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veyrith's review against another edition
challenging
dark
emotional
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
4.5
I wish the ending was different but I respect that it is a reflection of reality, and I am glad I read this, and am now a fraction more aware of things I was uneducated about.
Content Warnings
Graphic: War and Violence
Moderate: Self harm
shirleytupperfreeman's review against another edition
In case your young adult thought the US was the only country with a refugee crisis of conscience and action, this story from Australia will correct that notion. Jono is an Australian citizen whose father was a 'legal' immigrant as a young adult. Anahita is an Iranian refugee currently stuck in the limbo of a detention facility. Atkins lovingly portrays the complicated relationships between relatively recent immigrants and new refugees in crisis, between parents and teens, and between countries and refugees. No happily ever after yet.
lawbooks600's review against another edition
emotional
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
Representation: Biracial (half Asian and half white) and Asian characters
Score: Six points out of ten.
I saw Between Us circling in my recommendations once but not before I added it to my TBR. I saw one library that had it, but unfortunately, someone transferred it and I never got around to transferring it back. At least another library I went to had this one so I seized the opportunity to get it by picking it up. However, when I read and finished Between Us, it was okay and not without flaws.
It starts with the first two characters I see, Anahita and Jono both living their separate lives. Anahita is an Iranian refugee while Jono is a half Vietnamese half Australian person. Initially, the two don't interact until a few pages in, but it turns out for the worse as the latter grew suspicious of the former. Jono questioned whether Ana is a real refugee or a 'queue jumper.' It's not clear what the second term means. Between Us has many imperfections that the author could address to make a better reading experience. The experimental nature of combining prose and poetry didn't help me delight myself in reading Between Us as the poetry wasn't compelling enough and felt like what happened when someone pressed the Enter key many times. However, the prose was passable. Between Us has only one chapter spanning the entire text broken into multiple POVs but they were almost indistinguishable other than their names. The characters were also hard to connect or relate with. Between Us finishes on a low note when the Australian Government deported Anahita. I'm not sure if a half Vietnamese half Australian author can write about an Iranian person. It feels inauthentic, further underwhelming me.
Score: Six points out of ten.
I saw Between Us circling in my recommendations once but not before I added it to my TBR. I saw one library that had it, but unfortunately, someone transferred it and I never got around to transferring it back. At least another library I went to had this one so I seized the opportunity to get it by picking it up. However, when I read and finished Between Us, it was okay and not without flaws.
It starts with the first two characters I see, Anahita and Jono both living their separate lives. Anahita is an Iranian refugee while Jono is a half Vietnamese half Australian person. Initially, the two don't interact until a few pages in, but it turns out for the worse as the latter grew suspicious of the former. Jono questioned whether Ana is a real refugee or a 'queue jumper.' It's not clear what the second term means. Between Us has many imperfections that the author could address to make a better reading experience. The experimental nature of combining prose and poetry didn't help me delight myself in reading Between Us as the poetry wasn't compelling enough and felt like what happened when someone pressed the Enter key many times. However, the prose was passable. Between Us has only one chapter spanning the entire text broken into multiple POVs but they were almost indistinguishable other than their names. The characters were also hard to connect or relate with. Between Us finishes on a low note when the Australian Government deported Anahita. I'm not sure if a half Vietnamese half Australian author can write about an Iranian person. It feels inauthentic, further underwhelming me.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Sexism, Injury/Injury detail, Blood, Pregnancy, and Deportation
Moderate: Self harm, Confinement, and Suicide attempt
Full trigger warnings: Physical assault and injury, blood depiction, deportation, refugee experiences, pregnancy, childbirth, sexist slur, self-harm and attempted suicide mentioned, imprisonment, divorcelizabellie24's review
adventurous
challenging
emotional
hopeful
inspiring
lighthearted
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
I absolutely loved this book! The author really connected with the readers and gave us a way to see inside someone else's shoes. The story of Jono ( the son of a Vietnamese migrant ) and Ana ( an Iranian refugee ) is heartwarming and is truely a msterpiece. I totally recommend for readers wanting a hopeful, inspiring journey.
thanh's review against another edition
read like 3/4 of it, trying to click with the story, but just didn't happen. decided to read the last few pages and was kind of .. disappointed? the author probably had some significant reason to have ended it the way she did, (which i didn't get a chance to find out because i dnf-ed it), but the ending was not the happy ending i expected!
becandbooks's review against another edition
4.0
With the on-going climate of global refugee climate and the appalling nature of refugee and asylum seeker laws in Australia at the moment, this book is important.
