Katrina

This was a great source of information about the Black Panther Party that focused on lots of specific instances and people, generally in a chronological and easy to digest manner. I definitely learned from it and would recommend to those looking for more info on the topic. Lots of footnotes and references included as well!

This lady lays down some truth. Some stories were more of a 3 star for me (occasionally it feels a bit overwritten/distracted), but some were most definitely 5s. I loved the thorough and thoughtful examination of experience. The images, places, and people Jamison centers her essays around are all uniquely striking, whether they resonated with me personally or not. For the most part, I found her writing to be decisive, engaging, and thought-provoking. I would recommend to anyone who has ever been affected by art, been in love, or felt like dissecting their own brain.

Many thanks to Libro.fm and the publisher for a digital arc of this book!

I chose this one because a friend really enjoyed it, and I was not very surprised to find that I agreed! I was almost instantly invested in Olga and her family. Olga is a strong character with a strong voice, and I thought the author did a wonderful job of exploring her backstory and environment. It was also one of those novels that taught me something by slowly unraveling a complicated political and social situation (Puerto Rico's statehoood, or lack thereof) through the lens of multiple characters. I thought this was a compassionate, intelligent read with a satisfying ending, and I really loved the multiple narrators. Would definitely recommend!

I'm not really a romance reader, but this tender book totally got to me. It was very well constructed and featured vibrant and diverse characters that I was immediately invested in. Well worth the read!

Listened to the audio the 2nd time around. Just as delightful and swoony as my first read!

It's like she was born to write weird woods things. Excellent art too!

Such a powerful book and so accessible for any reader. Honestly, it should be required reading for literally every person in America. This is just one step in my own continuing education, and I am very grateful to Jason Reynolds and Ibram Kendi for their work.

Always weird to rate something like this. I was trying to read it as if I were a young person today who didn't remember the event, and I think in that sense it was quite effective. Obviously well researched and I appreciated how the source material was incorporated. Personally, I didn't love the art style but I do think it suited the tone of the book.

My goodness this was sweet and witchy. No false promises here! Loved the art, the rep, and the romance.

Well that was...edgier than I expected. One star is for January narrating because wow she is just amazing at it. I thought I liked where it was going, but I was hoping for more resolution. It's very nail on the head. And very violent. And surprisingly sexy. So, make of that what you will. I'm not sure if there's an actual teen I would give it to, but I'd love to talk to one about it. I appreciate the narrative choice to write in the second person, but it did NOT work for me.

I enjoyed the setting and the creepy atmosphere. Solid murder mystery.

I mean...is it even possible to go back to these and not go down the rabbit hole? Wheeeeeeee!

Thanks to Libro.fm and the publisher for the alc!

This is such an intriguing, twisted, magical, snarky, romantic, wtf moment novel and I am here for it. It's made all the more fill in the blank by January LaVoy's brilliant narration. It is long as hell but I was happy to be along for the ride.

Fast paced, liked the twist & the characters. Great YA thriller!

I do love Arthurian spins, so I was interested in the premise. It was a bit of a rambling read, although I did like the ending. The art, while interesting, is not to my taste at all and probably impacted my enjoyment.

An entertaining and solidly plotted historical mystery. I would listen to another in the series.

Thanks to Libro.fm and the publisher for the alc!

I am all for subverting the mystery genre and doing something fun or weird with it. There were parts of this book that I really enjoyed, and I thought the narrator did an admirable job with all the switching around of formats (2nd person, 1st person, script?). As a whole, it almost seemed like the author was writing a thesis about the history of the genre, and then kind of made up some story as a vehicle for all the research they did? This style took me out of the story so often that I no longer really cared about the characters/plot. If you want to get outside of the box with your mystery without turning the whole thing into an essay, see Stuart Turton, Anthony Horowitz, or Benjamin Stevenson.

Hilarious, romantic, and highly satisfying.

Thanks to Libro.fm and the publisher for the alc!

Classic Lucy Foley with a great audio cast to back up these strange/grieving/messed up characters. I enjoyed the ride and the karma.

Thanks to the publisher and Libro.fm for the alc!

It was cute, but I wouldn't pick up a sequel. The protagonist kind of irked me, but I loved the talking plants.

This is a slow, heavy, powerful read that taught me a lot. It also made me cry in public. Give this one to the teens that care about the issues, at home and abroad.

Lyrical, strange, and full of rage. I'm here for it.

I always feel weird rating memoirs, but this was just so well done and beautifully written.

Thanks to the publisher and Libro.fm for the alc!

Full disclosure I listened to this one because it features my favorite narrator, January LaVoy. It goes without saying that she knocked it out of the park. But I was very pleasantly surprised at how thrilling I found the book. It has the perfect plot device for an audiobook, and I enjoyed following along with Lucy as she uncovered all these bits and pieces. If you like mystery/thrillers with unreliable narrators, this is a great choice.

Thanks to the publisher and Libro.fm for the alc!

I really enjoyed this story (narrated by the impeccable January Lavoy). I thought it would be too on the nose/close to home for me as a librarian who has been basically living this plot, but I still found it interesting. I liked how certain books found certain people. The chapters felt almost like short stories that wove into a larger plot. I wish people who didn't already agree with the theme and resolution of the book would also pick it up, but that's a bit of a pipe dream. Overall, a very enjoyable listen.

One thing annoyed me. Was I absolutely done with Lula and wanted her poison gone? Yes. Did I think shaming her with the books she liked to read was the way to go about it? Um, no. I did appreciate that it positioned her as the worst kind of hypocrite and called her out for it, but I just couldn't really appreciate the way that scene went down.

I guess I thought it would be more about cooking, but I did enjoy learning a little about Paris and the culture there. It didn't keep me totally hooked throughout, but I found some of the author's revelations to be quite poignant. Overall, it had a relaxing effect and I thought it was well written even if the timeline was a bit jumpy.