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arisbookcorner's review against another edition
4.0
don't usually mind slow starts in contemporary novels and this one was no exception. I liked getting the backstory and feeling completely immersed in Asha's world, I was satisfied with the little everyday details. I would warn you though that it takes awhile for the actual rebellion to start but stick with the book. I was a bit peeved at how some characters emerged for a chapter and then faded away, only to be called again a few chapters later. Thad and Bridget were both brought into the story but then they just disappear, Asha doesn't give them another thought. The biggest problem to me were the awkward transitions. Just when a chapter was starting to get really good, the story would stick to the present where Asha was in the middle of a school board hearing on her possible expulsion (her school viewed the Latte Rebellion as a terrorist group). Then just when the hearing started to get interesting, the story would change to the past events leading up to the hearing. Sometimes it seemed like the hearing was rushed, for example, I almost missed the decision the school board made because it was rushed over.
The most fascinating point to me was that Asha (half-Indian, a quarter Mexican and a quarter Irish) and Carey (half Chinese, half European) resent being forced to pick a side or idenitfy with what they are the most. I admit I'm guilty of thinking that way. I'm bicultural but I've definitely thought at times that if you if have more than three different cultural backgrounds, you can list them all but if you join a club, join them all or pick the one you identify most with. I get ticked when people do the whole '10% Irish, 10% Scottish, 15% Swedish, 2 % Cherokee' etc. Just pick your top two! However this book showed me that it's not that simple. I shared Asha, Carey and Thad's frustration at the lack of understanding/options for multicultural people. Just today I was registering for the SAT and I could only pick one race or chose to be 'other.' I ended up selecting Black but I was peeved that there wasn't a way for me to pick Black AND Latina. Real-life moment right there. I love that Asha starts The Latte Rebellion for purely selfish reasons. She wants to travel and needs the money so why not open a business that would appeal to certain people? That's what entrepreneurs do all the time and I thought it made the book even more fun. Asha starts off self-absorbed and a bit clueless but that makes the end result even better. I also really liked that the book showed why the term 'latte' is so appropriate for multicultural/multiracial people and that the school thought of the group as a terrorist movement. As if. Gotta love school bureaucracy.
*Please be warned the next paragraph will contain some lame coffee puns/jokes*
The Latte Rebellion is filled to the brim with coffee for thought ranging from how multicultural people are viewed in the world (should we have to choose what culture we identify the most with, how do we do that?), prejudice (Asha is called a 'towel head'. Wow), race and the college process (and it was nice to read a book about a senior who is stressing out about college because the process sounds SCARY people) and friendships drifting apart. We aren't meant to be best friends with the same people all our lives. It's nice if that happens but it's a rarity. I loved Miranda (fight the power!) and even though I didn't see much of him, I was a big fan of Thad. But then again, I'm a complete sucker for a guy who has a sense of humor and yet still wants to save the world (and manage to make enough to get by). The rough transitions and disappearing characters made this book a bit hard to swallow but there is a great balance between hilarity and seriousness that brings out the sweet flavor. The parents have a role and they aren't a complete caricature of overbearing-must-get-good-grades kind of parents. I sipped a vanilla latte while reading this book. It was my first latte and while I'm not a fan, I've been told to try chai lattes and a gingerbread latte. So we shall see if I become a latte fan. I applaud the author for keeping up the latte metaphor throughout the whole book, it could be a bit silly at times but who doesn't like a little silliness? A stirring novel.
PS Longer review/extras at the blog on Feb. 1 and read my interview with the author http://blackteensread2.blogspot.com/2010/11/elated-over-eleven-sarah-jamila.html
The most fascinating point to me was that Asha (half-Indian, a quarter Mexican and a quarter Irish) and Carey (half Chinese, half European) resent being forced to pick a side or idenitfy with what they are the most. I admit I'm guilty of thinking that way. I'm bicultural but I've definitely thought at times that if you if have more than three different cultural backgrounds, you can list them all but if you join a club, join them all or pick the one you identify most with. I get ticked when people do the whole '10% Irish, 10% Scottish, 15% Swedish, 2 % Cherokee' etc. Just pick your top two! However this book showed me that it's not that simple. I shared Asha, Carey and Thad's frustration at the lack of understanding/options for multicultural people. Just today I was registering for the SAT and I could only pick one race or chose to be 'other.' I ended up selecting Black but I was peeved that there wasn't a way for me to pick Black AND Latina. Real-life moment right there. I love that Asha starts The Latte Rebellion for purely selfish reasons. She wants to travel and needs the money so why not open a business that would appeal to certain people? That's what entrepreneurs do all the time and I thought it made the book even more fun. Asha starts off self-absorbed and a bit clueless but that makes the end result even better. I also really liked that the book showed why the term 'latte' is so appropriate for multicultural/multiracial people and that the school thought of the group as a terrorist movement. As if. Gotta love school bureaucracy.
