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jovanas_cloud's review against another edition
5.0
This must be one of the best books I had ever read for one of my courses. I will admit I teared up and cried several times throughout the book.
There are several points I want to discuss about.
Firstly, I absolutely love the family dynamic between the kids and parents, but also between half-siblings. I imagine this is what my sisters and I would be like if we were closer in age, like Seven, Starr, Sekani, Kenya and Lyric are. I love how supportive and present Starr's dad Maverick is, just seeing their relationship definitely made me tear up a couple of times.
Secondly, I feel like Angie did amazingly with tackling the black stereotypes and microaggressions. Every time Starr tackled someone's microaggression and racism she would explain why it was harmful to say/do that and I just feel since this is a YA book, it provides the younger readers with an understanding why not to say/do stuff like Hailey and Chris. I reckon this aspect of the book really helped me too in a similar sense, providing me with a perspective I could never witness in real life, since I'm white and live in a white country with almost no racial minority.
Thirdly, the book is realistic. Unfortunately, it is realistic in the way how Khalil was murdered, how the One-Fifteen's dad went on national television and portrayed his son a victim, when he was the one behind the gun. Painting Khalil as a thug and a drug dealer who deserved to die, because he would have been murdered by someone else. The verdict that One Fifteen was not guilty. It's all too real and we have all seen it happen in real life. The most recent case I can remember being George Floyd, when media and Chauvin's team tried to portray that he deserved to die because he was a drug addict.
Fourthly, I love that Angie wrote this as YA book which allowed her to play with the narration, and to use dialogue the way she used it. It felt much truer since it was from Starr's perspective, who is 16 years old.
Overall, it was truly an amazing, serious yet fun book. I cannot wait to find time and read the prequel about Maverick and his story.
There are several points I want to discuss about.
Firstly, I absolutely love the family dynamic between the kids and parents, but also between half-siblings. I imagine this is what my sisters and I would be like if we were closer in age, like Seven, Starr, Sekani, Kenya and Lyric are. I love how supportive and present Starr's dad Maverick is, just seeing their relationship definitely made me tear up a couple of times.
Secondly, I feel like Angie did amazingly with tackling the black stereotypes and microaggressions. Every time Starr tackled someone's microaggression and racism she would explain why it was harmful to say/do that and I just feel since this is a YA book, it provides the younger readers with an understanding why not to say/do stuff like Hailey and Chris. I reckon this aspect of the book really helped me too in a similar sense, providing me with a perspective I could never witness in real life, since I'm white and live in a white country with almost no racial minority.
Thirdly, the book is realistic. Unfortunately, it is realistic in the way how Khalil was murdered, how the One-Fifteen's dad went on national television and portrayed his son a victim, when he was the one behind the gun. Painting Khalil as a thug and a drug dealer who deserved to die, because he would have been murdered by someone else. The verdict that One Fifteen was not guilty. It's all too real and we have all seen it happen in real life. The most recent case I can remember being George Floyd, when media and Chauvin's team tried to portray that he deserved to die because he was a drug addict.
Fourthly, I love that Angie wrote this as YA book which allowed her to play with the narration, and to use dialogue the way she used it. It felt much truer since it was from Starr's perspective, who is 16 years old.
Overall, it was truly an amazing, serious yet fun book. I cannot wait to find time and read the prequel about Maverick and his story.
perchedinthedark505's review against another edition
challenging
dark
emotional
funny
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? Yes
4.0
esorensen22's review against another edition
challenging
emotional
informative
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
5.0
inook_u's review against another edition
5.0
It had kicked Perks of Being Wallflower off the top of my most favourite book of all time!!!!
annabel__b's review against another edition
dark
emotional
informative
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.0
ahmeddsamara's review against another edition
dark
emotional
funny
hopeful
mysterious
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
elizabethbilawey's review against another edition
emotional
informative
inspiring
reflective
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- 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
rhikat93's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
emotional
informative
reflective
sad
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
5.0
janagaton's review against another edition
5.0
This was the first book I've read as an audio book, and I absolutely loved it! Starr's humor provides a great balance against all of the serious topics covered throughout the novel, such as police brutality, racism, etc. The movie adaptation is also very well-crafted.