Rule of the Bone - A Recommendation

Is a 1995 novel by Russell Banks. It is a bildungsroman about the 14-year-old American narrator, Chappie, later dubbed Bone (named for a tattoo that he gets), who, after having dropped out of school, turns to the guidance of a Rastafarian Jamaican illegal immigrant. The novel is split into two halves, the first of which concerns his family struggles in America, and the second takes place in Jamaica. Some critics, such as the New York Times' Michiko Kakutani, describe the book as descending from other novels about rebellious teens, such as J. D. Salinger's The Catcher in the Rye and Mark Twain's Adventures of Huckleberry Finn. The book contains frank descriptions of drug use and sexual abuse, which coupled with the age of the narrator, has contributed to the book's controversy.

This book looks at faith and life from a different light. If you've ever known a kid like Bone you'll appreciate his struggle between right and wrong, and what's important for survival. This is a great book that kept me reading!