Trash Review

Trash- by Andy Mulligan review

            Trash is the riveting story of 3 dumpsite hooligans who get mixed up in dem gov’ment’s biness when they sort out a bag filled with cash and a key. The book moves as swift as the characters into the central pickle, explaining the boy’s demeanors and appalling living environments on the go. The plot lays out some controversial depictions of impoverished youth in (most likely) Latin America fighting against and being lured by the pro/antagonist: big-money. There are some heart-wrenching, but honest scenes in which the boys are victims of police brutality. I appreciate how the novel portrayed raw poverty—I think this realism is essential for young-adult literature these days as a way of exposing the youth to the harsh realities of the world in an effort to instigate a desire for change.

This is a young-adult’s genre technically, so I can only help but be concerned with the ending (spoiler alert!); the boys eventually ‘stick it to the man,' concluding their adventure with fat-stacks and sandy-beach scenes. If this book is a commentary on poverty and structural oppression as a whole, the denouement misses the mark in addressing the true causes of these boys situations. It remained very capitalistic in that the boys ‘pulled themselves’ out of their situation via sheer luck and shifty street smarts. And although they reciprocated their luck by giving back the money to the dump, the resolve didn’t speak to how true structural changes to ameliorate poverty could happen. The system wasn’t taken down, the boys merely got away.

            While I value the book and think any youth could benefit from reading a novel that portrays impoverished youth in a way that is very relatable, there is room for more commentary on sustainable change.