Reviews with content warning for Hate crime - On the Come Up

Such a great book! It was very easy to immerse myself into the story - the characters were believable and all had strong, distinct voices of their own. This book included issues facing youth today - class struggles, racial discrimination, violence from authority, drugs infiltrating neighborhoods and lives therein, friendships and romantic relationships, familial ties, people's expectations and judgements... Excellent writing that I became fully invested in.

I noticed a lot of people have a problem with how Bri speaks to her mother and thinks about her ("she isn't polite enough! That's her mOtHeR!")

Spoilers:

These people must be so fortunate to have never had a parent abandon them. Jay decided to take up the hobby of consuming Crack when her husband/her children's father was murdered. Think about it from a young child's point of view. A young child who had to then be raised by a grandparent that clearly resented that same mother would likely develop a sense of resentment toward her, themself. Bri clearly states she doesn't feel like Jay deserves or should be called mom because of this. Of course there is a lack of respect and reverence from Bri - Jayda broke that sense of security and trust! It's great she turned her life around and came back but that doesn't mean Bri can just magically forget and move on. That was ✨️ trauma ✨️ and that requires a lot of work to heal. Bri's decision making and way of treating others made sense to me. I've met people with similar upbringings who conducted themselves as Bri does in the book.

Content Warnings

masha_and_the_cat's review

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emotional hopeful 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

4.5

Content Warnings

mllesophie's review against another edition

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dark funny hopeful 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? No

4.25

Ok, a book about somebody who wants to be a rapper is not for me. But since it was written by Angie Thomas I wanted to read it anyway. Angie Thomas is a really good author and this story made me think about how it is to be black in my neighborhood. I really think that the reality is not the same then the one in this book, but I think this reflection is something that should be happening more often then it is right now.

Content Warnings