Dear Martin

Dear Martin by Nic Stone was originally published in 2017. It is a work of realistic fiction that provides a frank depiction of identity, racism, and adolescence in contemporary America. The New York Times bestseller also gained attention when it was named as a finalist for the William C. Morris Award. Stone's other well-known works include Dear Justyce (2020) and Fast Pitch (2021).

This guide uses the paperback version of the novel, published by the Ember imprint by Random House Children's Books.

Plot Summary

The novel follows Justyce McAllister, a 17-year-old ambitious student who struggles with being Black, with a difficult family background, in a predominantly white prep school. Despite his different identity, he integrates well into Braselton Prep, becoming especially close with a fellow Black student, Emmanuel "Manny" Rivers. Justyce’s life is suddenly upended when he is wrongfully arrested for a crime based on his race. When his community villainizes him, he copes with his status as a scapegoat by reading and responding to old letters written by Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. His connection with the famous activist provides the necessary therapy for moving on.

Dear Martin begins days before Justyce’s arrest. A senior on scholarship at the elite school Braselton, he excels in his studies and is slated to become class valedictorian. In addition, he already has a standing offer to attend Yale University. Justyce's motivation to excel originates in his struggles at home: His family lives in a low-income neighborhood with a high crime rate. He confides some of his background in Manny, largely overlooking the racist microaggressions and prejudices of his white peers, clinging to the idea that they are all on a level playing field.

Not long before graduation, while driving through a predominantly white area, Justyce and Manny are stopped by an off-duty police officer. Later, the tension between the two friends reaches a tipping point when Justyce expresses his resentment that Manny can more easily pass as “normal” at Braselton because of his wealthy father. Their public argument catches the attention of an undercover police officer. Upon seeing that they are Black, the officer suspects them of committing a crime and draws his gun. Making an abrupt movement in reaction to the threat, Manny is shot and killed.

Manny's murder stirs a profound change in Justyce’s mindset about race. He realizes that social signifiers like wealth don't make Black people invulnerable to hatred and bias. Moreover, he witnesses the inequity of the American justice system when the officer is not charged with felony murder. Instead, Justyce is charged in connection with Manny's death. Though he is eventually exonerated, this traumatizing experience causes Justyce to turn to the writings of Dr. King ("I Have a Dream," "Letter From a Birmingham Jail," "I've Been to the Mountaintop"). Much of the remainder of the novel covers the rhetorical unsent letters he writes to the activist, reflecting on the similarity of their problems and how little things have changed. In these letters, Justyce develops a private discourse, untouched by the distortion of the racially-biased local media.

Justyce manages to move beyond this traumatic period, entering Yale the following fall. Dear Martin ends on an optimistic note, suggesting that his shift in consciousness is what prepares him to take on the world with a sharpened perspective of how racial bias impacts society. Stone suggests that an integral part of one’s coming-of-age is learning to weigh progress toward social justice more highly than any personal aspiration.