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belwood303's review
4.0
Poetry, young adult, "straight" romance. So much of this isn't what I read and yet I loved this book.
dkg20's review
4.0
Everyone should read this book! It really opened my eyes into the lives of people who have anxiety, panic attacks, etc
thunderingnight_reads's review
5.0
An igniting story if a young girl finding a way to make her stand in a world where she is a target. I just finished reading this incredibly powerful story and I just don’t know how to completely speak on this one. Sadie is so real. Her story is real. I see Sadie in some of the young girls I have taught as a teacher. The anxiety she feels, you feel right along with her, but what this story does is shed light into the life of a young black girl, her family, friends, and while she is dealing with being a teen, she’s bi-sexual, she has generalized anxiety disorder, panic attacks, and now after witnessing a racially targeted abuse/arrest of an innocent black woman not much older than Sadie in the middle of getting some bad news, she is diagnosed with agoraphobia.
I love that Sadie had such a strong support system. As someone who has worked with young black girls myself, having a support system is not always there. Sadie has her mother, father, her awesome little brother Charlie, her best friend Evan who is non-binary, and a therapist.
Through the story you are right alongside Sadie as she comes to terms with what she witnessed, finding her voice and finding a way she can make a difference when her new diagnosis can be extremely debilitating to her, communication with friends, family… setting boundaries with people in her life. Sadie has a powerful voice and luckily she is able to use a social media app called Ruckus that helps her connect, cope, and heal.
I loved the relationships in this. Between friends, between Sadie and her brother, Sadie interacting with her therapist, Sadie and her followers, and Sadie with her neighbor. I love that Sadie is given that space to fall apart, to overcome, to fall apart, or do whatever she needs to do.
The romance was so sweet.
I love love love the accountability that Sadie and Evan have with each other.
Some notes- in the copy I read on my kindle, there were some conventional errors (letters missing, words added in, misspellings -not related to dialects)
Keep in mind : this is not a story structured in the fashion of a typical novel, rather written more along the lines of prose/poetry. Nonetheless, this was an incredibly beautiful story that deserves to be read. Whether you are young adult, adult, etc. this is one I recommend you read. The messages in this are important, and Sadie shows us the power children and youth can have (she is a teen) and the power one persons voice can make.
I am so grateful to have read this and I hope you take the time to read it. It took me a day, as I could not put it down.
I love that Sadie had such a strong support system. As someone who has worked with young black girls myself, having a support system is not always there. Sadie has her mother, father, her awesome little brother Charlie, her best friend Evan who is non-binary, and a therapist.
Through the story you are right alongside Sadie as she comes to terms with what she witnessed, finding her voice and finding a way she can make a difference when her new diagnosis can be extremely debilitating to her, communication with friends, family… setting boundaries with people in her life. Sadie has a powerful voice and luckily she is able to use a social media app called Ruckus that helps her connect, cope, and heal.
I loved the relationships in this. Between friends, between Sadie and her brother, Sadie interacting with her therapist, Sadie and her followers, and Sadie with her neighbor. I love that Sadie is given that space to fall apart, to overcome, to fall apart, or do whatever she needs to do.
The romance was so sweet.
I love love love the accountability that Sadie and Evan have with each other.
Some notes- in the copy I read on my kindle, there were some conventional errors (letters missing, words added in, misspellings -not related to dialects)
Keep in mind : this is not a story structured in the fashion of a typical novel, rather written more along the lines of prose/poetry. Nonetheless, this was an incredibly beautiful story that deserves to be read. Whether you are young adult, adult, etc. this is one I recommend you read. The messages in this are important, and Sadie shows us the power children and youth can have (she is a teen) and the power one persons voice can make.
