Read Ebook {PDF EPUB} Trell by Dick Lehr Trell. That's the question Trell Taylor's been asking her whole life. Her daddy, Romero Taylor, is in maximum-security prison after being convicted for the murder of a thirteen-year-old girl when Trell was just a baby. Thing is, Romero Taylor is innocent. And Trell, now the same age as the girl they say her daddy murdered, is determined to prove it. But not everyone wants the truth to come out. Trell's pursuit of justice brings the unwanted attention of a dangerous character from the neighborhood, and long-kept secrets start to emerge. Working alongside an ambitious lawyer and a reporter with his own sorrows, Trell puts together key pieces of overlooked evidence. Former reporter Dick Lehr worked on the Boston Globe's renowned Spotlight Team, where he helped crack the case that inspired Trell. MiniMac Reviews. Screaming into the void about books I love since 2017. #ARC #Review: Trell by Dick Lehr. Gripping and realistic YA? Check. Compelling and diverse characters? Check. A book that’s easy to sink your teeth into? Check, check, check! Based on the real events that led to the overturning on Shawn Drumgold’s 1988 conviction for the murder of a 12 year old girl. Trell is a gripping tale that highlights the power of a daughter’s love, and value of conviction in legal counsel, and the ability of good journalism to expose the wrongs of a justice system prone to prejudice and corruption. Title: Trell. Author : Dick Lehr. Publisher: Candlewick Press. Expected Publication Date: September 12, 2017. Genre: Fiction, Literary Fiction, Teens & YA. Themes: Family, Murder, Law & Crime, False Imprisonment, Journalism. My Rating: 5/ 5. Synopsis. From the co-author of Black Mass comes a gripping YA novel inspired by the true story of a young man’s false imprisonment for murder — and those who fought to free him. On a hot summer night in the late 1980s, in the Boston neighborhood of Roxbury, a twelve-year-old African-American girl was sitting on a mailbox talking with her friends when she became the innocent victim of gang-related gunfire. Amid public outcry, an immediate manhunt was on to catch the murderer, and a young African-American man was quickly apprehended, charged, and — wrongly — convicted of the crime. Dick Lehr, a former reporter for the Boston Globe ‘s famous Spotlight Team who investigated this case for the newspaper, now turns the story into Trell, a page-turning novel about the daughter of an imprisoned man who persuades a reporter and a lawyer to help her prove her father’s innocence. What pieces of evidence might have been overlooked? Can they manage to get to the truth before a dangerous character from the neighborhood gets to them? My Review. I don’t always read a lot about books before I dive into them because I’m always scared that I’ll somehow spoil the experience, so I was absolutely floored at the end when I was reminded that this story was based on the real case of Shawn Drumgold. As I was reading I made a number of notes about how real and raw it all seemed, so the factual foundation really shone through. Lehr’s intimate knowledge of investigative journalism brought depth, perspective, and hidden teaching moments in a way that made me feel like I was joining Clemens and Trell on their journey of discovery. Okay, so I may have thought Trell was a male for the first few chapters, but once I got my head in the right place everything seemed to fit perfectly together. I think having a fourteen year old girl, who has only ever known her father as a convict, was an incredibly powerful perspective to write from. I appreciated that the same narrator was maintained throughout, as it was an incredibly personal story and yet still had the ability to encourage the consideration of the impact of actions and empathy for others. Without a doubt some of the most touching moments were when Trell, so steadfast in her father’s innocence, was coming to terms with the fact that her father had a criminal past and there were a good many things that he was indeed guilty of. It reminds us that sometimes good people make bad choices, but that doesn’t make them an easy scapegoat for major crimes. And while this story is very much about Trell and her quest to gain her father’s freedom, it about so much more! We see the redemption of Clemens as he comes to grips with the loss of his own son, the evolution of Nora as she transforms from a recent graduate to a criminal defence lawyer, and the reformation of Detective Boyle as he realizes that complacence can be the greatest crime of all. All in all, Lehr’s narrative highlights how politics and a flawed justice system can come together to create the perfect storm, breeds contempt and indignation, and contributes to redlining. I genuinely feel that Trell will quickly find a place in middle and high school curriculums as it touches on so many heavy hitting issues, and should seriously be considered for YA book clubs as there is much discuss. Would I recommend this book? Oh hell yes! Trell is gripping, well written, and provocative. It’s the kind of book where you can’t help but rooting for Trell while simultaneously becoming enraged with the failings of a system that is supposed to uphold justice. Filled with courage, determination, and enough twists to inspire those OMG moments that keep pages turning. ISBN 13: 9780763692759. On a hot summer night in the late 1980s, in the Boston neighborhood of Roxbury, a twelve-year-old African-American girl was sitting on a mailbox talking with her friends when she became the innocent victim of gang-related gunfire. Amid public outcry, an immediate manhunt was on to catch the murderer, and a young