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solenophage's review against another edition
emotional
hopeful
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.5
I loved a good 80 - 90% of this - solid 4, maybe 5 stars - until the ending. The exploration of complex and nuanced family relationships is something I always enjoy reading about and that was done quite well in this novel. I appreciated how Hammonds portrayed the cycle of trauma and abuse. They showed the sympathetic side to all three generations of the main character, Avery's family without excusing how Avery's grandmother abused her daughter or how her mother denied Avery a connection to her family and their history. Each character's hurt and anger is allowed to breathe and to coexist with love and longing and grief. Their relationships all feel complex and real in a way that often difficult to capture. I also like how Avery's exploration of her family history and her desire to understand her mother and her grandmother more is tied into her increasing feelings that she doesn't really know who she is or what she really wants out of life beyond what is expected of her. I could really feel and empathize with the fear, frustration, and sense of being lost that built slowly as Avery began to realize that the way she'd been living her life was mostly to satisfy others or was something she did without thinking because it was expected of her. She spent so much time following that path and now that she knows it's not what she wants, she's struggling to figure out what is.
There were a few aspects that I thought could have been done better. I was uncomfortable with how casual and dismissive Avery was towards Simone's fear of being outed to her homophobic mother in what seems to be a conservative town. I could accept this as just part of her character - not really understanding the real danger this could have for Simone - but it felt like the narrative supported this attitude or at least didn't contradict it. I didn't feel like Simone's feelings and Avery's dismissiveness weren't fully addressed and by the end Avery's 'everything will be fine, don't worry' attitude was proven correct. Simone's mother did come around and Avery's and Simone's relationship picked right back up easily.
I was kind of irritated by how useless and uninvolved Avery's dad was for a lot of the book. I get that the focus wasn't on him, but if your family's have screaming matches and breaking down crying, shouldn't you be doing something? He got better towards the end, but it was still annoying.
Those were pretty minor problems for me though, what really took this down to only 3 stars was the ending. **Spoilers ahead** Avery finds out her grandmother most likely murdered one of her best friend's, Jade's, parents in the last 20 pages and that's that, end of the book. She has no feelings or thoughts on that, we don't see it affect their friendship, she doesn't even think about breaching that subject with Jade. It's made extra off putting by the fact that Avery finding out that Jade's grandfather and great-grandfather murdered her grandfather was rightfully treated as a big deal that really messed with her. She had a big fight with Jade and had to work through a lot of anger and complex feelings before she could get to thinking about whether they could still be friends after finding out something like that. Then she discovers this and has no empathy towards Jade, doesn't want to help her find closure or decide for herself how she feels about hanging around the family of the woman who killed her mother. Avery can have that, but she'll deny it to Jade. It wasn't even a satisfying conclusion to the 'mystery' of Jade's mother's death, because that never felt like a major part of the story, just a part of Jade's backstory. It felt like a weird and unnecessary note to end an otherwise good book on.
There were a few aspects that I thought could have been done better. I was uncomfortable with how casual and dismissive Avery was towards Simone's fear of being outed to her homophobic mother in what seems to be a conservative town. I could accept this as just part of her character - not really understanding the real danger this could have for Simone - but it felt like the narrative supported this attitude or at least didn't contradict it. I didn't feel like Simone's feelings and Avery's dismissiveness weren't fully addressed and by the end Avery's 'everything will be fine, don't worry' attitude was proven correct. Simone's mother did come around and Avery's and Simone's relationship picked right back up easily.
I was kind of irritated by how useless and uninvolved Avery's dad was for a lot of the book. I get that the focus wasn't on him, but if your family's have screaming matches and breaking down crying, shouldn't you be doing something? He got better towards the end, but it was still annoying.
Those were pretty minor problems for me though, what really took this down to only 3 stars was the ending. **Spoilers ahead** Avery finds out her grandmother most likely murdered one of her best friend's, Jade's, parents in the last 20 pages and that's that, end of the book. She has no feelings or thoughts on that, we don't see it affect their friendship, she doesn't even think about breaching that subject with Jade. It's made extra off putting by the fact that Avery finding out that Jade's grandfather and great-grandfather murdered her grandfather was rightfully treated as a big deal that really messed with her. She had a big fight with Jade and had to work through a lot of anger and complex feelings before she could get to thinking about whether they could still be friends after finding out something like that. Then she discovers this and has no empathy towards Jade, doesn't want to help her find closure or decide for herself how she feels about hanging around the family of the woman who killed her mother. Avery can have that, but she'll deny it to Jade. It wasn't even a satisfying conclusion to the 'mystery' of Jade's mother's death, because that never felt like a major part of the story, just a part of Jade's backstory. It felt like a weird and unnecessary note to end an otherwise good book on.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Cancer, Racism, and Grief
Moderate: Cancer, Death, Emotional abuse, Hate crime, Homophobia, Vomit, Murder, Lesbophobia, and Outing
Minor: Fatphobia
xangemtheelibrarian's review against another edition
challenging
emotional
hopeful
reflective
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? It's complicated
5.0
Three words come to mind when I think of this story as a whole: Powerful. Authentic. Tender.
Jas Hammonds has created a truly wonderful story that does not shy away from grief, yet still manages to gently point out beauty amidst the pain.
