What do you think?
Rate this book
The World is Black and White
16 year old Greg Chappell is like most teenagers... until he gets a call from his missing sister! It takes him on a journey where he meets a young hooker, hillbillies, truckers, and a crazy church. He also meets someone he never knew: himself.
459 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 2008
10 people are currently reading
152 people want to read
About the author
Christopher Knight
6 books65 followersChristopher Wright is the author of dozens of horror fiction books for children and young adults. He writes under the pseudonyms Johnathan Rand and Christopher Knight. Almost all of Wright's books (save American Chillers) take place in his home state of Michigan.
Librarian Note: There is more than one author in the GoodReads database with this name.
Librarian Note: There is more than one author in the GoodReads database with this name.
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 - 30 of 33 reviews
July 30, 2024
The first thing you need to understand is that this book is written by Jonathan Rand, the guy who wrote Michigan Chillers. Jonathan Rand is a pen name, which many people don’t know - made more confusing due to the fact that Christopher Knight is *also* a pen name.
I stopped in his store a while ago on a trip up north, having been a huge fan of his books throughout my entire childhood and attending no less than 3 book signings. Shortly after pulling into the lot, a large black pickup truck veered in and promptly took up two parking spaces and several feet of the sidewalk. “What a douche park-job” my girlfriend said. The door opened and out from the car, Jonathan Rand. He then quickly made his way into the store before taking his position behind the desk, where a semi-intricate system of fishing lines and eye-loops mounted to the ceiling allows him to dangle little plastic spiders and snakes in front of your face while you browse.
I think Jonathan Rand is genuinely probably a good guy, I just need you to know the context here.
Anyway. This is one of his books made for adults and I wanted to see if it’s any good. The answer: ehh.
The story is ‘fine’. It’s a kind of 1980s style road-trip-gone-wrong plot taking place in 2006~ with a 16 year old bad-kid-with-a-heart-of-gold protagonist. I might compare it to A Catcher In the Rye but without all the elements that make Holden Caulfield feel real or the observational beats land. More than anything the book really needs an editor. There’s typos, the tense changes back and forth, the pacing is often awful, Jonathan Rand never seems to quite know when to end a thought, and there’s one series of chapters in particular with a small cast of 4 “blacks” that even for being written in 2008 could, uh, really use an editor.
It’s not all bad, and I think if he leaned more into a magical realism / supernatural angle it might come off better. For now a lot of parts are just baffling. At one point the protagonist muses about how people judge books by their cover, only to one chapter later find a dumpster full of literal books with their literal covers all ripped off. This is never explained and no effort is made to justify why on earth this literary phenomena would occur. He then pulls out a pulp sci-fi book called “Galaxy Quest” and reads it throughout the plot, and there is never any acknowledgement that this is already the name of a fairly popular film from 1999. Did Rand just not know? Was it on purpose?? Why?????
It’s not awful, just perplexing. It’s like a book your uncle would write and you would go “hey nice job man, I thought it was pretty fun”.
I stopped in his store a while ago on a trip up north, having been a huge fan of his books throughout my entire childhood and attending no less than 3 book signings. Shortly after pulling into the lot, a large black pickup truck veered in and promptly took up two parking spaces and several feet of the sidewalk. “What a douche park-job” my girlfriend said. The door opened and out from the car, Jonathan Rand. He then quickly made his way into the store before taking his position behind the desk, where a semi-intricate system of fishing lines and eye-loops mounted to the ceiling allows him to dangle little plastic spiders and snakes in front of your face while you browse.
I think Jonathan Rand is genuinely probably a good guy, I just need you to know the context here.
Anyway. This is one of his books made for adults and I wanted to see if it’s any good. The answer: ehh.
The story is ‘fine’. It’s a kind of 1980s style road-trip-gone-wrong plot taking place in 2006~ with a 16 year old bad-kid-with-a-heart-of-gold protagonist. I might compare it to A Catcher In the Rye but without all the elements that make Holden Caulfield feel real or the observational beats land. More than anything the book really needs an editor. There’s typos, the tense changes back and forth, the pacing is often awful, Jonathan Rand never seems to quite know when to end a thought, and there’s one series of chapters in particular with a small cast of 4 “blacks” that even for being written in 2008 could, uh, really use an editor.
It’s not all bad, and I think if he leaned more into a magical realism / supernatural angle it might come off better. For now a lot of parts are just baffling. At one point the protagonist muses about how people judge books by their cover, only to one chapter later find a dumpster full of literal books with their literal covers all ripped off. This is never explained and no effort is made to justify why on earth this literary phenomena would occur. He then pulls out a pulp sci-fi book called “Galaxy Quest” and reads it throughout the plot, and there is never any acknowledgement that this is already the name of a fairly popular film from 1999. Did Rand just not know? Was it on purpose?? Why?????
It’s not awful, just perplexing. It’s like a book your uncle would write and you would go “hey nice job man, I thought it was pretty fun”.
Read
June 11, 2022My world was also black and white, so I made this wise choice to make this the next Christopher Knight book that I read. I had wasted a good chunk of my life doing stupid things, so I decided to seek redemption by starting with reading Rand's young adult novels.
