The Thing About Home by Rhonda McKnight

Welcome Back, Booklovers! One of my goals this year was to pick up more family sagas. There's something about seeing how these big families interact with each other and share in traditions that just warms my heart. The Thing About Home being set in South Carolina's Lowcountry also interested me because there's so much rich history to explore in that area. So when I saw that it was one of Libro FM's Advanced Listening Copy picks I decided it was a sign to read it sooner rather than later.

Casey is an influencer who has planned the perfect vow renewal, but she didn't expect her husband to leave her at the altar, embarrassing her in front of millions of fans. After her meltdown goes viral, she decides to take a break from the fast life in NYC against her momagers wishes. She finally decides to track down her father's family after years of unanswered questions about them which brings her to the South Carolina countryside.

Food is such an important part of this story. Casey discovers that her 99 year old grandmother has a significant amount of farmland that she owns and operates with the help of the very charming Nigel. She and her family bond through dishes that have been passed down for generations. Spending time on the farm is the thing that helps her connect to her 99 year old grandmother.

I'm not stranger to inspirational stories. While faith is very much a part of this story I liked that the approach wasn't too heavy handed. There's no way to read a story about a Black southern family with such deep roots in their community and not have church be apart of the discussion. It's very much ingrained in the culture and the church is just as much a gathering place for their family as the local hole in the wall restaurant.

This book doesn't shy away from discussions about topics that are not spoken about enough like Casey's multiple miscarriages and how that affected her marriage and her idea of a happy family. Casey learns more about her family history through her great grandmother's journals and I like how readers get that glimpse of the past but it also reminds us that some of the issues Casey is facing aren't new. 

It's a quieter story but there's no shortage of drama between family secrets and exes looming. I enjoyed reading about Casey finding herself, connecting with her family, and being open to love again.

When the World Turned Upside Down by K. Ibura

Welcome Back, Booklovers! It has been a crazy two years and I feel like as an essential worker I've been going going going and haven't had much time to sit down and reflect on everything that's happened. I know there's been some anthologies about lockdown they released in 2020 and beyond and people have mixed opinions about them. This is the first story I've read really tackling the pandemic. I received a finished copy from Scholastic in exchange for an honest review.

This story follows four different children during the onset of the Covid 19 pandemic. It's not easy making 4 different characters each sound unique and fleshing out their family dynamics but K. Ibura does a great job here. Taking care of younger siblings, dealing with a depressed parent, helping elderly neighbors, dealing with fighting parents, and processing anxiety were just a few of the issues this story tackles.

When the world shut down in March 2020, my world never shut down. While I heard about the kids struggling with online school I never stopped to think about how much they had to process with everything else going on. These children were at least lucky enough to have each other since they live in an apartment building even though they had to take precautions while interacting with each other. It also brought me back to just how little we knew about this virus back then which only added to the terror at the time. 

I liked that this book had the kids trying to help out in their local community. Social Justice is more than just issues of racial injustice and I feel like sometimes in stories aimed at Black kids there's a hyper focus on that. Of course it's impossible to tell a story about the beginning of the pandemic in 2020 and not mention the impact of George Floyd's death. So that is mentioned here with care. I never watched the video, I refused to. But the news was everyone and it was sparking major conversations. This story shows it through the eyes of children who are having uneasy conversations with their parents. The kids have been really processing a lot and we don't give them enough credit. 

Holding Myself Accountable: A September ARC TBR

 

Welcome Back, Booklovers!

It's about to be a very BLACK September. Your girl may have gone a tad bit overboard with the arc requesting and accepting for the September books. But best believe when I put my mind to something I do it. And I plan on reading and reviewing all of these books so get ready for a content heavy September. I'm reading Black books across the spectrum!  I've got YA Fantasy, YA Contemporary, Fantasy, Mystery, MG Horror, MG Contemporary, and MG Fantasy. 

Master of Poisons by Andrea Hairston

 

Legendborn by Tracy Deonn 

 

Never Look Back by Lilliam Rivera

Hide and Seeker by Daka Hermon

 

And Now She's Gone by Rachel Howzell Hall

 

Maya and the Rising Dark by Rena Barron

 

 Everybody Looking by Candice Iloh

Ties that Tether by Jane Igharo

Interview with Author Brandy Colbert

Hey Booklovers,

I can't believe we're in July already. June was a busy month for reading and blogging. My most productive month this year. I'm very happy to bring you all another interview from my author interview series. If you aren't familiar with Brandy Colbert then you should get familiar. She's been featured in a number of YA anthologies in addition to her standalone contemporary books.

