59 pages • 1 hour read
Ibi Zoboi, Yusef SalaamPunching the Air
Fiction | Novel/Book in Verse | YA | Published in 2020A modern alternative to SparkNotes and CliffsNotes, SuperSummary offers high-quality Study Guides with detailed chapter summaries and analysis of major themes, characters, and more. For select classroom titles, we also provide Teaching Guides with discussion and quiz questions to prompt student engagement.
Before You Read
Super Short Summary
In Punching the Air by Ibi Zoboi and Yusef Salaam, 16-year-old African American Amal Shahid, who enjoys painting and rapping, faces wrongful incarceration after a fight with white boys leads to a white kid named Jeremy Mathis being hospitalized. Amal navigates prison life, reflecting on the biases in the school and justice systems while finding solace in art and poetry, as he awaits Jeremy's crucial statement. The book contains discussions of racial injustice and the prison system.
Reviews & Readership
Review Roundup
Punching the Air by Ibi Zoboi and Yusef Salaam has been praised for its powerful and poignant storytelling, capturing the realities of systemic racism and wrongful incarceration. Reviewers commend its emotional depth and impactful verse format. Some critique the pacing as uneven and the transitions between narratives as occasionally jarring. Overall, it’s highly recommended for its compelling, socially relevant themes.
Who Should Read Punching the Air?
Readers who would enjoy Punching the Air by Ibi Zoboi and Yusef Salaam are likely fans of thought-provoking, socially conscious young adult fiction. This book appeals to those who appreciated The Hate U Give by Angie Thomas and Long Way Down by Jason Reynolds, as it explores themes of racial injustice and resilience through a powerful, poetic narrative.