-Avier Wanjou-Brass-

Cousins!

Another day. Another Black excellency story!

A sophomore at Peace Academy in Atlanta, GA, is finding success in starting a book club centered around Black boys!

Sidney Keys III created a book club, Books N Bros, allowing Black children to read stories representing their reality. 

According to Blavity, Keys started the book club at age 11 in St. Louis. After relocating to Atlanta, Keys continued the book club. Despite the difficulty of moving to a new city and the pandemic, he refused to give up his club. 

“I didn’t really get a graduation ceremony from eighth grade because of COVID, and I ended up moving a year ago,” Sidney told the Huffpost. “With all of that plus me missing my entire freshman year, it was a hard time for me. I didn’t know anyone, and I was stuck in the house every day. So I felt like I was in a repeated cycle every day.” 

Overcoming speech impediment when he was younger, Keys had difficulty finding books about Black children. 

“I got tired of seeing no representation in the books that I was reading,” the teen said. “I was just trying to picture myself as a white boy — and my mom saw that and she took advantage of the issue. She took me to the only African American children’s bookstore in St. Louis, Eye See Me Bookstore. That was the first time I’d been exposed to African American literacy in that way.”

In the future, Keys plans to attend an HBCU and wants to surround himself with “like-minded Black individuals who want to change the world.”

“And you can do that in so many different ways,” he said. “You can take the influencer route and influence those around you. You can start small with your community by picking up trash, helping the homeless or even speaking at your school or church. You don’t need to go to college for that.”

It is so good to see a little positivity. And it all stems from Black Boy Joy. Kudos to you, Sidney Keys III.