What inspired you to become a writer? 

I’ve always loved stories and reading. From a young age, my parents took me to the library and bookstores, where I browsed the stacks and shelves and loved getting lost in other worlds. I realized as a young child that I had stories I wanted to tell, too. I started writing at the age of seven and never stopped.

I remember your debut story Pointe receiving a lot of acclaim during a time when there were far less Black books in the mainstream. What was that experience like?

I’m so proud of that book, and am pleased with how much it resonated with people. I was surprised that the story I’d had in my head for years was actually published and available to read, and that some people liked the story and sympathized with the characters. At the same time, there were so few children’s/YA books being published by Black authors then, and I believe a lot of the discussions we’re having today apply to my book back then. I do believe it could have reached a broader audience if there had been more support for Black stories and Black writers. Even today, a lot of readers don’t realize that Little & Lion wasn’t my debut.

Had to post the original cover of Pointe for those of us who read it back in 2014

And to piggyback off that question. What challenges have you faced in the industry as a Black author?

Just like many, many aspects of being Black, my career is shaped by an institutionally racist system. Black authors routinely receive less marketing, bear complaints of characters and stories not being “relatable,” and have to work ten times as hard just to get the same respect and attention as our white colleagues. Black authors must also deal with gatekeepers who believe one narrative is more valuable than another; for instance, books dealing heavily with Black pain are often boosted over books featuring Black joy. Even with the current movement, the first instinct many people had was to recommend kids read books about police brutality, civil rights struggles, etc. Of course these books are valuable and always deserve a place on the shelf because they are dealing with important issues. And some of my books deal with these issues, too. But readers shouldn’t have to witness a character experiencing racist violence or pain to empathize with Black people, and to consistently push this narrative is harmful to everyone.

What was it like writing for the Middle Grade audience vs the Young Adult audience with The Only Black Girls in Town?

I loved writing for middle grade readers! There is something so cozy and sweet about that age, though kids are certainly no stranger to pain and suffering, just like any other age group. I liked focusing more on friendships and family than romance and adolescent issues, and it was nice to get back into the head of a twelve-year-old. Everything is big and new when you’re a teenager, but it is so big and so new when you’re twelve, and I enjoyed trying to capture those moments on the page.

How is your upcoming book The Voting Booth different from your other work?

Stylistically, it’s a book set in one day, it’s told from dual points of view, and one of those points of view is a teenage boy, all of which was new to me. It’s technically a romcom, which I’ve also never written, and while it still deals with serious issues, I think it’s a bit more cheerful overall than most of my other YA novels.

Which one of your stories would you love to see made into a movie or series?

Truly any of them!

You’ve written stories for multiple YA anthologies. How is it different writing to fit a specific collection of stories?

I’m still surprised I’ve written so many short stories, as it’s such a difficult art form, and it takes a while to get into that rhythm. I like having a specific goal to write toward (such as writing about a witch, or a love triangle, or a story set during summer), but still having a lot of freedom to create worlds within those parameters. I still have a lot to learn with short stories, and hope to continue flexing that muscle.

Which 2020 book releases have been your favorite reads so far?

I’ve really enjoyed The Black Kids by Christina Hammonds Reed, Ways to Make Sunshine by Renée Watson, In the Role of Brie Hutchens by Nicole Melleby, Red Hood by Elana K. Arnold, and Yes No Maybe So by Becky Albertalli and Aisha Saeed.

You are also on faculty for Hamline University. What has your experience teaching been like?

It’s been wonderful! I never expected to be a teacher, so it’s challenging in some ways, but also incredibly rewarding. I love getting to work with such a brilliant, kind, and supportive faculty, and also such talented writers honing their craft and coming into their voice.

Do you have any works in progress and if so can you tell us what you’re working on?

I have several things in the works, which I’ll hopefully get to share more about soon! One project I can talk about right now is the nonfiction YA book I’m working on about the Tulsa race massacre, which was recently announced. It will be released next year, which is the 100th anniversary of the tragedy, and while the subject matter is quite harrowing, like me, a lot of Americans were never taught about this in school, so I’m grateful and honored to be able to tell this story for young readers. 

All The Things We Never Knew by Liara Tamani

Welcome Back, Booklovers!

