Book Rating

Hi! Today I am going to rate this book. Drum roll please... I give this book a 4 out of 5 stars. This book was well written and I really enjoyed it. If you didn't know, this book is a poetry in prose form book. So the words do not fill up the whole page, up and down. Instead, it is more expressive (since it is a poem) and it has lots of poetic devices such as a simile. I liked the story line since it was very understandable. But, it lost on star because this book doesn't really stand out from my other books I have read in the past. I don't feel much love or emotion towards it. The story is just like any other books. But the story itself was very good. I also liked how the author wrote this book. Frost wrote it so that way the characters in the book are writing something like a journal entry. This really might seem like it;s a hard way to tell a story, but everyone's story connected with each others' and that was what made the story move on. This is a very interesting way of writing. To add on, it was a great idea for Frost to write it in a poetic in prose format. A lot of the times in poems, it is easier to express your feelings because it does not have to be so structured and formal like how "normal" books are written in. And in this book, one of the important things to understand while reading it was to know what the characters are feeling towards something, or usually someone. So, I really understood how they felt, and sort of got empathy for them although I have never experienced anything like what all of the characters are going through. Overall, I liked this book. It might not be a story I will remember forever, but it is defiantly one of the books you should read.

After Thoughts

So, I have finished reading the book, about two weeks ago. Here are somethings lingering in my head after reading this book.

1. What happened to all of the characters let's say, 10 years after this event? For example, did Stephie and Jason stay as a couple? Was Harris accepted by his father that he was gay? To answer all of these questions and my other questions, I think Frost should write a sequel to Keesha's House.
2. Do things like this actually happen in our community? Well, the place I live in is pretty safe so maybe not my town, but do these things happen elsewhere? I hope nobody feels like they are not accepted by society or left alone...
3. What will it be like if this was written differently? For example, written in the way "normal" books are written? I predict that if Frost wrote it like this, it would be a lot different.

For all of these questions to be answered, I really think that Frost should write a sequel.

Characters of the Book

There are seven main characters. They are all teens, struggling with some problem.

1. Stephie- She got pregnant and she tries her hide it from her parents and her school friends.
2. Jason- He got Stephie pregnant, and he is juggling his football team and Stephie. If he chooses to care more for his sports team, he might win a scholarship into a good college. Meanwhile, he has responsibilities that he has to take care of himself, which is to take good care of Stephie and protect her.
3. Keesha- She has no place to stay at night so she lives in Joe's place. But she supports the other kids by giving them a place to stay at night since she is alright.
4. Carmen-She has to deal with some driving charges.
5. Dontay- With both of his parents being in jail, he has a foster parent. But, Dontay always escapes from his house which gets him into trouble with the foster dad.
6. Harris- He has told his dad that he is gay. After he told his dad, Harris got kicked out from the house. He has to find a way to find food, clothing, and shelter.
7. Katie- She has to juggle work and school. She barely has anytime to go from her school to her work. She is still upset at her mother for being married to an very abusive person (Stepdad).

There are also many "side" characters mentioned in the book. But these are the important characters that has either been mentioned many times or has written something in the book. They are people like Harris' father, Joe (the person that lent the house to Keesha), Jason's coach, and Tobias.

Everyone Goes to Keesha’s House For a Place to Stay At Night- The Theme

About a week ago, I wrote this one page essay on the theme of Keesha's House. Enjoy!-----------------

In Helen Frost’s Keesha’s House, the theme is teenagers trying to help each other through friendship. Until the part of the book I read (which is a little more than half), the 7 main teens are supporting each other to overcome tough situations. All of the teens have one big problem that holds them back from being able to stay home. They are problems like being pregnant, being betrayed by his father because he is gay, having both parents in jail, and many more.When Stephie, the pregnant girl went to the hospital, Jason the father/friend couldn’t decide to play an important home game or go see Stephie in the hospital. But Jason thought, “I had to be with Stephie” (62). This is showing that he cares for Stephie a lot because the home game was very important to him since his basketball team has never been champions for the last 10 years. If he won this, he can possibly get a scholarship into good colleges. In spite of this, he went to the hospital to see how Stephie and her baby is doing.Also, Keesha rendered lots of support to her friends. She provides them shelter for the night which to them, a must because they need to eat and do their homework.This is the reason why the book is called, Keesha’s House.