♢ The story follows an Iranian refugee who is living in a detention center with her pregnant mother and little brother. She attends a nearby local school in Darwin, where she gets a taste of everyday life for an Australian - only to return back to detention each day.
The light that this book sheds on life inside a detention center is a cornerstone of the story. It is raw and heartbreaking and a story that needs to be shared. While this is not an own-voices account of life inside detention, the author note does state that there was a large amount of research and consultation involved in weaving this narrative.
The friendship between Ana, the Iranian refugee, and Jono, a boy who goes to the Darwin school, is something that I enjoyed. While it didn't scream out anything amazing, I think the complications of the friendship and the lack of any real romance thread was refreshing. Honestly, a romance in this story would have made me cringe. The side-story of Jono, and his Vietnamese father, Kenny, was an inclusion that entwined well with the main plot-line. Kenny, who works as security at the detention center which holds Ana and her family, provided another perspective to the tragic story of refugees.
The story-telling was fine, however not the most engaging that I have come across. But the characters and the plot, along with it's though-provoking nature about refugees in the real world was more than enough to carry the story. This is an important book that I recommend to everyone.
♢ The story follows an Iranian refugee who is living in a detention center with her pregnant mother and little brother. She attends a nearby local school in Darwin, where she gets a taste of everyday life for an Australian - only to return back to detention each day.
The light that this book sheds on life inside a detention center is a cornerstone of the story. It is raw and heartbreaking and a story that needs to be shared. While this is not an own-voices account of life inside detention, the author note does state that there was a large amount of research and consultation involved in weaving this narrative.
The friendship between Ana, the Iranian refugee, and Jono, a boy who goes to the Darwin school, is something that I enjoyed. While it didn't scream out anything amazing, I think the complications of the friendship and the lack of any real romance thread was refreshing. Honestly, a romance in this story would have made me cringe. The side-story of Jono, and his Vietnamese father, Kenny, was an inclusion that entwined well with the main plot-line. Kenny, who works as security at the detention center which holds Ana and her family, provided another perspective to the tragic story of refugees.
The story-telling was fine, however not the most engaging that I have come across. But the characters and the plot, along with it's though-provoking nature about refugees in the real world was more than enough to carry the story. This is an important book that I recommend to everyone.
lotoazul's review
challenging
emotional
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? It's complicated
4.0
THIS BOOK BROKE ME OMG I CANNOT RECOMMEND IT ENOUGH
the blossoming romance between ana and jono was just the sweetest thing, i loved how they came together and how they opened up to new experiences thanks to the other. for the first half or so of the book i was just the happiest girl, i couldn't wait to keep reading and i couldn't stop smiling when i did. in the second half, reality struck, of course, but i also liked that because it felt very real, and i like the idea that it was the system and the outsiders looking in on them and seeing only differences, rather than anything about the two of them, that really impacted their relationship. a very down-to-earth example of how fear of "the other" can drive our actions and emotions. i loved this book so, so, so much.
the blossoming romance between ana and jono was just the sweetest thing, i loved how they came together and how they opened up to new experiences thanks to the other. for the first half or so of the book i was just the happiest girl, i couldn't wait to keep reading and i couldn't stop smiling when i did. in the second half, reality struck, of course, but i also liked that because it felt very real, and i like the idea that it was the system and the outsiders looking in on them and seeing only differences, rather than anything about the two of them, that really impacted their relationship. a very down-to-earth example of how fear of "the other" can drive our actions and emotions. i loved this book so, so, so much.
avrilhj's review against another edition
5.0
It took me 18 months to read this book because it made me so angry and so sad. I had to keep taking breaks to breathe, to cry, to work through the nausea. It is beautifully written. Compelling. Devastating. Australia’s treatment of asylum seekers who arrive by boat is evil, and one day we will look back on this period of history with the horror with which Germans look back on the Third Reich.
joanne_f77's review against another edition
5.0
I really liked this story easy to follow but didn't like the way it ended!