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A review by deereadstoo
Ace of Spades by Faridah Àbíké-Íyímídé
5.0
What. the fuck. And this is why I'm wary around white people because you really never know.
Aces of Spades by Faridah Abike-Iyimide is reality. This YA mystery/thriller follows the lives of Devon Richards and Chiamaka Adebayo at the prestigious Niveus Academy. Chiamaka wanted to be at the top. All she wanted was to be the most highly regarded girl in school, get into Yale, and become a doctor. Devon wanted to get into Juilliard and get his family away from their neighborhood and their everyday struggles just to make it. However, those goals and dreams quickly changed when Aces appears.
If this book doesn't infuriate you and open your eyes to the reality and plight of Black people in America, then you're ignorant and racist quite honestly. This book made my blood boil because I just know for a fact that there are people out there in this country that practice this or have in recent history. Racism is so ingrained in our society's DNA that even when people don't actively call a Black person the N-word or burn a cross in their yard, there are systems in place that do it much more subtly. It's exhausting but not surprising. Every life lost or ruined because of these systems and people will never be forgotten and continue to live on as a reminder that just because we have 'freedom' doesn't mean we are really 'free'.
I hope that the white people who've read or are going to read this book really take a minute to absorb and process the story and information in this book. This isn't just a work of fiction. This is the reality of Black people in America. There are still sundown towns. There are still active members of the KKK that probably sit next to you at work, kiss at night before going to bed, or share a bloodline with you. There are still systems in place that make life 10x harder for us every day. This book isn't just dark academia (which I hate that it's been deemed as such). It's a Black person's life. My life.
Aces of Spades by Faridah Abike-Iyimide is reality. This YA mystery/thriller follows the lives of Devon Richards and Chiamaka Adebayo at the prestigious Niveus Academy. Chiamaka wanted to be at the top. All she wanted was to be the most highly regarded girl in school, get into Yale, and become a doctor. Devon wanted to get into Juilliard and get his family away from their neighborhood and their everyday struggles just to make it. However, those goals and dreams quickly changed when Aces appears.
If this book doesn't infuriate you and open your eyes to the reality and plight of Black people in America, then you're ignorant and racist quite honestly. This book made my blood boil because I just know for a fact that there are people out there in this country that practice this or have in recent history. Racism is so ingrained in our society's DNA that even when people don't actively call a Black person the N-word or burn a cross in their yard, there are systems in place that do it much more subtly. It's exhausting but not surprising. Every life lost or ruined because of these systems and people will never be forgotten and continue to live on as a reminder that just because we have 'freedom' doesn't mean we are really 'free'.
I hope that the white people who've read or are going to read this book really take a minute to absorb and process the story and information in this book. This isn't just a work of fiction. This is the reality of Black people in America. There are still sundown towns. There are still active members of the KKK that probably sit next to you at work, kiss at night before going to bed, or share a bloodline with you. There are still systems in place that make life 10x harder for us every day. This book isn't just dark academia (which I hate that it's been deemed as such). It's a Black person's life. My life.