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A review by leahbrarian
Light It Up by Kekla Magoon
3.0
Joining other topical books like Dear Martin by Nic Stone, All American Boys by Jason Reynolds and Brendan Kiely, and of course Angie Thomas's The Hate U Give, this is a powerful narrative that can serve as an entry to the issue for white teens and perhaps a validation or reflection for teens of color.
Although the transition was generally seamless, perhaps I would have been better served by having read How It Went Down first. I was a little lost between all the characters, and even once I was able to keep them straight, I was left feeling as if the number of narratives made it difficult to get particularly deep with the individual characters. The ending also felt like hasty closure for many of the plotlines, and a lack of closure for many of them. While it might have been stylistic, reflecting the abruptness of the shift in national attention, it also made it feel even harder to maintain investment in the lives of the characters.
Thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for the eARC.
Although the transition was generally seamless, perhaps I would have been better served by having read How It Went Down first. I was a little lost between all the characters, and even once I was able to keep them straight, I was left feeling as if the number of narratives made it difficult to get particularly deep with the individual characters. The ending also felt like hasty closure for many of the plotlines, and a lack of closure for many of them. While it might have been stylistic, reflecting the abruptness of the shift in national attention, it also made it feel even harder to maintain investment in the lives of the characters.
Thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for the eARC.