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A review by mindfullibrarian
Halsey Street by Naima Coster
4.0
This book is so hard for me to review, because it was NOT an easy book for me to listen to. I was simultaneously appreciating the importance of the storylines about gentrification in Brooklyn and the intricacies of parent-adult child relationships while wanting to scream at the main character about all of her life choices. Honestly, I almost DNF'd a few times because Penelope's struggles were depressing me because they all seemed so self-induced.
However, and this is a big one, I recently heard Glory Edim (founder of @wellreadblackgirl ) talk on a New York Public Library podcast about many authors not writing books for us to like, but simply to tell that particular story. And that is 100% the case here, I believe. I don't think Coster wrote this for me/us to "like" at all - we're not supposed to find Penelope adorable and the story sweet. Penelope is the prickliest character with the lowest sense of self-worth that I have read in a long long time and I decided to embrace the idea of continuing with the book as a tool for learning about and developing empathy for the very real people in my world who also have these characteristics. And I think that worked. I tried hard to figure out why she felt the way she did and what societal and familial factors led to her current state. It was a literary workout!
Ultimately, this is a book I'm glad I read/listened to, and I'm happy I finally knocked it off of my TBR shelf. It was a more in-depth look at gentrification than I just read in "Pride" by Ibi Zoboi and it was a natural follow-up to that YA novel. Both are set in Brooklyn, albeit different neighborhoods within, and both have main characters of Dominican descent. It's a story that will stay with me for a long time, and it's one I will definitely recommend to readers looking for a gritty and realistic novel about race and family. The hint at character growth at the end of the book was satisfying enough to leave me with a sense of hope for Penelope and her future.
However, and this is a big one, I recently heard Glory Edim (founder of @wellreadblackgirl ) talk on a New York Public Library podcast about many authors not writing books for us to like, but simply to tell that particular story. And that is 100% the case here, I believe. I don't think Coster wrote this for me/us to "like" at all - we're not supposed to find Penelope adorable and the story sweet. Penelope is the prickliest character with the lowest sense of self-worth that I have read in a long long time and I decided to embrace the idea of continuing with the book as a tool for learning about and developing empathy for the very real people in my world who also have these characteristics. And I think that worked. I tried hard to figure out why she felt the way she did and what societal and familial factors led to her current state. It was a literary workout!
Ultimately, this is a book I'm glad I read/listened to, and I'm happy I finally knocked it off of my TBR shelf. It was a more in-depth look at gentrification than I just read in "Pride" by Ibi Zoboi and it was a natural follow-up to that YA novel. Both are set in Brooklyn, albeit different neighborhoods within, and both have main characters of Dominican descent. It's a story that will stay with me for a long time, and it's one I will definitely recommend to readers looking for a gritty and realistic novel about race and family. The hint at character growth at the end of the book was satisfying enough to leave me with a sense of hope for Penelope and her future.