Avery Anderson, a Black queer high schooler, has been suddenly and unwillingly uprooted from her home in Washington DC and moved to Bardell, Georgia to help her estranged, dying grandmother, Mama Letty. Though Mama Letty is frosty and guarded, and Avery's only plan is to get in, get out, and keep to herself, Avery quickly becomes curious about her last surviving grandparent and the life she lived. As Mama Letty slowly opens up, Avery uncovers more and more of Bardell's racist and homophobic history. Then there's Simone. Beautiful, vibrant Simone whom Avery falls hard for. And Jade, the daughter of the richest man in town, whom Avery befriends alongside Simone. Suddenly "get in, get out, and keep to yourself" is a lot more complicated.
Avery is such a well-written character and is greatly supported by Hammonds' ability to describe places and emotions vividly. Readers will feel everything Avery feels deeply: the pain, hurt, love, anger, and hope. While reading, and even now thinking back on the story, I feel like Avery is a real person, somewhere out there in this world. Just like Mama Letty and Dr. Zora Anderson, Avery's mom, feel real to me as well. And it's these characters who really breathe life into this story. Their reactions, especially Avery's, to uncovering the unhealed wounds of the past are so human, you can't help but hurt with them. And Hammonds has this wonderful way of weaving hope and healing into this story that holds so much hurt.
I am very excited for this book to come out. It's a wonderful debut by a wonderful author, and I'm sure it will touch many of the people who read it.
Jas Hammonds has created a truly wonderful story that does not shy away from grief, yet still manages to gently point out beauty amidst the pain.
Avery Anderson, a Black queer high schooler, has been suddenly and unwillingly uprooted from her home in Washington DC and moved to Bardell, Georgia to help her estranged, dying grandmother, Mama Letty. Though Mama Letty is frosty and guarded, and Avery's only plan is to get in, get out, and keep to herself, Avery quickly becomes curious about her last surviving grandparent and the life she lived. As Mama Letty slowly opens up, Avery uncovers more and more of Bardell's racist and homophobic history. Then there's Simone. Beautiful, vibrant Simone whom Avery falls hard for. And Jade, the daughter of the richest man in town, whom Avery befriends alongside Simone. Suddenly "get in, get out, and keep to yourself" is a lot more complicated.
Avery is such a well-written character and is greatly supported by Hammonds' ability to describe places and emotions vividly. Readers will feel everything Avery feels deeply: the pain, hurt, love, anger, and hope. While reading, and even now thinking back on the story, I feel like Avery is a real person, somewhere out there in this world. Just like Mama Letty and Dr. Zora Anderson, Avery's mom, feel real to me as well. And it's these characters who really breathe life into this story. Their reactions, especially Avery's, to uncovering the unhealed wounds of the past are so human, you can't help but hurt with them. And Hammonds has this wonderful way of weaving hope and healing into this story that holds so much hurt.
I am very excited for this book to come out. It's a wonderful debut by a wonderful author, and I'm sure it will touch many of the people who read it.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Racism and Outing
Moderate: Child abuse, Death, Hate crime, Homophobia, and Murder
Minor: Infidelity
amobrien's review against another edition
challenging
emotional
mysterious
reflective
sad
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? Yes
4.5
Thank you Netgalley for providing a digital ARC.
Family drama, love story, and mystery all in one — I loved the way We Deserve Monuments had so many layers and each were done successfully. It's not often that a single book can tell so many different stories at once and have it done well, so I was so impressed with the way We Deserve Monuments wrapped it all up. I also loved how complex the characters were. I highly recommend giving this a read!
Family drama, love story, and mystery all in one — I loved the way We Deserve Monuments had so many layers and each were done successfully. It's not often that a single book can tell so many different stories at once and have it done well, so I was so impressed with the way We Deserve Monuments wrapped it all up. I also loved how complex the characters were. I highly recommend giving this a read!
Content Warnings
Graphic: Alcoholism, Cancer, Hate crime, Homophobia, Terminal illness, and Police brutality
alylentz's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
mysterious
reflective
sad
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
4.0
This is an ambitious but brilliantly executed coming-of-age debut that focuses on Avery as she tries to make a home for herself in a small Southern town and get to know her dying grandmother. Avery, her family and friends, and Mama Letty are all memorable and realistically drawn characters, and while this novel is emotional and complex, it was also very fun to read about Avery making friends and falling in love for the first time. Avery slowly learns the history of her own family as well as the dark history of the town, and following the mysteries definitely kept me turning the pages. I am so impressed that this is a debut and know I will be picking up the next thing Jas Hammonds has to offer us. I can't wait to recommend this to teen readers who are looking for complex queer characters, deep family relationships, and richly drawn settings.
Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for providing me with an ARC of this title in exchange for an honest review.
Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for providing me with an ARC of this title in exchange for an honest review.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Cancer, Death, Homophobia, Racism, Grief, and Death of parent
Moderate: Child abuse, Gun violence, and Hate crime
marywahlmeierbracciano's review against another edition
challenging
emotional
reflective
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? Yes
5.0
When her family learns that her grandmother is dying, Avery is uprooted from her life in D.C. and transplanted to her mom’s tiny hometown in Georgia. She leaves behind her college-obsessed friends (and ex) just before starting her senior year in a town where she knows no one, including her own grandmother. Years of lost time span between three generations of Black women, and Avery is determined to unearth the divisive secrets that color her family and finally get to know her impenetrable grandmother, all while getting to know herself. A debut novel about who and what is worth remembering with a special focus on Black queer love in the South, We Deserve Monuments is unforgettable.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Homophobia, Grief, Lesbophobia, and Outing
Moderate: Cancer, Death, Emotional abuse, Hate crime, Racism, Terminal illness, Medical content, Religious bigotry, Death of parent, Murder, Toxic friendship, and Classism
Minor: Alcoholism, Child abuse, Gun violence, Infidelity, Sexual content, Vomit, and Police brutality
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