Episode Details

Promise Boys is a debut YA thriller by writer-filmmaker, Nick Brooks in which three boys at an urban charter school investigate their principal’s murder during a high-stakes 24-hour day. It is a page-turning, murder mystery thriller that shines a light on themes of social justice and educational inequities, shaping this novel to be both a commercial and literary blockbuster. Prior to becoming a filmmaker, Brooks worked as an educator with at-risk youth, and Promise Boys reflects his firsthand experience at how the system can condemn these boys to failure before they’ve even had a chance at success, despite the media fanfare often awarded to urban academies. “Promise Boys is a classic whodunit that mystery fans will love. But even more than that it’s a social thriller, told through the perspective of Black and Brown boys, that highlights the inequity in our education system,” said Brooks. “This is a story that needs to be told, to speak for our kids who far too often are unable to advocate for themselves and to inspire them to tell their own story."