*Please be warned the next paragraph will contain some lame coffee puns/jokes*
The Latte Rebellion is filled to the brim with coffee for thought ranging from how multicultural people are viewed in the world (should we have to choose what culture we identify the most with, how do we do that?), prejudice (Asha is called a 'towel head'. Wow), race and the college process (and it was nice to read a book about a senior who is stressing out about college because the process sounds SCARY people) and friendships drifting apart. We aren't meant to be best friends with the same people all our lives. It's nice if that happens but it's a rarity. I loved Miranda (fight the power!) and even though I didn't see much of him, I was a big fan of Thad. But then again, I'm a complete sucker for a guy who has a sense of humor and yet still wants to save the world (and manage to make enough to get by). The rough transitions and disappearing characters made this book a bit hard to swallow but there is a great balance between hilarity and seriousness that brings out the sweet flavor. The parents have a role and they aren't a complete caricature of overbearing-must-get-good-grades kind of parents. I sipped a vanilla latte while reading this book. It was my first latte and while I'm not a fan, I've been told to try chai lattes and a gingerbread latte. So we shall see if I become a latte fan. I applaud the author for keeping up the latte metaphor throughout the whole book, it could be a bit silly at times but who doesn't like a little silliness? A stirring novel.
PS Longer review/extras at the blog on Feb. 1 and read my interview with the author http://blackteensread2.blogspot.com/2010/11/elated-over-eleven-sarah-jamila.html
themaddiest's review
3.0
Asha Jamison and her best friend Carey Wong want to go on a trip after they graduate from high school. Both girls are model students, on track for acceptance into great colleges, and they feel like they deserve a break. In order to fund their theoretical vacation, they come up with a business plan to sell t-shirts advertising The Latte Rebellion--a simple idea that asks people who come from mixed race backgrounds to stand up and be proud of their skin and their backgrounds. What starts as a simple idea catches on and begins to spread around the country. Both girls--but especially Asha--find themselves caught up in a political movement that soon spirals out of their control and puts them in hot water with their school, their parents, and their peers.
There's a lot of good stuff going on in Stevenson's book about a normal teenage girl who discovers a drive within herself to work for change. Stevenson is a strong writer who develops the characters of Asha and Carey especially well. She populates their world with a wide array of other characters who add dimension to the story. Asha has a positive relationship with her parents, which is always nice to see, but it isn't perfect, and while they are warm and obviously care for her, they also discipline her when it's called for. The realistic portrayal of what it's like to be a senior in high school feeling the pressure of looming college acceptance letters is also particularly on point.
Stevenson should also be commended for her portrayal of the complicated, changing relationships between two best friends. As Asha slowly awakens to the social justice cause, her best friend Carey retreats from it. The two begin to grow apart, and while Asha can't seem to see it or understand why it's happening, the reader can. As we grow up, our interests change and we drift away from friends we were close to before. As each girl begins to navigate young adulthood, they find that they can't be as close as they once were. This realistic representation of female friendship on the brink of adulthood is both heart-breaking and reassuring: it's a universal event in a girl's life.
Although the pacing is uneven, Stevenson's novel is highly enjoyable. The middle of the book gets slightly weighed down with events leading up to the climax, but readers invested in the plot and the characters will be able to overlook this. Highly recommended.
The Latte Rebellion by Sarah Jamilla Stevenson: Flux, 2011. Library copy.
There's a lot of good stuff going on in Stevenson's book about a normal teenage girl who discovers a drive within herself to work for change. Stevenson is a strong writer who develops the characters of Asha and Carey especially well. She populates their world with a wide array of other characters who add dimension to the story. Asha has a positive relationship with her parents, which is always nice to see, but it isn't perfect, and while they are warm and obviously care for her, they also discipline her when it's called for. The realistic portrayal of what it's like to be a senior in high school feeling the pressure of looming college acceptance letters is also particularly on point.