Another crazy week down and another book read. So last year I noticed that even though we are getting more Black books that there is still a lack of contemporary romance books for Black teens. And I see so much Black women vs Black men wars on social media. I see young Black girls propping up the white boy of the month or the K Pop artist currently thriving off of Black culture while putting down their own men. I see Black men putting down Black girls while professing their love for biracials, white girls, and non Black Latinx girls. It's disheartening to see.

 Last year I tried to list the books featuring Black girls and boys where the story was about them falling in love. Traditional romance not fantasy that has a love story in it. Not a contemporary that deals with other issues but happens to have some romance in it. I even reached out to some Black authors and we really were having a tough time naming any. We could only name two. This year I found 7 that I am determined to read and review for this blog. The first one that released earlier this year that I read was so choppy, dated, and filled with unoriginal stereotypes I wrote a rant review and pushed it to the back of my mind. 

So needless to say I came into this book expecting something warm and fuzzy that would make me care about the characters. And though I was a little unsure at first because I thought their love moved very fast even for teen love I soon settled in for the ride.  I really liked Liara Tamani's writing style. I've been paying for attention lately to how distinct a writer's voice is. Those opening chapters were so beautifully written that they sucked me in.

Rex and Carli meet and Carli literally falls into his arms. And from then on they are drawn to each other. So I'll admit I was like "Huh!" when he Rex tracked her down via her brother Cole's Instagram page and showed up at the hospital to see her. I was like, "Are the teens really doing that nowadays cuz that is not the wave!" At least the text acknowledged that that part was a little stalkerish. 

I liked how Rex was a different portrayal of the Black teen males we usually see in the media. Sure on the outside he seems like the big basketball star  destined for NBA stardom that all the girls are after. He craves love and affection and sometimes he cries. And it's not a bad thing. Rex feels unloved by his father who never seems to pay him any attention. He also has guilt because his mother died during childbirth. 

Carli on the other other hand is also a basketball star but hates the sport. She plays to make her father happy and though she dreams of quitting is holding off on that dream while her parents are in the process of a nasty separation.  I loved that she would cut things out of magazines and post up pictures to decorate her walls. It reminded me of me as a teen where I would cut out magazine pictures and print pictures of all the things I enjoyed.

This is a light read perfect to gift to a teen girl who could use a YA romance she can actually see herself in and see a healthy depiction of Black love in.

Read Caribbean During June Pt 2

Welcome Back Booklovers!

Despite the chaos going on in the world right now I am truly enjoying getting to spread my love of books and have great discussions with other readers. Reading books, interviewing authors, chatting with readers are all the little things keeping me sane during this time.

Putting together these lists has introduced me to some new author's I'm excited to read while also having me reflect on the ones I have read. It's also a reminder of how resilient my people are. This time I'm highlighting some books by the children of Caribbean immigrants.

'Til the Well Runs Dry: A Novel

A glorious and moving multigenerational, multicultural saga that sweeps from the 1940s through the 1960s in Trinidad and the United States.

In a seaside village in the north of Trinidad, young Marcia Garcia, a gifted and smart-mouthed sixteen-year-old seamstress, lives alone, raising two small boys and guarding a family secret. When she meets Farouk Karam, an ambitious young policeman (so taken with Marcia that he elicits help from a tea-brewing obeah woman to guarantee her ardor), the rewards and risks in Marcia's life amplify forever.

'Til the Well Runs Dry sees Marcia and Farouk from their sassy and passionate courtship through personal and historical events that threaten Marcia's secret, entangle the couple and their children in a tumultuous scandal, and put the future in doubt for all of them.

With this deeply human novel, Lauren Francis-Sharma gives us an unforgettable story about a woman's love for a man, a mother's love for her children, and a people's love for an island rich with calypso and Carnival, cricket and salty air, sweet fruits and spicy stews-a story of grit, imperfection, steadfast love and of Trinidad that has never been told before.

The Haunting of Tram Car 015

Cairo, 1912: The case started as a simple one for the Ministry of Alchemy, Enchantments and Supernatural Entities ― handling a possessed tram car.

Soon, however, Agent Hamed Nasr and his new partner Agent Onsi Youssef are exposed to a new side of Cairo stirring with suffragettes, secret societies, and sentient automatons in a race against time to protect the city from an encroaching danger that crosses the line between the magical and the mundane.

Dear Haiti, Love Alaine

Alaine Beauparlant has heard about Haiti all her life…

But the stories were always passed down from her dad―and her mom, when she wasn’t too busy with her high-profile newscaster gig. But when Alaine’s life goes a bit sideways, it’s time to finally visit Haiti herself.

