A review by wyll
Leaving Atlanta by Tayari Jones

challenging dark reflective tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes

5.0

though the setting of the story is during a period of child murders, this book doesn't feel heavy, and I think that that only serves to aid the story, since it's told from the viewpoint of children - because even if children do understand the gravity of something, it still doesn't register fully. there is a sharp fear that's present, that you feel in the way they react to the events unfolding in their community, but there's also this aloofness about the crimes as a whole that's very childlike, but doesn't detract from the story, and isn't unbearable. the three narrators are similar, primarily in their identity and how being black and a child in a time where both of those are incredibly dangerous (not that it's ever stopped being so, especially for the former), but still so different that each shift in perspective is fresh. overall, it's a beautifully written tale about growing up, about friendships, about coming to understand what lurks in the dark. it's haunting.