How hard was it to convey this reality in fiction, given how brutal it is to read? I was reminded of Tumblr posts that would detail underfunded classrooms and violent protests. By signing up you agree to our terms of use It seems that the main problem comes from police and authority figures not listening to students and addressing their needs, instead imposing their brand of cruelty upon bystanders and the people they’re supposed to protect. Thank you for signing up! Keep an eye on your inbox. I wrote a scene as a sort of free-writing experience to deal with my reaction to that episode, and while some small details changed over the years, that same sequence is STILL in Anger.

The plot for Anger was inspired by an episode of Buffy The Vampire Slayer (specifically “Seeing Red”), which I was reviewing for Mark Watches. But that didn’t solidify into an actual plot or story until nearly six years ago. It was tied to my own experiences and observations, and I’d never seen a book about it before. I had long wanted to write something addressing resource officers and the presence of police violence within the context of a high school. There are two basic things that make up the inspiration for Anger Is A Gift. The afterword mentions that it was conceived in 2012, in a very different genre but based on your experiences as an activist and high school student. Anger is a Gift is an intense book, filled with harsh realities about student life and about confronting trauma on a regular basis. In fact, according to the novel’s afterword, the story was planned as the first book to a science fiction trilogy.

When Mark wrote the first draft, he didn’t realize the story was going to become a commentary on coming-of-age while facing police brutality and systematic racism. His novel Anger is a Gift premiered in May 2018 from Tor Teen. His chapter-by-chapter takes on Harry Potter, Discworld, and other works have won readers’ hearts. Then metal detectors and the police show up at his school, and Moss realizes that they have to organize against it, or more people will die.Īuthor Mark Oshiro started his career by reviewing fantasy and science fiction, creating the Mark Reads and Mark Watches blogs and receiving a Hugo nomination for best Fan Writer. High school student Moss lost his father several years ago to police brutality, and he hates how people define him by the incident. Anger Is A Gift is a novel about grief, activism, and living despite trauma.

Anger is a gift by mark oshiro