Punching the Air by Ibi Zoboi, Yusef Salaam

 I first discovered Ibi Zoboi by when I read American Street and loved it. Then I read Pride and I was hooked. 

I first learned who Yusef Salaam was when I was almost 18 and still living in Brooklyn NY. I watched horrified as the media helped the DA railroad these 5 young men for a crime, that while heinous, wasn't committed by them. This wasn't new behavior by the NYPD and it wasn't the last time the system in NYC (and other places) treated young Black men this was way. Having grown up in NYC Public Housing and being among more BIPOC than other white people I was maybe at least a little more aware of the mistreatment. But that is nothing compared to being on the receiving end of it nor do I claim it is. Just giving a frame of reference. I became more aware of the story of these young men, to parts of it that I don'e think I had known in such detail before when I saw the Ken Burns documentary and the Ava DuVernay film about what they went through. 

When this book came into the Barnes & Noble where I work I knew I wanted it. It wasn't easy to not buy it the same day, I had made myself a promise I would finish 2 books from my TBR before I bought anything else. 

Ok, so what did I think? THIS WAS INCREDIBLE!! I love the verse, spoken word poetry, style. The drawings/art on some of the pages added to the punch packed in the words. I was gutted and uplifted and heartbroken and filled with hope by this book. 

It is powerful and beautiful and ugly and amazing. I am telling you, you MUST, MUST, MUST READ THIS!!!! 

Amal is more than anyone gives him credit for. His teacher fails him and FAILS him. She doesn't see him. And this is so true to what too many Black students face. Too many white teachers try to force a truth or force a hiding of truth onto Black students. And when they fail they assume it is the student who has failed. I love that I know so many teachers working hard to break this cycle but it isn't widespread enough. 

You will feel this..every word of it...

I hope Dr. Salaam puts out more of his writing. 

(Finished September 27, 2020)

Cemetery Boys by Aiden Thomas

 When I say this book is everything I don't say that lightly. 

It is a spooky mystery. 

It is about being able to be yourself fully and truly. 

It is a YA book with a trans main character written by a transgender author. 

It is a book with a gay main character. 

It is a family drama. 

It is physically a beautiful book, peek under the dust jacket. 

It is a story with a lot of heart. 

It is a story that isn't about white kids. 

But all of that is wouldn't matter if the story sucked. And it doesn't. THIS WAS AN AMAZING STORY!! I loved every moment of it even when it made me cry. 

Set in LA Yads is is a teen who lost his mother not too long ago and lives with his dad and Lita. Their home is in a cemetery where his father is the leader of the brujx. The story timing centers around the days leading up to Día de Muertos (Day of the Dead) and the return of the loved ones who get to come back for a couple of days. Yadriel is looking forward to seeing his mother, the only person who he felt truly saw him, well aside from his BFF and cousin Maritza. His father seems to be trying but still sometimes misgenders him. His Lita tells him he will "always be her little girl." And Yads just wants to be himself and he knows he is a brujo. 

Maritiza knows it too. And tries to help him. And in doing it the mystery takes hold...their cousin has gone missing right after they all felt him die..but no body can be found...and then there is Julian...

And that is all I can say...I want you to experience this story in real time. 

I hope Aiden writes more!

(Finished September 24, 2020)

PS This would have been a single day read if I had been able to read uninterrupted but work and parenting and trying to work on starting (restarting) my Pampered Chef business kept me from it. I LOVED THIS BOOK!!

The Scorpio Races by Maggie Stiefvater

If you have read my previous reviews for Maggie's books The Raven Boys, The Dream Thieves, Blue Lily, Lily Blue, and The Raven King you know it is because of my friend Rachel that I discovered my love for Maggie's writing. 

I don't remember how I stumbled across it but there is a recipe called November Cakes that I somehow landed on the page for and it sounded delicious and I loved the snarky side notes in it, they felt so Maggie. I couldn't think of anyone else I knew who would appreciate it as much as me so I asked Rachel of she would eat them if I made them. She then told me it was from this book, and I had no idea...so of course I needed to read it before attempting to make the cakes. 

AND I AM SO GLAD I DID!!! I loved this story. I love Puck and how amazing and strong she is even when she is scared and lost. Her courage is AMAZING!! I love Sean and how he allows himself to be alive when he meets Puck. I love the imagery of Thisby and I can understand why Puck loves her island home so much. The danger of the water horses and the race made my heart pound more than once. The gentle love that develops between Puck and Sean is not at all gratuitous and feels right. Their love of their horses is what begins to bond them and it is so well written, how they see each other's humanity and heart in how they treat their animals. 

Every November 1 Thisby has its Scorpio Races event. People come from the mainland and watch and bet on the races. People die during it. The capall uisce are mythical sounding creatures that are horses that are brutal and beautiful and come out of the ocean. Every year they are raced. Sean has won 4 times. He needs to win again, once last time, for himself and for his beloved Corr. Puck needs to win her first and only race, on her beloved "pony" Dove so she can save her home and take care of her younger brother as her older brother has withdrawn from them and wants to leave the island. The way Maggie writes this you can see the ocean, smell the salt and blood and picture the horses and their deadly beauty!!

Sean works at the Malvern yard and has made himself the reason for the successes of the place which dissent sit well with Mutt Malvern, a cruel and awful person and the son of the owner. He is quiet and strong and kinder than anyone seems to know, and a bit of a horse whisperer. 

Puck and her brothers are orphans and struggling to survive. And then she and Sean are thrown together. 

I want to go on and on about how beautiful and horrible and amazing Thisby and this story are but I will just say read it!! You won't be sorry. 

(Finished September 14, 2020)

Darius the Great Deserves Better (Darius the Great #2) by Adib Khorram

 I first discovered Adib and Darius in Darius the Great Is Not Ok in 2018 and I fell hard for his writing and for Darius. I have since suggested that book and sold it to so many of the young people I see in the bookstore where I am a bookseller. It is so important to know it is ok not to be ok, to have feelings, and that it is ok if all the feelings aren't good ones. 

Now Darius is back and I love him still so very much. 

Now that Darius is back from Iran he feels like things are falling into place. He has friends on his soccer team, he feels better and his depression isn't smothering him, he even has a boyfriend. 

But then his parents have to work more hours to make up for the cost of the trip and the pressure becomes so much that Darius becomes worried about his dad. He is having feelings he doesn't understand for a boy that isn't his boyfriend, and he isn't loving what should be his dream job. And there is Trent who is just so awful to him. And all of a sudden his best friend Sohrab isn't answering his calls and Darius is worried about him. Maybe things aren't as OK as he thinks they are. 

There are a few threads that run through this story that I think are so very important. A big one is feeling pressured to do more than one is ready to when dating. Many people think it is just a problem for girls in relationships with boys but that isn't the case. The pressure to go further faster than someone is ready for can happen to anyone in any relationship. Agency over ones body isn't dependent on gender or sexual orientation and a person has the right to decide when and how much of a physical relationship is ok for them. 

Also faced, talked about, and dealt with: racism, bullying, standing up when it is hard to do so, depression and the cycles one goes through, love, family, and the importance of talking to those you love and trust. 

This is an amazing book and I hope that Adib writes much more and hopefully some if it will be about Darius. 

(Finished September 3, 2020)