Wonderful Depth with a Mystery

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We Deserve Monuments is a novel that focuses on family, history, secrets and a little bit of mystery. This was a well crafted young adult debut that looks at how generations of racial prejudices, violence and grudges can affect family and lives alike.

What I enjoyed most was the character development between Avery, Simone and Jade. Each one of these characters is fighting against a stigma that is so richly relevant that I almost neglected to recall there was a mystery entangled in this novel. I can't forget the years of mother/daughter estrangement due to a massive family secret and the inability to accept a daughters representation. Such a beautifully explored look at queer representation over time and the difference between small town lives and city living.

There is so much in this novel that was easy to fall in love with. My emotions and heart were triggered more times than I could count. Even at my age when high school issues seem mundane, this novel made it so much more deeper across decades of family strife.

The audio is narrated by Tamika Katon-Donegal wonderfully if you're an audiobook lover like me. I loved the different voices from grudgy Mama Letty to sassy Simone. Tameka keeps in character with a captivating voice from start to finish.

In the spirit of family generations, embracing differences and enjoying every last difficult moment.. We Deserve Monuments is that and so much more.