March 22 - Black and White

As I read this book and write an answer to the Blog topic, I cannot help but think of the character Zero from Holes. The crime and punishment that goes on in the story reminds me of that of Zero -- he is the true criminal who tried to steal the shoes that Stanley takes the blame for. In Holes, the roles are reversed, as Stanley is the poor white kid who is wrongly punished for a crime, and Zero is the true criminal who escapes punishment for the original crime, but is caught stealing shoes shortly thereafter. I think that the blame follows Marcus in Black and White for a combination of race and wealth reasons -- while Eddie can afford an appropriate lawyer, Marcus uses one that is provided to him (an example of being disadvantaged due to money).