What she learns about Haiti’s proud history as the world’s first black republic (with its even prouder people) is one thing, but what she learns about her own family is another. Suddenly, the secrets Alaine’s mom has been keeping, including a family curse that has spanned generations, can no longer be avoided.

It’s a lot to handle, without even mentioning that Alaine is also working for her aunt’s nonprofit, which sends underprivileged kids to school and boasts one annoyingly charming intern.

 

 

Frying Plantain

Kara Davis is a girl caught in the middle — of her North American identity and her desire to be a “true” Jamaican, of her mother and grandmother’s rages and life lessons, of having to avoid being thought of as too “faas” or too “quiet” or too “bold” or too “soft.” Set in a neighbourhood known as “Little Jamaica,” Kara moves from girlhood to the threshold of adulthood, from elementary school to high school graduation, in these twelve interconnected stories. We see her on a visit to Jamaica, startled by the sight of a severed pig’s head in her great-aunt’s freezer; in junior high, the victim of a devastating prank by her closest friends; and as a teenager in and out of her grandmother’s house, trying to cope with the ongoing battles between her unyielding grandparents.

A rich and unforgettable portrait of growing up between worlds, Frying Plantain shows how, in one charged moment, friendship and love can turn to enmity and hate, well-meaning protection can become control, and teasing play can turn to something much darker.

Halsey Street

Penelope Grand has scrapped her failed career as an artist in Pittsburgh and moved back to Brooklyn to keep an eye on her ailing father. She’s accepted that her future won’t be what she’d dreamed, but now, as gentrification has completely reshaped her old neighborhood, even her past is unrecognizable. Old haunts have been razed, and wealthy white strangers have replaced every familiar face in Bed-Stuy. Even her mother, Mirella, has abandoned the family to reclaim her roots in the Dominican Republic. That took courage. It’s also unforgivable.

When Penelope moves into the attic apartment of the affluent Harpers, she thinks she’s found a semblance of family—and maybe even love. But her world is upended again when she receives a postcard from Mirella asking for reconciliation. As old wounds are reopened, and secrets revealed, a journey across an ocean of sacrifice and self-discovery begins.

An engrossing debut, Halsey Street shifts between the perspectives of these two captivating, troubled women. Mirella has one last chance to win back the heart of the daughter she’d lost long before leaving New York, and for Penelope, it’s time to break free of the hold of the past and start navigating her own life.

Unconditionally Mine

Event planner Sofia Silva is hiding a big secret. No one can know that her engagement to her lying, cheating fiancé is over. Until she meets gorgeous, wealthy newcomer Jonathan Gunther. Jon moved to Miami for a legally sinful life of waterfront property, convertibles and no emotional entanglements. When he invites Sofia to lie low at his house, their undeniable attraction explodes…but will her dilemma ruin their chance at forever?

Oh My Gods

She's just moved in with her dorky dad and self-absorbed older siblings - who happen to be the ancient Greek gods, living incognito in London!

Between keeping her family's true identities secret, trying to impress her new friends, and meeting an actually cute boy, Helen's stress levels are higher than Mount Olympus.

She needs to rein in her chaotic family before they blow their cover AND her chances at a half-normal social life.

Allegedly 

Orange Is the New Black meets Walter Dean Myer’s Monster in this gritty, twisty, and haunting debut by Tiffany D. Jackson about a girl convicted of murder seeking the truth while surviving life in a group home.

Mary B. Addison killed a baby.

Allegedly. She didn’t say much in that first interview with detectives, and the media filled in the only blanks that mattered: a white baby had died while under the care of a churchgoing black woman and her nine-year-old daughter. The public convicted Mary and the jury made it official. But did she do it?

There wasn’t a point to setting the record straight before, but now she’s got Ted—and their unborn child—to think about. When the state threatens to take her baby, Mary’s fate now lies in the hands of the one person she distrusts the most: her Momma. No one knows the real Momma. But does anyone know the real Mary?

Real Men Knit by Kwana Jackson

Hey Booklovers,


I spent the better part of this lazy weekend reading a slow burn romance. And I must admit I'm a sucker for an easy to read romance. And a romance with a cute cover and a Black heroine always catches my eye. I was lucky enough to get my hands on an arc to read and review. But Real Men Knit gave me real mixed feelings.

So we start this story off with a loss. Mama Joy Strong has passed away recently and her adopted sons are struggling to keep it all together. The Strong Men are a mixed crew of all different ethnic backgrounds who were lucky enough to have Mama Joy come into their lives when they needed it most. I love a pro-adoption story. And with 4 fine brothers comes the potential of 4 different romantic plots to span a series.