Stevenson should also be commended for her portrayal of the complicated, changing relationships between two best friends. As Asha slowly awakens to the social justice cause, her best friend Carey retreats from it. The two begin to grow apart, and while Asha can't seem to see it or understand why it's happening, the reader can. As we grow up, our interests change and we drift away from friends we were close to before. As each girl begins to navigate young adulthood, they find that they can't be as close as they once were. This realistic representation of female friendship on the brink of adulthood is both heart-breaking and reassuring: it's a universal event in a girl's life.
Although the pacing is uneven, Stevenson's novel is highly enjoyable. The middle of the book gets slightly weighed down with events leading up to the climax, but readers invested in the plot and the characters will be able to overlook this. Highly recommended.
The Latte Rebellion by Sarah Jamilla Stevenson: Flux, 2011. Library copy.
shutupnread's review
2.0
While this was a cute and short read (technically it was short but it took me a few days longer than what I would have expected not because it was boring but I just had other more interesting books to read and I was also away on business), I’m conflicted on whether or not I actually liked this book.
PROS: the concept of this book was different and was actually relevant to today’s society with the whole “#blacklivesmatters” protests and the whole racial discrimination going on in America today with Trump’s presidential campaign, I thought this book was quite relevant even though it was written a few years ago. It was also interesting to see how diverse the characters were – I mean, Asha was half Indian, quarter Mexican and quarter Irish. I find that so rare especially with the Indian part – I rarely see mixed Indians since most of the Indians I know are 100% so I found this tidbit to be very different and unusual.
CONS: Asha’s best friend, Carey, is such a bitch and I hated her guts. I mean, it was both her and Asha’s idea to start the Latte Rebellion yet she refused to take any part of it after realizing how big it was becoming and didn’t participate in any of the events due to “school” and “babysitting”. I mean, fine, I get that school is important especially for your senior year but the fact that she still took half of the money they earned was a little rude. She even backstabbed Asha during the hearing and Asha was annoyed with her but still put up with it. Honestly, that girl was so annoying, I wanted to punch her. The other characters weren’t really that developed and the whole budding romance thing between Asha and that college boy was so insignificant (they barely talked or saw each other) that I didn’t really see the point of even having that element in the book.
The one thing I didn’t really understand was the whole hearing thing. How come Asha was the only one singled out when there were dozens of people at the sit-in where the commotion happened? I mean, yes, she was part of the group that started (even though Carey pretended otherwise) but I don’t think that changes the fact that the Latte Rebellion grew out of control and went nationwide and that none of that was her fault?
Anyways, while this book was interesting in theory, I think the execution and the character development could have been improved.
To read more: http://holedupinabook.blogspot.com/2016/06/the-latte-rebellion-by-sarah-jamila.html
PROS: the concept of this book was different and was actually relevant to today’s society with the whole “#blacklivesmatters” protests and the whole racial discrimination going on in America today with Trump’s presidential campaign, I thought this book was quite relevant even though it was written a few years ago. It was also interesting to see how diverse the characters were – I mean, Asha was half Indian, quarter Mexican and quarter Irish. I find that so rare especially with the Indian part – I rarely see mixed Indians since most of the Indians I know are 100% so I found this tidbit to be very different and unusual.
CONS: Asha’s best friend, Carey, is such a bitch and I hated her guts. I mean, it was both her and Asha’s idea to start the Latte Rebellion yet she refused to take any part of it after realizing how big it was becoming and didn’t participate in any of the events due to “school” and “babysitting”. I mean, fine, I get that school is important especially for your senior year but the fact that she still took half of the money they earned was a little rude. She even backstabbed Asha during the hearing and Asha was annoyed with her but still put up with it. Honestly, that girl was so annoying, I wanted to punch her. The other characters weren’t really that developed and the whole budding romance thing between Asha and that college boy was so insignificant (they barely talked or saw each other) that I didn’t really see the point of even having that element in the book.
The one thing I didn’t really understand was the whole hearing thing. How come Asha was the only one singled out when there were dozens of people at the sit-in where the commotion happened? I mean, yes, she was part of the group that started (even though Carey pretended otherwise) but I don’t think that changes the fact that the Latte Rebellion grew out of control and went nationwide and that none of that was her fault?
Anyways, while this book was interesting in theory, I think the execution and the character development could have been improved.
To read more: http://holedupinabook.blogspot.com/2016/06/the-latte-rebellion-by-sarah-jamila.html
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