3.5 stars, rounded up.
I received a copy of this book from this publisher when it was released last year, but due to a death in my family, I couldn't bring myself to read this. It's fictional, but even fictional portrayals of death in family can be difficult to read. The author starts the book with a warning that feelings would get real in this book- and it's true. Yaminah is a teenager living in New York, about to go back to visit her once close-knit family after finding out that her mother died.
I loved the way that the story unraveled. Candace Iloh slowly gives information about Yaminah's family- I got to know her family as she was forced to face her family again after years away. Yaminah's characterization is refreshing. She is direct and unapologetic. I was rooting for her as I learned about her backstory, and I felt her ups and downs.
The only issue I had with the story was that the ending felt rushed. Once we learn a little more about Minah's past, the book ends. I think the author was going for more heartbreak at the end, but I was left a bit confused on where the characters were going and how they were working through their feelings. Characters in New York were dropped, and I wanted to know more about Minah's dad and his explanation for certain events in the story.
Overall, a good read. Not quite as emotional as I thought it would be, but honest and thought-provoking.
I received a copy of this book from this publisher when it was released last year, but due to a death in my family, I couldn't bring myself to read this. It's fictional, but even fictional portrayals of death in family can be difficult to read. The author starts the book with a warning that feelings would get real in this book- and it's true. Yaminah is a teenager living in New York, about to go back to visit her once close-knit family after finding out that her mother died.
I loved the way that the story unraveled. Candace Iloh slowly gives information about Yaminah's family- I got to know her family as she was forced to face her family again after years away. Yaminah's characterization is refreshing. She is direct and unapologetic. I was rooting for her as I learned about her backstory, and I felt her ups and downs.
The only issue I had with the story was that the ending felt rushed. Once we learn a little more about Minah's past, the book ends. I think the author was going for more heartbreak at the end, but I was left a bit confused on where the characters were going and how they were working through their feelings. Characters in New York were dropped, and I wanted to know more about Minah's dad and his explanation for certain events in the story.
Overall, a good read. Not quite as emotional as I thought it would be, but honest and thought-provoking.