This story follows Jesse who is the youngest of the Strong brothers. He's got the looks with tanned skin, green eyes, and sandy brown locs which fit his whole biracial bohemian aesthetic. Unlike the rest of the brothers he feels he owes it to Mama Joy to keep her legacy alive but keeping up the knit shop. Plus he's the best knitter of the group and he's between jobs at the moment so he needs to get his act together and build something for himself. He enlists the only regular worker at the shop, his long time childhood friend Kerry to help him. 

The Harlem setting is unique and I liked how this book touched on gentrification and the changing of the neighborhood. And the close knit community was a bonus for this story. The relationship with the brothers was the strongest point in this book which I found led a little more family focused than romance focused. I wanted to see a little bit more of Harlem though.

The knit shop was also a location you don't normally see in stories. I would've liked to see more knitting . I felt like there was not a lot of knitting in the first half while we finally saw more knitting in the second half. I know it was summer so they couldn't knit too many hats or sweaters but Kerry owned a few tanks she knit herself. It would've been interesting to see more of her knit fashions incorporated like knit swimsuits and skirts. It would've also been a great way to showcase how essential she is to the business because while there was a lot of talk about how essential she was her biggest asset seemed to be that she knew the people in the neighborhood from having worked there so long. 

I did feel like they was a lot of telling stuff in the heads of Jesse and Kerry versus actually showing things/making it a conversation with dialogue between them. For example I like descriptions of characters because I like to know how everyone looks. I did not need those paragraphs about Jesse reflecting on their biracial backgrounds and why each of the brothers have the features they do before I even met the brothers. There was quite a lot of inner monologue or focusing on details that did not need to be explored in depth.

And slow burn is fine but it took a long time for them to admit their feelings and then felt a little rushed from there. In their heads we found out they both had been pining for each for years but there wasn't that dialogue there where to back up why these crushes lasted so long. The forced proximity trope was there to add all the lust but I wanted dialogue to back up a new found closeness. It was like a switch just flipped and Kerry went from being the shy mousy woman with a crush to sexy alpha female taking charge. There were also a few things with Jesse that were not mentioned until the second half of the story which could've been explored in the first. 

And where were the cute dates? Eating sandwiches from the bodega together does not count despite what Kerry's friend Val said about her at least being fed. And one awkward encounter at a local spot does not count. Harlem has so much culture and flavor I would've liked to see a little bit more of it. Was waiting for when they'd have a friendly night on the town. 

There's also a recurring friend with benefits of Jesse who only exists to be rude to Kerry, make her jealous, and contrast that she's different from all the other girls. There's also a throwaway male character who is only around to make Jesse jealous. I hate those types of characters and the inclusion of those two did nothing to strengthen Kerry and Jesse's relationship. Plus it was really shoehorned that Jesse seemed to sleep with all single women in the neighborhood.  Let's let go of Madonna-Whore dichotomy in 2020. 

I think Kwana Jackson is a good writer and I enjoyed her book Too Sweet to Be Good and I actually want to do a reread of that to give a long review.  She's a great writer but to me this book could've gone through another few rounds of editing to add a little more depth and make it less like it's just the set up to a larger series.

With the Fire on High by Elizabeth Acevedo

Hey Booklovers,

I'm back with another good book by Elizabeth Acevedo. I've read four stories from her this year. Gilded, The Poet X, and my favorite book of 2020 so far Clap When You Land. I've had my copy of With the Fire on High for a few months now but I hadn't opened it up yet. I decided to borrow the audiobook from my local library so I could read and follow along with Elizabeth Acevedo's voice at the same time.

There's something special about a writer who knows how to make every one of her stories completely different and weave the right words together for an enjoyable story. The heroine in this story is named Emoni and she's a self identified Afro-Boriqua. Her mother's family is from the American South and her father's family is from Puerto Rico. She lives with her abuela in Philly where she takes care of her two year old daughter. Teen pregnancy is a tough subject to approach and she does it here with care. She addresses the stereotypes people jump to when it comes to teen mothers. Emoni is not a fast girl or someone who wanted start a family and have her boyfriend move in with her, or someone who wanted a child to have someone to love her unconditionally. She's a girl who got caught up in a relationship and decided to step up to responsibility.  And while she and her ex barely get along she still tries to keep things cordial and works out an agreement with him and his parents for the sake of her child.

