Category: YA Fiction

Concrete Rose

~ rachelbenzine ~ Leave a comment

Plot:

Maverick is seventeen years old. His dad is in prison, but the gang he joined gives him the protection he needs. Dealing drugs allows him to help his mom make ends meet. Life’s not perfect, but he’s managing well… until he finds out he’s a father. And now he’s supposed to juggle school, caring for his kid, helping his mom, and staying alive. Concrete Rose is the prequel to Thomas’s smash hit, The Hate U Give. You wouldn’t need to read that one first, but you should absolutely read both of these amazing books ASAP. Move them to the top of your TBR list.

What I loved most:

Books featuring teenage parents are rare… but books featuring teenage single dads?! Concrete Rose is basically a unicorn. I loved seeing the way Mav rose to the challenge of fatherhood. Thomas doesn’t glamorize teenage parenthood in any way… being a parent is hard, and Mav struggles with it. But the growth we see throughout the book just WARMS MY HEART, y’all. Absolutely beautiful.

And because I loved too much about this book to contain it to one paragraph… this book does a fantastic job of digging into generational cycles that continue to last. Mav’s dad dealt drugs and ran a gang, so it’s the only life that Mav knows. He joined the gang when he was young, and leaving isn’t an option if he wants to stay alive. Dealing drugs keeps the water bill paid and the electricity on. When Mav does try to stop dealing, and gets a job as a cashier, he can’t afford to help his mom pay the bills, plus buy the things his son needs. He sees dealing as the only feasible way to keep his head above water. It’s absolutely impossible to read this book and judge the choices that Mav makes. Bottom line: read this book.

Read this book if you like:

The Hate U Give by Angie Thomas (obvi), deep dives into personal development, not judging on surface level characteristics but actually taking time to get to know someone, social and emotional learning, social justice, the #WNDB movement

Book details:

  • Author: Angie Thomas
  • Publisher: Balzer + Bray
  • Date of Publication: January 12, 2021
  • Interest Level: High school and up

Roar

~ rachelbenzine ~ Leave a comment

Plot:

Aurora is the heir to the Pavan throne. Her family is one of the oldest Storming bloodlines in existence, and Aurora’s storm magic abilities are rumored to be one of the most powerful of all time. Little does everyone know… Aurora has shown no signs of her family’s legendary gifts.

When faced with an arranged marriage, Aurora is ready to submit to her fate. Yet when she encounters a young storm hunter who was born without magic, but took it from the heart of a storm, she dreams of charting her own path. Roar is the first book in the Stormheart trilogy. The second book has already been published, and the conclusion is currently scheduled to come out in 2021.

What I loved most:

I’ve read a lot of YA fantasy books. And don’t get me wrong, I love a typical YA fantasy world – but it seems like so many of them tell the same story over and over again. Roar tells a new story. The world and the magic in this series are so unique. I’ve never encountered a fantasy world built around storm magic. I also loved the concept of people being able to take magic for themselves, rather than relying on inheriting magic through their bloodline. Three cheers for creating your own destiny!

Read this book if you like:

Fantasy trilogies, strong female protagonists, romance, challenging people’s expectations for your life

Things to be aware of:

There is some sexual content, so this might not be appropriate for high school students. There is also spirit magic involved in part of the book.

Book details:

  • Author: Cora Carmack
  • Publisher: Tor Teen
  • Date of Publication: June 13, 2017
  • Series: Stormheart #1
  • Age Recommendation: Late high school to college
  • Look up Roar on WorldCat to find it at library near you!

Grown

~ rachelbenzine ~ Leave a comment

Plot:

Then… Enchanted Jones is a high school student who dreams of being a singer. When super-famous R&B artist Korey Fields takes notice of her at an audition, she can’t believe her luck. Korey gives her his number, but tells her to keep it on the down low.

Now… Enchanted wakes up with blood on her hands, and Korey is dead.

Grown is a riveting thriller that touches on power dynamics, racial identity, and our culture’s determination not to believe girls and women.

What I loved most:

Tiffany D. Jackson is an astounding writer. I love her books, and I tend to burn through them quickly – she writes the kind of stories that are next to impossible to put down. She depicts the cycle of abuse in such an engaging way, juxtaposing Korey’s violence in one minute with his sweetness in another. Honestly though, one of my favorite parts of this book was the inclusion of the text chain between a group of people that Enchanted hangs out with. Their reactions line up so well with how our culture tends to respond to accusations of sexual assault.

Things to be aware of:

With all of the aforementioned love for this book that I already stated… Grown is being marketed as a YA book, and I would not recommend it for (most) high school students. There’s extremely mature content in this book – sexual and physical violence are intrinsic to the story. The protagonist is still in high school when the narrative starts, and these are absolutely issues that are real for many high school students. However, I would exercise caution before handing this to a kid in high school.

Read this book if you like:

Mysteries, the entertainment industry, the #MeToo movement, calling out abuses of power

Book details:

  • Author: Tiffany D. Jackson
  • Publisher: Katherine Tegen Books
  • Date of Publication: September 15, 2020
  • Age Recommendation: College Students to Adults
  • Look up Grown on Worldcat to find it at a library near you!