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brittanylbergman 's review for:

Dreamland Burning by Jennifer Latham
4.0

I really debated whether to give this book 3 or 4 stars. I did not find the story itself all that gripping, nor the characters particularly deep or likable. I never found myself eager to pick up this book other than to finish it so I could move on. I think most of what I disliked about this book is what I dislike about YA in general — flat/annoying teenager characters, “telling” rather than “showing” writing, etc. That said, this story, this setting, this narrative are so important that I couldn’t give this just 3 stars. We desperately need voices like this one to make their way into the mainstream, and I hope readers who actually enjoy YA will give this book a chance. I appreciate every bit of research and truth-seeking and truth-telling that went into it.