Emoni is a girl who perseveres. Her father gave her to his mother to raise after her own mother died during childbirth. He lives in Puerto Rico and though he calls her and sometimes visits he plays the role of activist for everyone but her raising money for teen mother's on the island but not helping support her. So instead she works a crappy job to help pay some bills and her every groaning expenses when it comes to her child. And although Emoni has never met her mother she still keeps ties to her mother's African-American family. Her aunt often sends her emails where they exchange recipes which she sometimes makes changes with different flavors to add her own little remix to them.

Emoni loves to cook and not just simple family recipes but recipes at places where she eats out or recipes she sees on tv often adding her own twist. When she has the chance to take a culinary class her senior year she is unsure she should shake things up. After all the class involves a trip to Spain to work for a week as an apprentice and surely she can't afford that. But with some encouragement from Buela and even her chef teacher she starts to think that maybe her dream of being a chef is not so far fetched.

I love how Buela is the supportive matriarch who takes care of Emoni and Babygirl but at the same time is allowed to voice that sometimes she wants time to herself. Time where she's not in grandmother or great-grandmother mode. It's not uncommon to see a Black grandmother take on the role of mother for multi-generations of children in her family. 

One thing Elizabeth does in everyone one of her stories is paint Blackness in the most beautiful light while dropping a bit of education in the process. Despite some of the Puerto Rican people you know telling you otherwise Puerto Rican is not a race. Emoni's family hails from an area in Puerto Rico heavily influenced by their African heritage. And she holds onto that with pride educating anyone who tries to tell her about her blackness. 

Food is it's own character here. It's clear Ms. Acevedo is a lover of good food evidenced by the many tasty dishes she includes in the story.  She really does a good job showing Emoni's love of food.

My favorite story by Elizabeth Acevedo is still Clap When You Land followed by Gilded from A Phoenix First Must Burn and you should also check those out but don't skip this one. Emoni's story flips perceptions we have about teen mothers while also letting them know they aren't defined or confined by their circumstances. While this YA does have a sprinkle of romance it's very well written and one of many ingredients in the recipe that creates this satisfying story.

Looking for a Clean Summer Romance? Check out the Sugar Lake Series by Kwana Jackson

Hey Booklovers,

Summer is fast approaching and nothing is better than passing the day with a good book while you're stuck at home. And I know how satisfying a good clean romance can be sometimes. Hallmark movies are popular for a reason. But if you're looking for something more diverse check out this series by Kwana Jackson. Small southern town, black love interests, bakery treats... sign me up!

As Good as the First Time

With her big-city career and relationship in sudden free fall, Olivia Gale isn’t sure where she belongs. So when her help is needed at Goode ʼN Sweet, the family bakery in Sugar Lake, she jumps at the chance to indulge her pie-making hobby while getting her life back on track. Olivia’s not looking for any distractions. Even if the boy who once left her without a word is now a grown man with intriguing secrets—and the same tempting hold on her heart . . .

A firefighter and single dad, Clayton Morris is trying hard to fix his past mistakes. He thought he was doing the right thing by leaving Olivia—and now he’s sure he has nothing to offer the accomplished woman she’s become. But ignoring the sparks between them is impossible. And as unexpected surprises and hard choices endanger their fragile reunion, they’ll have to decide which direction to take if they want to find the road back to love . . .

Too Sweet to be Good

 Alexandrea Gale put her acting career on hold to help keep her family’s bakery in business—and gave it a few eye-catching updates while she was at it. To earn money to return to New York, she puts her design skills to work with a job renovating a once thriving local vintage theater. But Alexandrea didn’t bargain on the owner’s business-minded grandson fighting her every step of the way—or proving so unexpectedly irresistible . . .

As the new head of his family’s real estate business, Kellen Kilborn feels that selling the theater is the only way to do right by the grandmother who helped raise him. He just can’t take a risk on Alexandrea’s inventive ideas—but he also can’t walk away from her warm-hearted free spirit. As troubling decisions threaten to tear them apart, can they create a way to turn their dreams into the sweetest of futures together?

Clap When You Land By Elizabeth Acevedo

Welcome Back Booklovers!


While April wasn't my most enjoyable reading month I'm determined to make the best of May. And it already started off with a bang. I was lucky enough to get the chance to read an arc of Clap When You Land by Elizabeth Acevedo.

I've been listening to some of her spoken word, and following her on Twitter for awhile now. But this year I'm determined to dive into her books. I started with her short story Gilded, followed up with The Poet X and my next will be With the Fire On High.

