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mezzythedragon's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.25
Moderate: Cursing, Death, Drug use, Emotional abuse, Homophobia, Racism, Toxic relationship, Grief, Lesbophobia, and Alcohol
Minor: Terminal illness
CW // intergenerational trauma, abuse, racism, death, internalized queerphobia, alcohol and drug use This is some hard-hitting, heavy stuff. A clear example of “hurt people hurt people.” Even though both Zora and Mama Letty have gone through/are still going through their personal traumas, they too have done some terrible things to each other, and in Zora’s case, to Avery as well. I will say the endingbetweentheshelves's review against another edition
- 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
Not only is the cover of this book gorgeous, but the writing inside matches. This is Jas Hammonds first novel, but I hope they keep writing becuase there's so much to like about this. Strong characters, beautiful writing, strong emotions. There is almost a story within a story in this book, adding a little mystery to Avery's story.
At its core, this is a book about generational trauma related to racism, how racial violence can affect a family for years down the line. You are sure to fall in love with the characters, even the ever stubborn Mama Letty. You'll laugh, you'll cry, you'll gasp. You'll find it all in this book.
Since we're at the end of 2022, put this on your 2023 TBR. You won't be disappointed.
Graphic: Cancer, Racism, and Grief
Moderate: Death, Homophobia, and Murder
Minor: Alcoholism, Infidelity, and Police brutality
hngisreading's review against another edition
- 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
Graphic: Cancer, Death, Hate crime, Racial slurs, Racism, Police brutality, Grief, Death of parent, and Murder
albon's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
Graphic: Death, Homophobia, Racism, and Lesbophobia
Moderate: Death of parent
Minor: Murder
amandalorianxo's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
You can tell how much love and emotion it took for this debut to come together and I can’t thank Jas enough for creating this wonderful young adult novel. It centers around 17 year old Avery Anderson, a biracial teen from DC who moves to Bardell,Georgia after finding out that Mama Letty (Avery’s mother) has terminal breast cancer. The relationships we uncover in this book have a lot of deep rooted, repressed trauma and sometimes acknowledged verbal /emotional tendencies that lean towards abusive. Avery along with the audience unpacks a lot within the several months she is living in Bardell. This definitely leaves you thinking and wishing that more people of color did in fact have monuments dedicated to them because lord knows the Confederates of the past have no business being glorified. My only critique were the random flashbacks that weren’t necessarily needed or could have been implemented a different way.
Graphic: Grief
Moderate: Death, Terminal illness, and Death of parent
Minor: Drug use, Homophobia, Infidelity, Racism, Medical content, Murder, Lesbophobia, and Outing
dernhelms_bag's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
5.0
Graphic: Death, Racism, and Death of parent
Moderate: Violence and Murder
kays_reading_journal's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Graphic: Cancer, Death, Emotional abuse, Hate crime, Homophobia, Racism, Grief, and Lesbophobia
Moderate: Alcoholism, Police brutality, Religious bigotry, and Murder
lettuce_read's review against another edition
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
5.0
Graphic: Cancer, Hate crime, Homophobia, Racism, Terminal illness, Police brutality, Grief, and Toxic friendship
Moderate: Cursing, Death, Drug use, Emotional abuse, Murder, Outing, Alcohol, and Sexual harassment
Minor: Classism
readingwithtrey's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
5.0
Moderate: Cancer, Death, Racism, Death of parent, and Murder
Minor: Cursing, Emotional abuse, Violence, Police brutality, Car accident, and Lesbophobia
jessicaludden's review against another edition
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.5
I am a puddle of tears after reading this book. I loved it. I don’t know how the author did it but they managed to make me feel utterly hopeless and completely hopeful at the same time. This book holds a lot of power. It’s in the scenes where three generations of women are battling through their trauma and grief, whether with or against each other, that it really shows. Jas Hammonds did an amazing job of showing the complexities of trauma within a family and how that trauma can be passed on through generations. They also included the very raw and realistic histories of racism in the south. They put a face and a name to these horrors and were able to show how this history of hatred impacts actual people. Some of my favorite scenes were the conversations between Avery and Mama Letty where they were able to reminisce on Mama Lefty’s love with Ray, but also Avery was able to get bits and pieces of the awful events that resulted in Ray’s death. Jas Hammonds conveyed Avery’s desperation to know more and then her anger and helplessness when she realized there was nothing she could do. I loved Avery’s character. I love her determinedness to know more and do more for those she loved. I loved watching her grow into herself. Overall, I laughed, I cried, and I stared into space thinking. This book was beautiful.
Minor: Alcoholism, Cancer, Child abuse, Death, Hate crime, Homophobia, Racism, Police brutality, Grief, Religious bigotry, Death of parent, Murder, Lesbophobia, and Outing