Book Review: The Hate U Give, by Angie Thomas

I loved The Hate U Give. 5/5 stars. Pacing I was incredibly impressed with the pacing. The book was hard to put down from the beginning, largely because each chapter had a conflict that needed to be resolved, with each chapter’s conflict flowing into the overall conflicts of the book. I don’t utilize conflict that…

Review: Becoming, by Michelle Obama

I decided to read Becoming because I’d heard such great things about it, and it did not disappoint. I was delighted to find how well-written the book is, given that it’s a memoir by a public figure. I waffle between 4 and 5 stars, so we’ll say 4.5 / 5 stars. Maybe 4.75 / 5….

Book Review: Piecing Me Together, by Renée Watson

Piecing Me Together was a bit slowly paced for me, but in the end I loved the book. 5/5 stars. Spoilers to follow. Pacing For the first half of the book, we watch Jade live her life. While we’re getting used to her reality, this is interesting. However, for me, this get-to-know-Jade period lasted too…

Review: Left to Tell by Immaculée Ilibagiza

Left to Tell: Finding God Amidst the Rwandan Holocaust tells about Immaculée’s experience in the 1994 Rwandan genocide and how she forgave the people who murdered most of her family. I rated the book 4 stars on Goodreads.

Learning From How Dare the Sun Rise

How Dare the Sun Rise: Memoirs of a War Child, by Sandra Uwiringiyimana and Abigail Pesta, is a memoir about Sandra Uwiringiyimana’s experience with war, genocide, refugees, immigration, discrimination, mental health issues, and healing, among other things. I won’t spoil the book for you (go read it!), but I do want to talk about how…

Candles, Crowns, and Ethnic Identity

White people often conflate being American and being white. Embrace your heritage so you can be less racist.