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The Hate U Give by Angie Thomas
Sixteen-year-old Starr Carter navigates between the poverty-stricken neighborhood she has grown up in and the upper-crust suburban prep school she attends. Her life is up-ended when she is the sole witness to a police officer shooting her best friend, Khalil, who turns out to have been unarmed during the confrontation – but may or may not have been a drug dealer. As Starr finds herself even more torn between the two vastly different worlds she inhabits, she also has to contend with speaking her truth and, in the process, trying to stay alive herself.
Why you should read it: Look, there's a reason this book conquered the NYT bestseller list and then lived there for months. It's one of the most powerful stories I've ever read. An incredible main character that captured my heart, an honesty that got under my skin, a whole world of grief and rage and love and people fighting to live. Starr's family is wonderful, and every character in this book felt absolutely real. I could spend this post trying to explain the reasons everyone should read this book, and still not fit it all in. Stunning.
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A Monster Calls by Patrick Ness
The monster showed up just after midnight. As they do. But it isn’t the monster Conor’s been expecting. He’s been expecting the one from his nightmare, the one he’s had nearly every night since his mother started her treatments, the one with the darkness and the wind and the screaming… The monster in his back garden, though, this monster is something different. Something ancient, something wild. And it wants the most dangerous thing of all from Conor. It wants the truth.
Why you should read it: This was a quick read, and so full of feeling it took my breath away. An incredible study of grief. I don't want to say too much about it, but it's excellent.
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Children of Blood and Bone by Tomi Adeyemi
They killed my mother. They took our magic. They tried to bury us. Now we rise.
Why you should read it: This is another one where I don't feel like I can coherently explain all the reasons you should read this book. YOU SHOULD READ THIS BOOK. The characters are wonderful, the writing is perfect, and the world building took my breath away. The descriptions of magic are some of the best I've ever read, and I love how well the internal mechanics of it all work. The scope of the story (which is huge and expansive) never trampled the compelling character details, which is an impressive balance to maintain. I adored this book.
Sixteen-year-old Starr Carter navigates between the poverty-stricken neighborhood she has grown up in and the upper-crust suburban prep school she attends. Her life is up-ended when she is the sole witness to a police officer shooting her best friend, Khalil, who turns out to have been unarmed during the confrontation – but may or may not have been a drug dealer. As Starr finds herself even more torn between the two vastly different worlds she inhabits, she also has to contend with speaking her truth and, in the process, trying to stay alive herself.
Why you should read it: Look, there's a reason this book conquered the NYT bestseller list and then lived there for months. It's one of the most powerful stories I've ever read. An incredible main character that captured my heart, an honesty that got under my skin, a whole world of grief and rage and love and people fighting to live. Starr's family is wonderful, and every character in this book felt absolutely real. I could spend this post trying to explain the reasons everyone should read this book, and still not fit it all in. Stunning.
- — - — - — - — -
A Monster Calls by Patrick Ness
The monster showed up just after midnight. As they do. But it isn’t the monster Conor’s been expecting. He’s been expecting the one from his nightmare, the one he’s had nearly every night since his mother started her treatments, the one with the darkness and the wind and the screaming… The monster in his back garden, though, this monster is something different. Something ancient, something wild. And it wants the most dangerous thing of all from Conor. It wants the truth.
Why you should read it: This was a quick read, and so full of feeling it took my breath away. An incredible study of grief. I don't want to say too much about it, but it's excellent.
- — - — - — - — -
Children of Blood and Bone by Tomi Adeyemi
They killed my mother. They took our magic. They tried to bury us. Now we rise.
Why you should read it: This is another one where I don't feel like I can coherently explain all the reasons you should read this book. YOU SHOULD READ THIS BOOK. The characters are wonderful, the writing is perfect, and the world building took my breath away. The descriptions of magic are some of the best I've ever read, and I love how well the internal mechanics of it all work. The scope of the story (which is huge and expansive) never trampled the compelling character details, which is an impressive balance to maintain. I adored this book.
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