I have to say, this one is the best. I read the whole book in one day after getting back home from Mackinac Island and I felt myself relating to the main character of this one. He is looking for his missing sister and ends up having to face himself.
That's like me looking for my purpose in life and having to face the consequences of the choices I've made. Reading this book was a choice. I had gone through multiple divorces. Those were choices.
This book completely changed my life and I look forward to reading Knights final book before moving on to the bigger challenges.
I have to say, this one is the best. I read the whole book in one day after getting back home from Mackinac Island and I felt myself relating to the main character of this one. He is looking for his missing sister and ends up having to face himself.
That's like me looking for my purpose in life and having to face the consequences of the choices I've made. Reading this book was a choice. I had gone through multiple divorces. Those were choices.
This book completely changed my life and I look forward to reading Knights final book before moving on to the bigger challenges.
March 25, 2012
This book was definitely a page turner. Greg Chappell, 16, "runs" away from home to find his sister who had run away a year before. At the onset of the book, Greg carries his lucky quarter every where - one side is painted black and one side is painted white. He firmly believes life is just like his quarter - black and white. On his trip to Florida from Bay City, Michigan, he as many unusual adventures (some of them a little over the top - making me exclaim: "Oh come on, how many rotten things can happen to this kid"?) But the story ends up being a fabulously spun yarn about Chris's changing views and how he dives into "the gray" of life. Many sad things happen in the book - but it is so worth reading! I would've rated it 5-stars - but the "over the top" scenarios became a little too unbelievable. I'm definitely going to read more by this author!
July 8, 2009
This book was great! It was a touching story about the struggles that the characters went thru in their lives. It showed us that we can go thru unimaginable challenges in life and survive. We can find happiness beyond the struggles.
January 21, 2023
extremely impressed with this book. the ending is not at all what I was expecting but I was not at all disappointed. would love a movie adaptation of this someday
June 11, 2021
A very enjoyable read. This book was a real page turner and has such a well rounded story. All the loose ends come together in a tragic and sad ending. I love how everything wrapped up.
The only thing I had a gripe with was that some of the writing style becomes a little repetitive, and there were some topics (i.e. when Greg was robbed and thrown into a ditch) that were a little sensitive in this day and age. They made me cringe a little, but the book was written in 2007 and I suppose times were a bit different then.
Overall, a great story with a great lesson. The author's ability to tell an exciting, heart wrenching story really shines with this book. Highly recommend!
The only thing I had a gripe with was that some of the writing style becomes a little repetitive, and there were some topics (i.e. when Greg was robbed and thrown into a ditch) that were a little sensitive in this day and age. They made me cringe a little, but the book was written in 2007 and I suppose times were a bit different then.
Overall, a great story with a great lesson. The author's ability to tell an exciting, heart wrenching story really shines with this book. Highly recommend!
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
October 7, 2021
I really really wanted to like this book, but I didn't really get the "I can't stop reading this itch". The story was good. It is about a 16 year old, his sister had runaway and a year later she sent him weird emails asking for him to help her. His journey to get from Michigan to Flordia had all sorts of twists and turns. There was a lot if self discovery moments, get you thinking about life kind of things, which were cool, I would have thought this book was a first novel written by a twenty year old. It was long, and some parts felt repetitive when I was just wishing it would speed it. It was an average book from an above average author, still good and worth a read.
July 16, 2019
Just a great story by one of my favorite authors ever. Started off with his books for children, as my son loved them. Came to find that he was a writer of books for the adult scene. This is now the second one I’ve read, and although it is over 400 pages long, I was so captured by the story, that I finished it in no time at all.
March 15, 2023
This is one of the best books I have ever read! I love Greg's story and the adventures both good and bad he encountered on his journey to find his sister. The people he met along the way and how Greg ended up seeing the world and people through new eyes. It's a story both funny and sad. Life lessons are learned along the way. I didn't want this book to end!! Loved, loved, loved it!!! ❤
October 17, 2023
Very interesting book with some life lessons. This author is from my home state of Michigan so I particularly enjoyed that is where the book starts out. This is definitely ajourney for a teenage boy who is looking for his sister but learns so much along the way and meets some very interesting people. I thought is was very well done.
April 20, 2020
Despite any of the shortcomings that the book might have in terms of narrative structure, this is one of the most soul-crushing, gut-punching, hardest to read novels out there. Do yourself a favor and check this one out.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
May 14, 2023
Awesome book. A heartfelt story of a young man journeying to Florida to find his sister. The full circle journey and all of his adventures is the story. Well done. You won't want to put the book down until you're finished.
September 19, 2023
Great book. It draws you in immediately. You’ll laugh, cry, wonder why. This book makes you think about life. Definitely recommend and would probably read again at some point years down the road; I enjoyed it that much.
March 24, 2018
One of my favorite books of all time!! Highly recommended to people who enjoy contemporary literature and young adult novels.
April 8, 2020
This was a great easy read! I enjoyed the plot - a good mixture of foretelling and surprising twists. It was one I couldn’t put down
October 30, 2022
Loved it!
