Reviews with content warning for Infertility - We Are Not Like Them

This book is both reflective in its plot as well as completely unsubtle in its message, and I have to admit I’m mixed on my feelings about it. The story focuses on a lifelong friendship between two women, one white (Jen) and one Black (Riley), after an incident in which Jen’s police officer husband is involved in the shooting of an unarmed Black teenager and Riley’s future as a television reporter - as well as her bonds to her own community and family - are tested by her reporting of this event. You can probably imagine some of the messaging that you’ll get hit over the head with in this book - I very much appreciated the message, although sometimes it did feel like it could have been written about more gracefully. I do think this is the right book at the right time, though, and a worthwhile read particularly for those who are willing to have their journey to allyship challenged. (CW: racism and racial slurs, microaggression, gun violence, infertility).

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desertmountainreads's review

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3.5

This book started out really strong and the narration was excellent. The last third of the book struggled a bit. There were parts that felt unrealistic and parts that just felt unnecessary to the story. The potential to be a really powerful read was there… it just wasn’t quite the 5 star stunner I expected.

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kelly_e's review against another edition

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challenging emotional reflective 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

4.5

Title: We Are Not Like Them
Author: Christine Pride & Jo Piazza
Genre: Contemporary Fiction
Rating: 4.5
Pub Date: October 5, 2021

T H R E E • W O R D S

Timely • Intuitive • Authentic

📖 S Y N O P S I S

Jen, a white pregnant wife of a police officer, and Riley, a Black female reporter, have been best friends since childhood. However, one event is about to test their lifelong bond: Jen's husband, Kevin, is involved in a shooting of an unarmed Black teenager. Each woman's life is about to change forever. When Riley is asked to cover the story, she knows this could be here big break. Meanwhile, Jen is devastated and contemplating a future where Kevin goes to jail. A story of friendship, love, race, forgiveness, justice, hope, and redemption.

💭 T H O U G H T S

This book wasn't on my radar until I received it in my Fall It's A Good Day Book Box, which is surprising given it was chosen as a GMA book club selection. When I first saw the cover I gasped, and what this book holds within its pages is a timely, tender, and immersive story told in alternating perspectives. It opens up so many questions in the debate on policing and justice, race and having hard conversations, and the changing dynamics of friendship. I've read various fiction books about racial injustice, but never one like this.

One of the things I found so compulsive is how based in reality it felt, and as a white woman, it most definitely made me feel uncomfortable, which it should. It raised so many questions that made me think and hypothesize, as well as, opened up so much discussion - all signs of a great book!

It's hard to believe We Are Not Like Them is written by a duo, as the writing is provocative and engaging. The alternating perspectives was the perfect fit. And for me this story really went beyond just the topic of race, but the power of speaking up and truly listening in all aspects of life. There were times when I felt grief echoed in a lot of the prose.

We Are Not Like Them covers a lot of ground, and it's a journey worth taking as you attempt to put yourself into another person's shoes and contemplate what you would do in the same situation. It's a story I won't soon forget. This book is designed to make you think, make you uncomfortable, and spark conversations, and it does all of that and more. I'm definitely looking forward to seeing where they go next, as I know they're working on their next novel.

📚 R E C O M M E N D • T O
• fans of Small Great Things
• readers who want something reflective
• book clubs

🔖 F A V O U R I T E • Q U O T E S

"It kills me how some people want so badly to believe racism is buried beneath layers of history, "ancient history," they say. But it's not. It's like an umpire brushing the thinnest layer of dirt off home plate: it's right there. Only too often the trauma, the toll of it, remains unknown generation after generation."

"There are no easy choices, no safe choices, you can't plan your way to happiness."

"It comes in waves, moments like these, a sense of hopelessness so strong it steals her breath. The sense that no one will understand and nothing will ever change."

"It's the one thing she appreciates about this letter. He doesn't try to justify himself. Some things can't be justified. Still, the letter won't bring peace or closure. Nothing will. But on a good day, when the sun is shining and when her memories of her son are the strongest, when she feels him in the room with her, on those days, she lets herself believe that maybe, just maybe, there's a world in which another mother won't have to go through this pain."

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ashhearddwrites's review against another edition

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challenging dark emotional medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? It's complicated

4.25

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serendipitysbooks's review

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challenging emotional reflective 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

3.0

We Are Not Like Them is the story of Riley and Jen, best friends since childhood. Riley is a Black television reporter. Jen is white and finally pregnant after battling infertility. Her husband is a police officer. When he is involved in shooting an unarmed Black teen Riley is assigned to cover the story.

My reaction to this book is mixed at best. The plot and dialogue felt really artificial and contrived, as if the authors wanted to educate white readers on issues of race and police brutality. It often reads like an educational primer on current race issues in the US. This isn’t necessarily a bad thing, although the fact that there are still people who aren’t aware of these issues is a little mind boggling. The friendship between Riley and Jen never felt believable in the present. I can see how they had been close in the past, but any friendship felt based more on nostalgia than present reality. I felt Riley as a character was strong and well-written. I loved that she was a successful career woman who had overcome the odds. While I sympathised with Jen for her fertility struggles and for suffering as a result of her husband’s actions, she irritated me due to her self-centredness. I wasn’t convinced that she or her husband ever fully understood the nature and extent of racism and the role it played in the shooting. Any regret they felt seemed as much for how it had impacted them as for the victim and his family.

I found this book pretty uneven. Sometime sections held my interest (chiefly Riley’s storyline) while others irritated me or left my mind wandering. The ending also felt too tidy and convenient - palatable for a white audience rather than reality based.

If this novel inspires conversation and reflection that actually leads to anti-racism actions from its white readers that will be great. For me it mostly missed the mark and left me wanting something meatier and harder hitting.

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rishel's review against another edition

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amcghig's review against another edition

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challenging emotional reflective tense fast-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

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soobooksalot's review against another edition

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challenging dark emotional informative 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

5.0

What a powerful read.
We Are Not Like Them shows us issues that need highlighting in an unforgettable and emotional way.
Thank you to Netgalley and Simon & Schuster Canada for my eARC for review.
Authors Christine Pride and Jo Piazza seamlessly wrote this book about two friends - one black, one white - whose lives and relationship has been altered by a tragic event.
Jen and Riley have been best friends since they were young children. Jen is married to a cop involved in the fatal shooting of an unarmed black teen. Riley is an up-and-coming broadcast journalist assigned to the story.
The novel is presented in alternating voices, and feels honest and real - heartbreak on both sides, seemingly without resolution.
Issues of racism and profiling, justice, social equality, gender roles, infertility and motherhood, grief, and the bonds of family and friendship weave through our central characters. It's insightful and relevant and there is so much food for thought.
I can't say enough good about this gem of a book.
Recommended!
Released on Oct. 5.

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