Library:ADCLP/It Ain't All for Nothin'

It Ain't All for Nothin' / Myers, Walter Dean

Summary

Tippie, 12 years old and without anyone to care for him since his grandmother was put in the hospital, is adrift in Harlem. When his father Lonnie decides he will take care of him, because of the welfare money he will receive for doing so, Tippy finds out that his father isn't who he's dreamt him to be for many years. Tippy must decide whether to go along with his father, who is a thief, or reject his father's way of life and risk losing him.

Keywords

African Americans, Fiction, Harlem, Identity, New York

Reading Levels

Ages 11 - 13 / Grades 6 - 8

Awards

• ALA Notable Books for Children and Young Adults, 1978

Publication History

• New York : Viking, 1978. 217. ISBN 0670403016