At the center of Black Brother, Black Brother is a core dichotomy between the main characters of the novel (who happen to be brothers). Donte presents as Black, while his brother Trey presents as white. Despite coming from the same family and being roughly the same age, Donte and Trey's lives couldn't be more different from each other. People in Donte's life, including some of his classmates and teachers, wish that he could be more like Trey. When Donte is discriminated against and ultimately arrested because of his race, he works hard to fight against it and endeavors to become a world-class fencer to take down the boy who caused his arrest.
Jewell Parker Rhodes' Black Brother, Black Brother is a potent and emotional exploration of the effects racism has on people of color, of the school-to-prison pipeline, and of a person's ability to find their own voice in a sea of other voices.
Rhodes' novel received overwhelmingly positive reviews and became a bestseller upon its publication. In its positive review for the novel, for instance, Publisher's Weekly wrote that "This novel offers a solid story, with relatable, three-dimensional characters considering identity, that will teach readers about colorism’s effects."
