Which two friends influence Wes (the author) the most in The Other Wes Moore? Cite scenes from the book and explain how this has an impact on Wes's education.

Wes Moore, the author of the book, had two major changes in his education. The first occurred when his mother enrolled him in Riverdale School in New York, where he was one of the few African-American students in a primarily Euro-American student body. This change distanced him from his neighborhood friends, which he resented. Although it connected him to another black male student at the new school, Wes suffered academically because he usually skipped school and never did his assignments. Close to home, one of Wes’s friends was Shea, whom he particularly admired for his skill at tagging. However, Shea was also involved in drug dealing. When the police stopped Wes and Shea for tagging, they let them go. Although Wes admired Shea’s art and rebellious attitude, they grew apart with Wes’s next major change: his mother sent him away to military school. Justin, Wes’s friend from Riverdale, was a serious, dedicated student who encouraged Wes to work at academics. After Wes went away, they corresponded and remained friends; Wes later came around to understanding and emulating Justin’s approach.