Take a photo of a barcode or cover
jessicawarpup 's review for:
American Street
by Ibi Zoboi
I tend to shy away from books like this, for the mere fact that I am a social worker and have to work with broken systems and injustices quite often. In my world of escapism, I tend to avoid the same types of things that I deal with in real life.
That being said, this book is absolutely incredible. It did not feel preachy like there was a hidden agenda. It didn’t feel like it was trying to make me lean one way or another. It felt like it just telling the story of an immigrant trying to find a better life, a family of women trying to make a living, and the difficult lives of minorities in the city of Detroit, rather than being a book on social justice. There is a social justice aspect, white flight, police brutality, immigration, addiction, but they’re written about in such a way that makes it “easy” to read about, if such topics can ever be “easy.” The characters being to light a new compassion that I think so many readers, and people in general, would benefit from. I read this book for book club, and I wasn’t sure that I was going to like it, but I devoured it in two sittings.
- I want to hold onto this bit of discomfort between us for a while. This is how I will get to know him, get to know what makes him angry or sad.
- My mother is the one who will make my life complete here, not him.
- If hot red is for anger and rage, pink is the color of a soft burning – hot enough to light up the dark corners of sadness and grief, but cool enough to be tender, innocent, open.
That being said, this book is absolutely incredible. It did not feel preachy like there was a hidden agenda. It didn’t feel like it was trying to make me lean one way or another. It felt like it just telling the story of an immigrant trying to find a better life, a family of women trying to make a living, and the difficult lives of minorities in the city of Detroit, rather than being a book on social justice. There is a social justice aspect, white flight, police brutality, immigration, addiction, but they’re written about in such a way that makes it “easy” to read about, if such topics can ever be “easy.” The characters being to light a new compassion that I think so many readers, and people in general, would benefit from. I read this book for book club, and I wasn’t sure that I was going to like it, but I devoured it in two sittings.
- I want to hold onto this bit of discomfort between us for a while. This is how I will get to know him, get to know what makes him angry or sad.
- My mother is the one who will make my life complete here, not him.
- If hot red is for anger and rage, pink is the color of a soft burning – hot enough to light up the dark corners of sadness and grief, but cool enough to be tender, innocent, open.