A letter to Marcus

Dear Marcus,
My name is Alex and I go to John Carroll School in Bel Air. I am really enjoying high school. Where did you go during the summer? I went to Maine and climbed a mountain. My brother and sister swam in the ocean. I also hiked to the top of a mountain in a thunderstorm. My family and I got some great pictures and panoramas of the ocean and the mountains. I also went free climbing, which is rock climbing but with no ropes. Do you like climbing and sports like that? I think they are my favorite. Did you try any other sports besides basketball or did you just basketball from the start and never try anything else? I really enjoyed reading your book. It showed that you should always stand by your friends, even if they are not thinking of you or only thinking of themselves.

I think you handled your situation very maturely and well. You seemed resigned to going to jail, but you still did not betray Eddie. I think you should have just told the police what Eddie did because Eddie was only thinking of himself and his college chances even though you gave up all your college chances but still didn’t tell the police that Eddie shot the gun.
I think if I was in your situation I would have told the police what my friend had done. I would never have spoken to that person again. Also, when Eddie found out he was accepted to St.Johns, you should have told the police, because it’s not right or fair for someone who had such an important job in the robbery to get to go to college.

I really like the author’s writing style because you can see this sort of event happening in real life. You see stories about armed robbery on the news often, and explains the crime in a way that makes sense. He explains ways that the main character deals with situations and you can envision yourself handling the situation that way.

The loyalty you show Eddie is one of the best things about the book, but the disloyalty and selfishness Eddie shows you is one of the worst things about the book. You could have told the police at any time and all his hopes and dreams could have been destroyed, but you stayed loyal to him, even though he wasn’t very considerate of you.

The author’s writing style slowly changes as the book progresses, showing your resignation for jail and Eddie’s guilt about you getting caught and Eddie not saying he had a part in it. Did you and Eddie try to forgive each other or did you just avoid each other. What went through your mind when you found out that Eddie hadn’t spoken up and taken the blame with you? Do you think that if you had gotten bail, that there had been a mistake and that you didn’t have to go to jail, that your friendship with Eddie would have survived? Do you think when Eddie asked you not to tell anyone about his part in the robbery, and you attacked him, would have done differently if you could do it over? Do you think you would not buy the basketball shoes and avoid this whole mess if you had a second chance?

I think telling people about the book would help raise awareness for the issues spoken about in the book, and writing reviews and posting them on the internet would be good too. Making discussion groups to talk about the issues in the book would also raise awareness.
My advice to you would be to stay out of trouble and maybe get out on parole. Talk to Eddie, maybe you guys can forgive each other and become friends again. Be careful of who you make friends with though, to try and avoid this again. Try to make the best of it, and maybe it won’t be horrible. You can always make friends while in jail too.

Sincerely, Alex