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seymone's review against another edition
4.0
3.5 stars
The simple act of living is a form of resistance.
The simple act of living is a form of resistance.
bickie's review
5.0
Provides teens with great models for what it looks like to "take the mic" and speak up, even when it's uncomfortable and feels like a big risk.
Grace and Homecoming by Darcie Little Badger - A Lipan Apache girl moves around a lot with her two moms, enduring racism but being able to leave before needing to take any action. When they finally move home, to Lipan land, Grace decides she needs to speak up and let her school know that her heritage is not up for debate.
Shift and Untitled - Two short free-verse poems by Jason Reynolds explore the meaning of growing up Black in the US.
The Helpers by L.D. Lewis - Allie, a POC visiting her paramedic sister Sasha in the city, finds herself needing to take action when something like a bomb goes off in the neighborhood, and Sasha is nowhere to be found.
Fighting the Blues by Connie Sun - this short comic provides encouragement to people feeling depressed.
Are You the Good Kind of Muslim? by Samira Ahmed - A free-verse poem diving into various every-day experiences of a Muslim girl throughout her life, being asked to justify herself. Ends with "Are you the good kind of Muslim? I hold this truth to be self-evident: I do not answer to you."
Aurora Rising by Camille Saied Méndez - Rory, a white-passing Latina, is hanging out with her "best friend" Sadie and another friend, Clara, who are both white, at the pool before going to Sadie's house for a sleepover. Rory endures racist comment after racist comment by Sadie's "good intentioned" white parents before drawing the line at wearing a "Clean Up America" [MAGA] t-shirt, resulting in a lot of white fragility behavior.
Ruth by Laura Silverman - Ruth Berkowitz, a Jewish girl who blogs about books, is stopped in her tracks by an antisemite troll. After going silent for a while, Ruth is inspired by Elie Wiesel's words that "silence encourages the tormentor, never the tormented," and finds she has more allies than she thought.
I Am the Revolution - Keah Brown's short free verse poem is a beautiful ode to the revolutionary act of being alive as a Black, disabled (and cute!) person.
As You Were by Bethany C. Morrow - Ebony, a Black high schooler, loves performing in the marching band; she also has a crush on white Josiah, whom she plans to ask to Homecoming. As Ebony drives Josiah home (a set up by Josiah's sister, Jessie), she is pulled over by a police officer, and her mind races with all the rules for staying alive, Sandra Bland, and, to try to keep herself calm, commands from band practice. Josiah's - and the rest of the predominantly white band's - reaction to the experience causes her to see her relationship with them in a new light.
The Real Ones by Sofia Quintero - Cami(la), a Latina, is goaded by her boyfriend Jordan on social media to fight his ex, Cami's childhood friend Kateleen. Cami has to decide whether to fall in line, going through all the expected motions of the pre-fight and fight, or interrupt the cycle.
Parker Outside the Box by Ray Stoeve - Parker, a white non-binary person AFAB who is working hard to graduate from high school after struggling academically during their transition, discovers they have to put in some community service hours in addition to getting their grades up. Becoming a mentor to Xavier, a trans brown boy helps Parker figure out what role (if any) they want to play in the campaign their friend, Stella, the cis-gendered head of the Queer Alliance at school, is leading about gender-neutral bathrooms at school.
Grace and Homecoming by Darcie Little Badger - A Lipan Apache girl moves around a lot with her two moms, enduring racism but being able to leave before needing to take any action. When they finally move home, to Lipan land, Grace decides she needs to speak up and let her school know that her heritage is not up for debate.
Shift and Untitled - Two short free-verse poems by Jason Reynolds explore the meaning of growing up Black in the US.
The Helpers by L.D. Lewis - Allie, a POC visiting her paramedic sister Sasha in the city, finds herself needing to take action when something like a bomb goes off in the neighborhood, and Sasha is nowhere to be found.
Fighting the Blues by Connie Sun - this short comic provides encouragement to people feeling depressed.
Are You the Good Kind of Muslim? by Samira Ahmed - A free-verse poem diving into various every-day experiences of a Muslim girl throughout her life, being asked to justify herself. Ends with "Are you the good kind of Muslim? I hold this truth to be self-evident: I do not answer to you."
Aurora Rising by Camille Saied Méndez - Rory, a white-passing Latina, is hanging out with her "best friend" Sadie and another friend, Clara, who are both white, at the pool before going to Sadie's house for a sleepover. Rory endures racist comment after racist comment by Sadie's "good intentioned" white parents before drawing the line at wearing a "Clean Up America" [MAGA] t-shirt, resulting in a lot of white fragility behavior.
Ruth by Laura Silverman - Ruth Berkowitz, a Jewish girl who blogs about books, is stopped in her tracks by an antisemite troll. After going silent for a while, Ruth is inspired by Elie Wiesel's words that "silence encourages the tormentor, never the tormented," and finds she has more allies than she thought.
I Am the Revolution - Keah Brown's short free verse poem is a beautiful ode to the revolutionary act of being alive as a Black, disabled (and cute!) person.
As You Were by Bethany C. Morrow - Ebony, a Black high schooler, loves performing in the marching band; she also has a crush on white Josiah, whom she plans to ask to Homecoming. As Ebony drives Josiah home (a set up by Josiah's sister, Jessie), she is pulled over by a police officer, and her mind races with all the rules for staying alive, Sandra Bland, and, to try to keep herself calm, commands from band practice. Josiah's - and the rest of the predominantly white band's - reaction to the experience causes her to see her relationship with them in a new light.
The Real Ones by Sofia Quintero - Cami(la), a Latina, is goaded by her boyfriend Jordan on social media to fight his ex, Cami's childhood friend Kateleen. Cami has to decide whether to fall in line, going through all the expected motions of the pre-fight and fight, or interrupt the cycle.
Parker Outside the Box by Ray Stoeve - Parker, a white non-binary person AFAB who is working hard to graduate from high school after struggling academically during their transition, discovers they have to put in some community service hours in addition to getting their grades up. Becoming a mentor to Xavier, a trans brown boy helps Parker figure out what role (if any) they want to play in the campaign their friend, Stella, the cis-gendered head of the Queer Alliance at school, is leading about gender-neutral bathrooms at school.
lovelife1008's review
emotional
hopeful
inspiring
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
pinto_los_flores's review against another edition
challenging
emotional
informative
inspiring
reflective
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.0
I am not the target audience but this was a very well-arranged compilation. There are important stories included with perspectives that will go down in history.
iluvbooks18's review
hopeful
inspiring
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.75
This book was so good. The short stories were so interesting and reflective and allowed me to understand different types of people and different ways you can resist.
blueberrysheep's review against another edition
challenging
emotional
inspiring
reflective
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
5.0
jena_33's review
emotional
hopeful
informative
inspiring
lighthearted
reflective
relaxing
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5