyone was shocked that this kid off the street beat one of the fastest kids on the team. Coach Brody and Castle convinced his mom to let him join the team, but she was skeptical because she wanted him to focus on his studies, so Coach promised that if he starts slipping on schoolwork or gets into trouble, he is cut from the team. Castle was the only one on the team that did not have any fancy running shoes, clothes, water, etc. he looked like an outcast, and when someone would offer him something, he would turn it down, so he did not seem he needed to rely on someone else other than his mother. Castle has had this long rivalry with a kid he knew back in Elementary School named Brandon. Brandon was one of the biggest bullies in the school, and he would always go after Castle. One day Brandon took a chicken leg and threw it at him, which ticked the Castle off. He started to beat up on Brandon (and he won but was suspended for the day). He called Coach acting like it was his uncle to pick him up. Castle pleaded with him not to tell his mom, so in return, he had Castle run lap after lap for his punishment. One day to “make him faster,” he cut up his shoes, and this girl Shamika in his class started laughing at him about it, so he went to the sporting goods store to find some nice track shoes, and he found the perfect ones, “The Silver Bullets.” Those shoes were so much he did not want to tell his mother because she knew he would buy them for him but give something up. So he stole them and ran to where he knew he could go to Mr. Charles’ shop because he does not like being home alone after his father. When he got to Mr.Charles, he helped him stock the shelves and put the rest in the back. Mr.Charles can hear that well, so when Castle got stuck in the StockRoom, he got scared because that is where they went after he got shot at, and in that room is where he got his nickname “Ghost.” When he got stuck, he was yelling for his help, and finally, he came and went to practice but was worried he was getting chased after for stealing. When he got to practice, they ran around the city, and he was afraid they would run by the shop, and there would be a big sign with his face on it saying he stole. His mother didn’t even see them, but when Coach Brody went to pick up the uniforms, he saw a picture of Castle saying he had stolen them and didn’t give Castle his uniform. He gave him that picture and ripped it up, saying that is his jersey. After practice, Coach took Castle home about to tell his mother, but Castle was begging Coach not to tell her because he knew she would have bought them for him, and he did not want that. Coach and Castle had a talk, and we found out that Coach used to live in the same neighborhood in a house just down from Castle; He also had an abusive dad just like Castle, but his father died. As a punishment, Castle had to clean out the cab and saw an old picture of Coach and his Dad (We also find out his name is Otis). Although Coaches dad took his Gold Medal from the Olympics to buy drugs, he still loved him. Coach took him back to the shop after Castle cleaned the cab and apologized to him, and coach paid for the shoes. Then the next day, they went to practice, and they got assigned the races they would run for the first race of the season tomorrow. The next day Castle’s Mom, Aunt, and Cousin went to his first race and cheered him on. Furthermore, from that time on the team, he got even more friends, Lu, Sunny, and Patina. 

One of the most exciting Characters in this book is Coach Brody. Coach is one of my favorite characters because he was always there for Castle when he would get in trouble at school and out in the world. When Castle was mad at the world for everything that happened to him, his coach would show him that you need to move on from the past because it’s not healthy. He plays a vital role in the story by teaching castle life lessons and teaching him how to move on from the things that have happened in the past. Because all of the events that happened in the past drag us down, and there is no way we can fix the past.

Another favorite Character of mine is Lu. Lu is one of the more exciting Characters in the book. At first, Lu is one of the competitive members on the team, always trying to be the best of the best and trying to beat everyone else. However, after a couple of Chapters and when it comes to the “Newbie Dinner” hosted by Coach Brody, he starts to open up and starts becoming friends with the other newbies. After they had dinner, Lu, Sunny, Patina, and Castle all became friends and lived a family with each other. Furthermore, when push came to shove, he was always there to stick up for them like his baby brother he always wanted.

The following passage begins when Ghost gets caught stealing the “silver bullets” by a coach, and he goes to tell his mother. Coach folds in after Ghost pleads with Coach because people were staring and asked why he stole the shoes. Castle tries to explain the problem, and Coach talks about how life is tough. From this passage, you get an insight into Coach’s life. When he snaps at Ghost about letting go of the past and can’t run away from himself, you can see within the text his tone has a personal feel. “Trouble is, you can’t run away from yourself.” Coach snatched the towel from his shoulder, folded it into a perfect square, and set it in the space between us. “Unfortunately,” he said, “ain’t nobody that fast.”

― Jason Reynolds, Ghost Coaches, thinking through the book, stays the same and talks about how everyone has a rough time, and everyone goes through things, not just him. Understanding how to let go and move on with the past is one of the hardest things to do in life when that one thing has been scarred in your memory. However, when you can’t let go of the troubles in your past, you will always be held back from that in life. This is an important theme in the story because it gives a life lesson to ghosts, and to the readers, you can’t stay looking back in the past. You can only change what’s in front of you.

Finally, this is a 4-Star recommended book. Even though this Fictional book takes place about a boy and his troubled past, which makes him a delinquent after what has happened to him, readers will enjoy this book because the Characters give life lessons that everyone can learn from, like not running from the past and you can only change what’s in front of you. The actions of the characters teach us a lesson about how to stick up for your friends and other people when you know they can’t or won’t do it for themselves if they like non-conflict. Overall this book teaches many life lessons to not only the characters but the readers. It’s also taught that you can’t hide from what you have done no matter how hard you try because the truth will always come out and get you when you have done something morally wrong.