African-American man was quickly apprehended, charged, and — wrongly — convicted of the crime. Dick Lehr, a former reporter for the Boston Globe ’s famous Spotlight Team who investigated this case for the newspaper, now turns the story into Trell, a page-turning novel about the daughter of an imprisoned man who persuades a reporter and a lawyer to help her prove her father’s innocence. What pieces of evidence might have been overlooked? Can they manage to get to the truth before a dangerous character from the neighborhood gets to them? "synopsis" may belong to another edition of this title. Dick Lehr is the co-author, with Gerard O'Neill, of Black Mass, a New York Times bestseller about Boston crime boss Whitey Bulger, which was made into a film starring Johnny Depp. His most recent book is The Birth of a Movement, which Booklist deemed in a starred review "a remarkable look at the power of mass media and the nascent civil rights movement at a pivotal time in American history." The book was adapted into a PBS documentary that aired on the network's primetime show, Independent Lens , in February 2017. Dick Lehr is a former reporter for the Boston Globe and now teaches journalism at Boston University. He lives near Boston. Lehr covered the inspiring true story behind this one as a journalist and brings to light many of the important details not only of the case, but of the public conversation that surrounded Boston at the time—and does to this day. This tale of the fallout from the war on drugs recognizes one family's resolve as it hammers home the failures of public policy and the court system to uphold justice for all. —Kirkus Reviews. Based on events involving the accidental shooting death of an African American girl, the crack-fueled gang culture of 1980s Boston, and the ensuing outrage, this book will resonate with today’s teens. Trell is an appealingly gutsy heroine whose belief in her father is strong enough to drag an attorney and a down-on-his-luck journalist into her orbit. Younger YA readers will enjoy this fast-paced thriller. —School Library Journal. In precise, economical prose, former reporter Lehr ( Black Mass ) recounts a suspenseful story inspired by a case he investigated in the 1980s. Without sugarcoating city violence, Lehr presents facts about the case in terms readers will understand while providing enough exciting discoveries and triumphs to offset Trell’s disappointments. —Publishers Weekly. Lehr's background as a journalist results in a story full of details that might not otherwise be captured. The young heroine's voice and determination to prove the truth are inspiring in this intriguing take on a 1980s crime. —ForeWord Reviews. Lehr, himself an investigative reporter for the Boston Globe, found the inspiration for this novel in the true story of a wrongful conviction, and his meticulously drawn procedural elements are unsensationalized and convincing. Recommend this to readers not quite ready to tackle season one of the Serial podcast. —Bulletin of the Center for Children's Books. The story was inspired by real-life events that happened in Boston in the 1980s. The author himself is a former Boston Globe reporter which lends authenticity to the story. the story itself is compelling and fast-paced. —School Library Connection. Trell by Dick Lehr. On a hot summer night in the late 1980s, in the Roxbury neighborhood of Boston, a twelve-year-old African-American girl was sitting on a mailbox talking with her friends when she became the innocent victim of gang-related gunfire. Amid public outcry, an immediate manhunt was on to catch the murderer, and a young African-American man was quickly apprehended, charged, and wrongly convicted of the crime. Dick Lehr, a former reporter for the Boston Globe' s famous Spotlight Team who investigated this case for the newspaper, now turns the story into Trell, a page-turning novel about the daughter of an imprisoned man who persuades a reporter and a lawyer to help her prove her father's innocence. What pieces of evidence might have been overlooked? Can they manage to get to the truth before a dangerous character from the neighborhood gets to them? TRELL. In a Boston swirling with racial tensions and public corruption, a story of false imprisonment based in fact, from a longtime investigative journalist. The case at hand: the murder of 13-year-old Ruby Graham, a casualty of gang warfare in the Roxbury neighborhood of Boston. “I know he didn’t do it,” says Van Trell Taylor, Romero Taylor’s 14-year-old daughter. She cherishes the connection she is able to maintain with her father, imprisoned when she was just a baby, despite the overwhelming constraints placed by the prison system and a local media incentivized to paint him as a monster. The family reaches out to Nora Walsh, a white woman from the projects and an upstart criminal defense lawyer with a growing reputation for toughness. They must scrutinize the details and fight against public opinion in order to free an innocent man. Lehr covered the inspiring true story behind this one as a journalist and brings to light many of the important details not only of the case, but of the public conversation that surrounded Boston at the time—and does to this day; this important dialogue is still ongoing. Yet the seemingly omniscient perspective of this veteran white male journalist squeezed through the voice of young, black Van Trell Taylor leaves readers questioning who’s really telling the story here. This tale of the fallout from the war on drugs recognizes one family’s resolve as it hammers home the failures of public policy and the court system to uphold justice for all. (Historical fiction. 12-16)