A review by manaledi
Jam on the Vine by LaShonda Katrice Barnett

3.0

I've started and stopped this review almost as many times as I put this book down in the middle to read something lighter. This book deserves its moniker as a literature "classic" - it's a quintessentially American story, both the omnipresent racism and the ideal of success against the odds. A lot of the discussion of criminalization of Black men rang true today as a forceful reminder of the way white supremacy reshapes and reinforces itself. I did think it was interesting, however, just how accepted Ona and Ivoe's relationship was - although it may have been a stylistic choice to emphasize the limitations of racism rather than misogyny or homophobia.