Sincerely Sicily by Tamika Burgess

Welcome Back, Booklovers! 2023 is almost here! New books will be dropping on Jan 3rd and I don't want any to get lost in the holiday shuffle. I thank Tamika Burgess for sending me a copy of Sincerely Sicily because I'm loving seeing all the Afro-Latinx rep from various authors and this was one I was really looking forward to reading.

Sicily starts a new middle school and is having a hard time because none of her best friends are at this school with her. When he meets a old friend things are finally starting to look up but then her teacher assigns her a project about her heritage. Sicily thinks it will be easy. She's Panamanian and has visited the country a few times so she knows exactly what to say. However when students bombard her with question about how she can be Black and Panamanian she freezes and her presentation turns into a mess. Her identity struggles don't end at school either. At home Abuela is giving her a hard time about her hair and constantly making comments about her braids. Sicily has to learn how to use her gift as her Abuelo always put it and speak up.

One thing that's nice about this story is that there's a lot going on and it doesn't narrow in on one particular issue. Sicily is dealing with everything that comes with middle school including new friends and a first crush. She likes to write and she wants to write for the school newspaper but Erin Masterson is giving her a hard time. 

She learns more about her Panamanian heritage here but I like that it's not written in a heavy handed way. She's doing research so she learns different facts about Black culture and history in Panama everything from the West Indians who worked on the canal to the origins of Reggaetón.  

I really liked how the relationship with her family is written here. She and Abuela were very close prior to Abuelo dying but they become distant after Abuela continuous makes comments calling Sicily's hair bad. But I also loved how the book never shies away from her mother's non nonsense attitude and own conflict with Abuela. It felt very realistic as someone who has been in a similar situation.

There was so much depth here with all the different plots going on and Tamika Burgess takes the time to follow through with a satisfying ending. Overall I think this is a very strong middle grade sure to hold readers attention.