The hype is well deserved! She writes so beautifully switching between poetry and prose. She showcases Afro-Latino heritage in all glory. She doesn't use a lot of words but the ones she does she uses well. It's amazing how someone can take such painful topics and make them resonate with you without gruesome graphic details. Sexual assault, sex trafficking, racism, colorism, Antihaitianismo, and Santeria are just some of the many elements that make up this story without being the sole story.

    

I live around a lot of Dominicans so I've heard the jokes and the stories about men who have a family in the US and a family in DR. This story is about the two daughters of a man who lived a double life which is not revealed until a tragic plane accident. Both girls are dealing with the fallout of their father's death as well as the new discovery of each other.

Yahaira lives in NYC. She goes to private school and is a former chest champion. Her mother is fair skinned and comes from a prominent Dominican family. She manages a salon and has an appearance described as Miss Universe perfect. Her family owns their apartment outright and she lives next door to her girlfriend. Yahaira may seem like she has this amazing life and in some aspects she does but there's so much more below the surface. Her relationship with her father has been rocky for months with her barely speaking to him and her appearance and her mother's families mean comments over the years make her sometimes feel inferior.

Camino's life is a life many girls live not in just DR but in many countries. She's got more than many in her poor neighborhood thanks to Papi always sending money but not even close to comparable to what most girls her age have in the US. He pays for her to receive a good education at a fancy private school and one day hopes to bring her to the US where she can study to become a doctor.

In some ways their father's death affects them equally the same and in other ways it's different.  Yahaira. Though she and her mother are both shaken by their loss and can't seem to agree on how it should be handled at least they have each other. Camino lives her with her Tia as her mother passed away years earlier and she is feeling like an orphan. Yahaira has her girlfriend and girlfriend's family who treat her like one of their own and try to look out for her. Their relationship is treated as normal and not a spectacle. Meanwhile Camino is trying to avoid a pimp named El Cero who is trying to coerce her into sex trafficking.

One element this story highlighted which I appreciated was the positives of Santeria which is a very controversial religion. I have family from the Caribbean and there's a stigma about these religions rooted in African culture. Some people simply write them off as black magic with spells and potions. In this story Tia Solana is a much revered member of her community often using her healing herbs and prayers to aid those who cannot go to a hospital or clinic.

Camino has a best friend Carline whose family is Haitian. If you know anything about Dominican and Hatian relations then you know that despite sharing the same island there is a lot of animosity between them. Carline is pregnant and does works at a resort which is a job Camino's Papi helped her secure. Due to Anti-Haitianism Carline's family is too afraid to take her to a hospital knowing she may be refused treatment or treated poorly and instead rely on Tia Solana and her remedies and prayers.

I read this story over the course of two days and could barely put it down. Both sisters voices were so distinct that I was never confused about which character was narrating as the chapters switched back and forth.

Color Me In by Natasha Diaz

Hey Booklovers!


I'm back with another review post. I did say I was going to try and bring more of my reviews here so when I recommend these books you can easily find my thoughts on them.

Last year this book caught my eye when I heard Natasha Diaz talk about how this book would explore white passing biracial's privilege. The writing in this story was simply poetic. And books don't usually make me cry and this one had tears flowing as I sat in bed one night reading it. I didn't want to put it down and ended up reading it in two days.

This was such a powerful story that doesn't usually get told. Yes, we know biracial people often struggle with their identity. People usually want them to choose one race over the other. We've all heard of the tragic mulatto narrative. But this story examines both side's of a biracial girl's identity without painting her as a victim.

Nevaeh grew up in a rich white neighborhood feeling like an outsider beyond her one other biracial friend. She's bullied by the mean popular girl at school who makes racial comments towards her that she lets slide to not stir up trouble. Anyone Black or half Black who went to a majority white school knows the type of comments and knows how much they sting. And how it feels to feel so alone because you don't look like everyone else. Neveah is white passing but doesn't feel white enough to identify with either side of her heritage. 

Nevaeh's life as she knows it drastically changes. Because her parents are in the middle of a nasty divorce and her cheating father brings his mistress around. And her father's new girlfriend is one of those passive aggressive white women who sees herself as better than the little biracial girl before her. And now her father who has never been religious feels the need to insert his Jewishness because he feels his daughter has too much Black influence in her life after moving with her mother to Harlem. So he makes her attending Hebrew school and is forcing her to have a belated Bat Mitzvah.

