Scan barcode
A review by dees_books
Tyrell by Coe Booth
4.0
Tyrell can’t catch a break. He stopped going to high school a few months ago when he decided it was more important to find work and support his mom and little brother Troy while his dad’s in jail. He and his mom and brother are unhoused and living in a shelter that’s in poor condition, and Tyrell is frequently consumed with caregiving responsibilities for his younger brother as his mom deals with the trauma of being separated from her partner, struggling to find steady work/income to support her kids, and parenting while unhoused in a system that isn’t trauma-informed in the slightest. Tyrell’s North Star is girlfriend Novisha, who he’s been dating for over a year. Novisha’s family struggles, too, but they have food on the table every night and Novisha’s on track to graduate and has the luxury of planning for dreams she wants to accomplish far out in the future. While everything else around him is changing constantly, Novisha’s care and love feels constant and reliable. It’s one of the few things keeping Ty going, until it gets complicated. Ty meets Jasmine, another girl his age living in the shelter, who he not only thinks is super hot but also is surprised by how easy it is to talk to her and to relate to her. Jasmine understands the trauma Ty is holding in ways Novisha can’t.
Tyrell by Coe Booth is a hard and beautiful read about an unhoused teen taking life day by day. In many ways, Tyrell is about navigating love and feeling deserving of love amidst great trauma. As a narrator, Ty is incredibly honest and open, letting the reader into the pain and tenderness that go into all of his decisions — how he cares for his brother and mom, makes money, supports and tries to protect the women he loves, etc. Ty is also resilient and finds community support and love where social services fail time and time again. Booth's experience working with teens and families in crisis in the Bronx comes through strong throughout the course of the book as she writes about Ty and his family’s experiences in a way that’s raw yet also holds the trauma they’re experiencing with great care and tenderness. A content warning: this book includes descriptions of intimate-partner violence, mature sex content, and carceral conditions of homeless shelters, so please take care while reading.
Tyrell by Coe Booth is a hard and beautiful read about an unhoused teen taking life day by day. In many ways, Tyrell is about navigating love and feeling deserving of love amidst great trauma. As a narrator, Ty is incredibly honest and open, letting the reader into the pain and tenderness that go into all of his decisions — how he cares for his brother and mom, makes money, supports and tries to protect the women he loves, etc. Ty is also resilient and finds community support and love where social services fail time and time again. Booth's experience working with teens and families in crisis in the Bronx comes through strong throughout the course of the book as she writes about Ty and his family’s experiences in a way that’s raw yet also holds the trauma they’re experiencing with great care and tenderness. A content warning: this book includes descriptions of intimate-partner violence, mature sex content, and carceral conditions of homeless shelters, so please take care while reading.