I am so grateful to have read this and I hope you take the time to read it. It took me a day, as I could not put it down.
kelleycailin's review
emotional
funny
inspiring
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.75
kaynova's review against another edition
hopeful
inspiring
lighthearted
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
i feel seen…
Content Warnings
Graphic: Biphobia, Panic attacks/disorders, Toxic relationship, and Police brutality
veeglessner's review
4.0
This story is beautiful and MC Sadie's therapist's words shot straight to the heart! 5 star story fully had me crying, but I'm not big on heavy use of social media/texting in plot, so going for 4⭐
gigireadswithkiki's review against another edition
challenging
emotional
sad
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.0
It’s so wild to read a book set close to where you live to the point where so many landmarks and events and locales are so familiar to you, but that was definitely one of the main driving forces for me in finishing this book. I loved how much East Bay representation was steeped into the story, it was so cool seeing so many things that have become familiar to me.
I also fairly enjoyed the writing, the poetic verses were powerful and I really enjoyed Mariama J. Lockington’s voice as we experienced the MC’s struggles.
However, this is just about all I enjoyed about this book. The main character was hard for me to empathize with, the way she was written build her up as a petulant bratty whinny child in my mind, and the way that her mental health journey is entirely wrapped up in a romantic relationship with a boy who thinks “not all cops are bad” (who then goes on to experience zero growth on this matter), and who needs to be educated by her on everything about social justice was horrendous. I hated how she kept lying as a means of people pleasing behavior, and it felt like there was never any substantial growth on this front.
I did enjoy the way her relationship with her parents went through several bumps before growing into a healthy communicative relationship but that’s pretty much all I enjoyed about the main character and I most likely will not be returning to more of this authors books in the future.
I also fairly enjoyed the writing, the poetic verses were powerful and I really enjoyed Mariama J. Lockington’s voice as we experienced the MC’s struggles.
However, this is just about all I enjoyed about this book. The main character was hard for me to empathize with, the way she was written build her up as a petulant bratty whinny child in my mind, and the way that her mental health journey is entirely wrapped up in a romantic relationship with a boy who thinks “not all cops are bad” (who then goes on to experience zero growth on this matter), and who needs to be educated by her on everything about social justice was horrendous. I hated how she kept lying as a means of people pleasing behavior, and it felt like there was never any substantial growth on this front.
I did enjoy the way her relationship with her parents went through several bumps before growing into a healthy communicative relationship but that’s pretty much all I enjoyed about the main character and I most likely will not be returning to more of this authors books in the future.
hillmert's review
5.0
I appreciated the depiction of agoraphobia presented by the main character in this book. Of course there is much more to like about this book as well. It seems like a ripped from the pages of our daily newspaper type of story, addressing matters of social unrest. The relationship with the neighbor boy also brings a lot to the story.
lorayne's review
emotional
funny
hopeful
inspiring
reflective
sad
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Wowwwww! I borrowed this audiobook from the library not expecting too much, and I'm blown away. I love that this book shows the complexity of mental health with a main character who is a young, black woman navigating a number of relationships all while trying to hold it together as she navigates living with agoraphobia. Those are already a number of layers to develop in a novel, yet Mariama J. Lockington creates a superb cast of characters that help shed light on how age, race, gender, and sexuality intersect to create barriers and/or bridges. I particularly love where Lockington set the story--Oakland, CA--and that each detail she highlighted about place was about the beauty and safety that exists in Oakland.
I highly recommend this YA novel for anyone who'd like to see Black joy that takes place even as incredibly difficult things are happening. Forever Is Now proves it is the joy that helps us people of color develop resilience as we resist oppressive forces in our daily lives. While we may know this to be true, we don't usually get to see it written so well into a beautiful story.
I highly recommend this YA novel for anyone who'd like to see Black joy that takes place even as incredibly difficult things are happening. Forever Is Now proves it is the joy that helps us people of color develop resilience as we resist oppressive forces in our daily lives. While we may know this to be true, we don't usually get to see it written so well into a beautiful story.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Mental illness, Panic attacks/disorders, and Racism
Moderate: Police brutality
Minor: Biphobia
swanlove2002's review
challenging
dark
emotional
hopeful
informative
inspiring
reflective
sad
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Panic attacks/disorders, Police brutality, and Gaslighting
Moderate: Racism and Violence