I enjoyed this book but it's been awhile since i've read it. I'm trying to update the books on netgalley that i've read already so I can focus more on the ones that I haven't read. I'm hoping to be better about reviewing books as I read them.

This is a wonderful book. I actually adapted it and made it into a book study unit in my fourth grade class. A wonderful book with a great plot and in-depth characters.

Thank you to Netgalley and to the publisher for giving me an advanced copy of this book to read and review.

Great read about the power of kids taking on important issues. I loved how to kids were able to help take on the issue of possible gentrification in their neighborhood.

I loved the writing in this book! Wes is a delightful main character, guaranteed to move even the hardest of hearts. A great read!

Take Back the Block by Chrystal D. Giles is a wonderful book about standing up for what's right, family, friends and community. Wes takes his Social Studies project and starts to use his voice to save his neighborhood. This book would be a perfect pair with Epic Fail of Arturo Zamora and to do cross-curricular work between Social Studies and ELA to actually do something similar within student's communities. This will be a must have for all of my middle grade teacher's classroms.

This is one of my favorite middle grade released this year. Excellent character development and I always love to see a character making change for their community.

OMG! This was such a fantastic story. This is the type of Black boy joy story that I desperately wish that I could have grown up with, but I am so happy to see younger generations getting books like these. Wes is such a fantastic character, and I think that he will be relatable for so many young people. There's also some tough topics that are tackled in this one, but it is done with grace and I can't wait to see what else Giles has in store.

This was an interesting book about gentrification and how a boy tries to stop it from happening. I enjoyed the humor and the way everything plays out. It's a great read for readers ages 9-12.

This is a really sweet, interesting, and realistic story about a kid torn between what his parents want and think (to combat gentrification in his neighborhood through protests) and what he wants (mostly to hang out with his friends). I think it did a great job showing what a real pre-teen would do and feel in this situation. I know there are a lot of books coming out about activism and skeptical young people getting interested in it, but I think there can't be too many!

Where I was a 6th grader with a voice. I really enjoyed this young adult novel. This book is about having a voice and knowing how to use it. Where's was very where's was literally trying to take back his community. This story is full of friendship, hope, and love. This book is irrelevant today with all the social injustice has. I recommend this to middle school readers. This is my first book by this author, but it would not be my last. I give this book five stars.

This is a fun middle grade title built around community. The ideas of community building and public service and getting involved in things that matter to you. I really enjoyed this one and it would fit in many different collections.

Not enough books address gentrification at all, much less explain what it is in a way easily understood by a middle grade audience. Wes is a character whose parents want him to be socially aware and responsible. They want him to care about what's going on in the world. Like most kids, Wes doesn't see the point. Like most of us, he only really starts to care when things directly affect him. When he sees how gentrification affects his neighborhood he begins to understand the point of protesting. He see how a person can make a difference, how trying even when an action is futile says something to those in charge. Giles takes the exploration a step further by introducing us to two ends of the spectrum: a character whose family is benefiting from upward mobility but now faces increased social pressure and one whose world is falling apart, who faces bullying and violence at every turn. While the resolution rests on a few convenient turns, the ideas are worth discussing and the book on the whole is pleasant to read.

Take Back the Block is the story of Wes, a young Black boy about to start middle school. His mom brings him to rallies and protests around his community, which he attends, but doesn't understand why he has to go along. It's not until a large development firm wants to buy out his neighborhood to build new housing and retail developments, along with an assignment on any social justice topic, that Wes truly understands what those protests mean, and how gentrification is about to affect him and his neighborhood.

This book is really well written and deals with the topic of gentrification in a way that is easy to understand. I highly recommend this book!

Take Back the Block is really the perfect title for this book. An important topic and really likable kids make for a powerful story. I loved the author’s description of Kensington Oaks or “The Oaks;” the neighborhood that big fancy developers were trying to take over. I found myself visualizing the neighborhood and wanting to visit and have dinner at Wes’s house.

An inspiring realistic middle grade novel about a boy who fights for his community. His parents have always been involved in social justice causes, so he is aware of inequities and oppression, but he has never been motivated to speak up. Then a company offers to buy all of the homes in his neighborhood with the intent to bulldoze and rebuild. Can a group of passionate middle schoolers stop the developers or will they be forced to move?

This is a great middle-grade book about friendship, family, community, and the impact that gentrification has on a neighborhood. It explains gentrification in ways that are relatable and very easy for kids to understand. I highly recommend this book for all middle-grade readers. I would have rated it 5 stars, but there were a few loose ends that I would have liked to have seen tied up, but overall I really enjoyed it.

A wonderful middle grade novel that addresses current issues like gentrification and systematic racism in a way that is accessible and appropriate for younger readers.

When a rich developer offers to buy most of Wes's neighborhood to build expensive condos, Wes's friends and neighbors must decide between taking the money or saving their neighborhood. Wes has no desire to leave the only home he's ever known--so with the help of his teacher, community members, and friends he begins a crusade to save his home.

Giles does a nice job balancing social issues and typical middle school issues (changing friendships, parental disagreements, struggling grades) and manages to tackle gentrification in a way that is informative instead of preachy. I think my students are really going to enjoy this one.

Well, this is timely. I love promoting stories like these to kids. Most middle graders are not aware of the concept of gentrification, and this book gives a solid easy to understand the view of how it affects someone their own age.


A solid debut from Chrystal D. Giles- I look forward to reading more from her.

I am excited to share this middle grade debut with my students. It hits all the right notes for "taking a stand" themed units or book clubs.