Cynthia Leitich Smith

I liked this book and I appreciate that it's a rarity: a contemporary everyday life YA novel by and about a Native woman (she is a member of the Muscogee Creek Nation as is her main character). How many of those are published each year? Not many, which is a shame.

The writing was good on the sentence level, but felt choppy overall at times. Transitions between scenes and chapters were sometimes a little disorienting. You might be able to attribute that to the first-person narration. Louise has a lot going on in her life -- on top of all the stuff every teen deals with she carries that double consciousness that can come with belonging to a marginalized group. She doesn't just suspect that people around her are racist -- they full-on are. If I had a boyfriend who was straight up openly racist in front of me, I'd be worried about what I did to make him think that he could get away with it. Louise quickly ends the relationship, but it takes a toll on her.

As the title suggests, this is a story about resilience, not just Louise's but her family's. I loved Hughie her little brother and both of her parents. I was not as drawn into the love story, but I imagine it will appeal more to teenagers.… (mere)