June 29, 2024
This book shook me.
It literally shook me.
Such an amazing, heart wrenching read.
It literally shook me.
Such an amazing, heart wrenching read.
August 10, 2024
This book was full of microaggressions to the point it was hardly readable.
December 4, 2024
Michigan author. Everyone loved this read in my family!
Read
April 4, 2025good read
August 22, 2021
Absolutely the most emotional journey.
I have read and re read this book dozens of times and it tugs my heart strings every chapter.
Be prepared to love and suffer alongside with Greg on a journey riddled with misfortune as he encounters many thought out characters that are brought to life and you will connect with in great and terrible ways.
I have read and re read this book dozens of times and it tugs my heart strings every chapter.
Be prepared to love and suffer alongside with Greg on a journey riddled with misfortune as he encounters many thought out characters that are brought to life and you will connect with in great and terrible ways.
June 18, 2012
I was searching for a good bildungsroman to read and I noticed that this book received high ratings at goodreads.com. So I credit goodreads and its members for leading me to a fine book.
The novel is told from the point of view of a teenager, named Greg, who is living with relatives after the death of his parents. He finds living with his relatives unbearable, however, so he takes the car and goes on a journey to find his sister, who also left home some time before. Along the way Greg encounters people from different walks of life. The setting is the present day--the internet exists in this story; however, if I recall correctly, Greg doesn't have a cell phone.
The book is written in a clean prose style. A good bildungsroman, like this one, has the protagonist face issues of basic survival, e.g. obtaining food and finding a place to stay, while undergoing a positive personal transformation. I have a little quibble with the plot though--the main character meeting old friends near the end of the story seem too coincidental.
In the past few years, there is something of a Renaissance in Young Adult fiction. This book is part of it.
The novel is told from the point of view of a teenager, named Greg, who is living with relatives after the death of his parents. He finds living with his relatives unbearable, however, so he takes the car and goes on a journey to find his sister, who also left home some time before. Along the way Greg encounters people from different walks of life. The setting is the present day--the internet exists in this story; however, if I recall correctly, Greg doesn't have a cell phone.
The book is written in a clean prose style. A good bildungsroman, like this one, has the protagonist face issues of basic survival, e.g. obtaining food and finding a place to stay, while undergoing a positive personal transformation. I have a little quibble with the plot though--the main character meeting old friends near the end of the story seem too coincidental.
In the past few years, there is something of a Renaissance in Young Adult fiction. This book is part of it.
January 7, 2011
When I was in the bookstore choosing books, the first few pages of The World is Black and White caught my interest. Later, I took it home and I couldn't put it down at all. His adventure is suspenseful and thrilling. I remember feeling so nervous when the main character was sneaking through the campus trying to find his sister. The various explanations about his stay at a rural house, getting cornered by bullies and pushed into a ditch, waiting in the hotel lobby for his partner, and finding out his sister has leukemia are all touching and keep the book interesting. Overall, this is a very good read.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
June 3, 2011
This book is about a 16 year old boy living i michigan named greg who is living with his sister, aunt and uncle who are drunks. So his sister runs away to florida to get away. She gets in trouble and calls her brother to come and rescus her. He takes his uncles car and leaves for florida he will come across with a prostitute, thieves,talks to a truck driver, hillbilles, a strange chruch in the forest with some new friends,runs into kids from school and ride in a van with them and they get into a accident and greg is the only one to survive. Find his sister in a cult will he save her or no.
September 15, 2010
i thought this book would be like most jonathan rand books silly and fun but know after reading this thrilling and exiciting book i have never felt more complete and like i never loved a book more!it takes you away to a special place and teaches you a great life lesson it is in my mind the best book ever
November 9, 2010
“The World is Black and White” made me feel, well, sad. That’s the only word I can think of. It didn’t turn out happy. It didn’t have happy events. But, it teaches you about life and teaches you valuable lessons that are very important. Also, the beginning was very slow, but it gets better towards the end. I would recommend it to people, for mostly anybody. I really liked it.
August 3, 2012
Great novel of a physical journey and journey of a boy coming of age. This author is the same man who wrote my kids' beloved Michigan Chiller novels. This was a wonderful story about how good isn't always good and vice versa. Fantastic examples of independence and positivity. It is obvious Mr. Knight is a glass half full kind of man. Love the local Michigan references. Good book, overall.
July 30, 2009
Of all the books I've read over the years, this is the only book I wasn't able to put down.
Knight makes you feel involved. It is warming, some parts comical, and awfully heartrending.
A wonderful read for ages 15+.
Knight makes you feel involved. It is warming, some parts comical, and awfully heartrending.
A wonderful read for ages 15+.
July 13, 2023
This was a great read about a 16 year old doing anything he can for the one person he loves the most- his sister. It's the story of him getting from Michigan to Florida and the obstacles along the way.
It's the story of love and learning to continue to love after loss
It's the story of love and learning to continue to love after loss
October 25, 2009
This book was excellent book. I was unable to put it down, you feel the poor characters struggles throughout this unforgettable story of love, trust, courage and bravery.
Displaying 1 - 30 of 33 reviews