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4.3 AVERAGE
4.3 AVERAGE
emotional
inspiring
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
I’m not a fan of YA. Many of the popular ones I’ve unfortunately read depict whiny, immature, high-strung teens who almost always choose to do exactly what you are NOT supposed to do. I get it. Teenagers, am I right? But I do not enjoy screaming out expletives at the pages while they make one bad decision after another. I think I’ve left that phase of life, and I am not keen to revisit, not even vicariously through fictional characters.
Therefore, I’m very careful about the YA I choose to read. As I loved The Hate U Give by Angie Thomas, at least going into this, I knew I was going to skip the unnecessary drama and get right into the social issues I know Thomas would likely weave into the story.
Bri, a 16-year-old inspiring rapper, is desperate to prove herself. Tired of being looked at as “angry, black girl” in her predominantly white school and getting sent to the principal’s office for something a white student would not usually be sent for, Bri wanted to use her rapping prowess to channel the pent-up frustrations. Most of all, she wants to do it for her family – to live up to her late rapper-dad, and help her mother and brother with the bills.
I love how Thomas writes her characters. There’s depth and personality to each one that I can easily imagine them as actual people in real life. While Bri does make questionable decisions at times, it reflects her maturity and her state of mind as a teenager struggling to make her mark while trying to make sense of the world (without the unnecessary ‘nobody-understands-me’ meltdowns teenagers usually seem to have in books) I also love the relationship between the family members. While Bri and her mother’s strained relationship sometimes threatens the harmony within the family, it only shows the deep affection they have for one another, despite their different ways of showing they care.
I look forward to reading more books by Angie Thomas, YA or not.
emotional
hopeful
reflective
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
emotional
funny
hopeful
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
I think I liked this even more than The Hate U Give. I love how Angie Thomas writes, and her characters are complex and well written.
challenging
emotional
hopeful
inspiring
reflective
tense
medium-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:
No
I loved this book!! It is wonderfully written and it moves so quickly. I think this is a great book for all young adults to read because it talks a lot about success and staying true to yourself. The ending was very satisfying!
It was a really good book. I like Angie Thomas writing. I hope it will translated in turkish soon.
This was definitely meant to be listened to so you can hear the rap like it was meant to be. Basically, I'll read anything Angie Thomas writes. Next, Concrete Rose!!
Hot damn!! Angie Thomas knows how to follow up a phenomenal book with an even better one (or almost better? I can't decide, they're both so damn good!). Angie Thomas is doing amazing things for young adult literature; her voice, her tone, her characters, and her battles are soo soo vital and important. On the Come Up follows Bri, a sixteen year old black girl who has her heart set on being a rapper. She lives in Garden Heights, a poor black community riddled with gang violence, drugs, and despair; but despite all that she still loves it. These are her people, her friends, and when she blows up as the next big thing, she'll be proud to represent the Garden. Bri's mom is pushing school on her, but it's a little hard to focus on the ACT when the heat is off and there is no food in the house. Her mom has just been fired from her job and her older brother is living at home after coming back from college with no job offers. They're trying to make ends meet, but it's hard to succeed when the cards are stacked against you. Bri is convinced that if her rapping career takes off then her family won't need to worry anymore, so instead of focusing on her grades she's putting her blood, sweat, and tears into getting her rap career off the ground, even if it means alienating her friends and family. What will it take to get Bri to realize that there is more then life then money? Will she end up like her father, an underground rap legend murdered by gang members? Empowering and inspiring; this book is a must read!
funny
hopeful
inspiring
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes