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emorgan1013's review against another edition
emotional
informative
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
adilyn's review against another edition
challenging
emotional
hopeful
informative
reflective
sad
tense
fast-paced
- 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? It's complicated
5.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Racism, Bullying, Racial slurs, Genocide, and Suicide
leeleerose93's review against another edition
4.0
I almost didn’t read this book tbh. I thought, what does this white lady know about writing from a black woman’s point of view in a book about racism? But I got it from my local library for this Valentine’s Day thing they do called a blind date with a book where you pick a book without knowing more than a very, VERY basic explanation of the plot. I’m so glad I did. I can tell Jodi did her research (also confirmed in her notes at the end of the book).
Some of it seemed a little much, like the brief and random mention about crack vs cocaine arrests, but maybe that’s because I already know a lot of this stuff as a black woman and this book was really meant for white people. Not that a POC couldn’t enjoy this because I still did…after the shock wore off from reading how the white supremacist was during his pov chapters (tbh it never really wore off because he was so HATEFUL—obviously).
The ending was a little too idealistic to me tbh. I know her notes talk about how she met with people during her research who ended up the same way as Turk but how often does that really happen?
For those two points, I took away a star. But otherwise, I wanted to give it five.
All in all, this is a great book and I’ll be recommending it to lots of people, especially my white friends.
Unrelated but can we maybe figure out how to put trigger warnings in book descriptions? The amount of times I read the n-word or other slurs, and other hateful things because of the white supremacist…I expected a little but not as much as what was actually in here, probably because I didn’t expect part of the story to be told by his POV for some chapters.
Some of it seemed a little much, like the brief and random mention about crack vs cocaine arrests, but maybe that’s because I already know a lot of this stuff as a black woman and this book was really meant for white people. Not that a POC couldn’t enjoy this because I still did…after the shock wore off from reading how the white supremacist was during his pov chapters (tbh it never really wore off because he was so HATEFUL—obviously).
The ending was a little too idealistic to me tbh. I know her notes talk about how she met with people during her research who ended up the same way as Turk but how often does that really happen?
For those two points, I took away a star. But otherwise, I wanted to give it five.
All in all, this is a great book and I’ll be recommending it to lots of people, especially my white friends.
Unrelated but can we maybe figure out how to put trigger warnings in book descriptions? The amount of times I read the n-word or other slurs, and other hateful things because of the white supremacist…I expected a little but not as much as what was actually in here, probably because I didn’t expect part of the story to be told by his POV for some chapters.
angelabecker's review against another edition
challenging
emotional
informative
tense
fast-paced
5.0
willardjen14's review against another edition
challenging
reflective
sad
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.25
ashleighyoung's review against another edition
4.0
7/10 - ALL RIGHT THIS BOOK PPL, if you want to learn something new or honestly just have you heart warmed, READ. THIS. BOOK. honestly i’ll say it, i did not like this book when i first started it, it was VERY hard to read OFTEN (not at times) & also it really brings to light issues of racism, that are often glossed over and sugar coated, BUT wow WHAT. A. STORY. you know when you almost look at things differently but in a good way from a book, THAT’S. THIS. BOOK. i only gave the book a 7/10 bc it’s not a story everyone can handle, it will challenge you but you will rise from it!
hjhenderson's review against another edition
emotional
hopeful
informative
inspiring
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.75
catherineamerica's review against another edition
challenging
hopeful
informative
inspiring
reflective
sad
tense
medium-paced
- 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? It's complicated
4.75
This book was really good. It captivated my attention. Turk felt a little flat at times and his redemption arc probably needed to be a little longer but this book was mostly about Ruth. I was debating on rating it as a 4.5 but I really liked the story and writing overall.
seymone's review against another edition
5.0
Amazing. Outstanding story line. This book made me look inward. It caused me to reflect on some of the prejudices that I have. On a negative note, it made me hyper aware of the daily challenges, I face as a black woman. The book did its job! Would recommend to everyone