An Alright Book: Why I Fight

                      Why I Fight (2009)
                      Oaks, J. Adams
                      Fiction - based off a true story
                   
                      3/5
                      Some language and drug/alcohol use

Why I Fight is about a teenager with a bunch of problems. Wyatt is 12 ½ years old at the beginning of the story, and something has happened at home. It lets us know that his parents haven't been the best parents ever and that their relationship with Wyatt isn't all that good.

     In the beginning of the book Wyatt's uncle Spade picks him up, and he spends the next several years with Spade, who “buys and sells things.” He has a woman in every city, so Spade and Wyatt spend time in each of these towns and these women are like moms for Wyatt. Spade doesn’t talk much. I wouldn’t say he and Wyatt have a real relationship. It seems as though they just survive. When Spade figures out that Wyatt is big and strong and can defend himself, Spade decides that Wyatt should train to be a fighter. Not a boxer that wears gloves and mouth protection, but a street fighter who makes money from the fights. Wyatt becomes very a successful fighter, and he and Spade make a lot of money. Things then fall apart with Wyatt and Spade and big changes are made in Wyatt’s life.

     There are many themes in this book but I think that one of the main themes is that we are all faced with problems and challenges and that there is always someone that can help us through them. This was shown many times in the book: first when Wyatt is have troubles with his parents he goes to live with Spade. It is also shown when Wyatt becomes really good friends with some of Spade's lady friends and they become almost like his mom.

     Why I Fight is written in the third-person omniscent perspective which works really good for the book. It is a very realistic descriptive book and the third-person omniscent perspective works great because it shows what everyone is thinking and doing. It really shows you what its like to live the life of a traveler and a fighter. I think it is really cool.

     I would say that the intended audience is definitely teenage boys. I think that is the main audience because its about stuff that teenage boys like doing. It can also relate to many things in real life so that is why I'd say its aimed towards teenage boys.

     I first started reading Why I Fight because I saw the cover and the title and it just seemed cool to me. I would reccomend this book mostly to guys just because I think they would like whats in it the most. It is pretty well written but can take a while to get into. The Chicago Public Library says about the book, "It made me feel as if I was actually in the book." which I totally agree with. It is very descriptive. Booklist says about Why I Fight, "Oaks’ first novel is a breathtaking debut with an unforgettable protagonist, a boy who may claim he hates the word love but is nonetheless desperately in search of it and of himself." I think that that sentence basically sums up the whole book. It was a very well thought out book.