Having grown up in her not white but white enough bubble she struggles to relate to her Black family and at first. She doesn't understand at first the microaggressions they feel on a daily basis. Her cousin has to check her over her light skinned privilege a few times.

Nevaeh's mother has struggles with her mental health and the separation is taking a toll on her. She stays in her room all day and has no motivation to leave the house. She barely wants to talk to her daughter who is trying to balance this new situation. Nevaeh wants to be mad at her but when she finds her mother's old diary and reads about some of her experiences she sees her mother and father in a new light.

This story is a journey about a teen girl discovering herself and how she fits in to both of her cultures. We go along for the journey as Nevaeh discovers Jamaican, Liberian, and Jewish traditions. And Natasha Diaz includes beautiful poetry and diary entries to help shape this story and give us much needed background information in a way that doesn't feel forced.

I Wanna Be Where You Are by Kristina Forest

Hello, Booklovers!

Since many of you are looking for good reads at this time I'm also trying to highlight some of my past reads on here.

Did I buy this book because the pre-order campaign had the cutest art? Yes, I did! I knew I was in the mood to read a cute black romance but last summer this campaign made me decide I needed to own a copy.

This is a story about a black ballerina named Chloe who is facing her fears of driving out of state to go audition for a ballet conservatory. Ever since her father passed away in an accident Chloe's mother has been afraid of losing her and keeps her very sheltered. But Chloe has never wanted anything more than she's wanted this opportunity to dance. So while her mother is heading on a cruise she's planning to sneak away to the audition. But Chloe's neighbor Eli catches her and decides to tag along. She ends up missing the audition and has to go to the next one which is further away from home in DC and thus begins their little adventure.

I've been fascinated with black ballerinas in recent years despite my own turn as a black ballerina being a flop. I've just never been a great dancer and as a child memorizing all those moves wasn't for me. I liked that it touched on how white the ballet world is without giving a heavy handed lesson. Though dancing is a big part of Chloe's world it's not the main focus of the story. 

 And Chloe and Eli's relationship is such a sweet portrayal of black teens that we don't often see. I tried to count last year how many black romance novels I heard about in YA and could only name two. Often in media there's this idea of black boys vs black girls that's portrayed. Sometimes there's a subtle narrative pushed towards interracial relationships as if black people don't mostly date each other. So it was nice to see a healthy black love relationship that teens can gush over. These are two normal high schoolers who are thinking about their futures and navigating their relationships with their families and friends.

Ghost Squad by Claribel Ortega

I like to check out Middle Grade fantasy and often I find it better written than Young Adult. You get the adventure but with more carefree energy and no romantic subplots taking away from the story.  From the time I saw the cover I could not wait to read Ghost Squad. You don't often see girls who look like the young protagonists of this story on the cover of a book. And I'm so glad it's being made into a movie so little girls who look like them will be able to see themselves onscreen as well as the pages.

This book follows Lucely Luna a young girl who lives with her her single father in St. Augustine, Florida. Lucely's father runs a ghost tour and lately it hasn't been generating as much money as they need. If they don't start making more money soon the bank may foreclose on their house. Lucely has a special gift. She's able to connect to the spirits of her family members who have passed on. While they only appear in firefly form to everyone else Lucely is able to see and have full blown conversations with them. This is comes from old Dominican folklore and I've never seen it used in a fantasy before. 

I loved the scene in the first chapter of her boisterous familia having breakfast with all the fixings. Mangu with eggs and fried cheese and salami. Yum!  It reminded me of every of when I attend events with my best friend's family. It's very Dominican and a lot of fun. Family is such an important part of this book. Even though Lucely's mom is no longer in the picture she has this hope that one day her mother will return. In the mean time she's surrounded by the love of her ancestors.

But then something strange starts happening with her family members. Almost as if they're reliving their deaths. In an attempt to try and fix things Lucely enlists her friend Syd. Syd's grandmother Babette is a witch who lives in a house built over a swamp. They raid her library and follow clues that lead them to a crypt where they plan on casting a spell. But this spell ends up awakening some evil spirits set to destroy the town. It's up to Lucely, Syd, and Babette to save the day. 

Syd's family is pretty cool too. Her parents are both musicians and they treat Lucely like one of their own.  I really liked their close friendship. Often we make it seem like girls have to have large groups of friends and it's  important to show girls that one solid friendship filled with love is good enough too.

This is a fun book that girls between ages 8-11 can enjoy.  I recommend buying this book for young girls looking for diverse fantasies featuring ghosts,witches, and family and friendship.