Statement on Simon & Schuster

Hi everyone! I know I've been MIA recently but I have exciting news. I have finally finished my thesis, so now I should have way more time to read and review books for fun (rather than reading a bunch of philosophy articles haha). On the topic of reviewing books, I'd like to announce that I…

Review: Amina’s Song by Hena Khan

Synopsis: It’s the last few days of her vacation in Pakistan, and Amina has loved every minute of it. The food, the shops, the time she’s spent with her family—all of it holds a special place in Amina’s heart. Now that the school year is starting again, she’s sad to leave, but also excited to…

Review: As You Were by David Tromblay

Synopsis: A hypnotic, brutal, and unstoppable coming-of-age story from within the aftershocks set off by the American Indian boarding schools, fanned by the flames of nearly fifteen years of service in the Armed Forces, exposing a series of inescapable prisons and the invisible scars of attempted erasure. When he learns his father is dying, David…

Review: Surviving the White Gaze by Rebecca Carroll

Synopsis: Rebecca Carroll grew up the only black person in her rural New Hampshire town. Adopted at birth by artistic parents who believed in peace, love, and zero population growth, her early childhood was loving and idyllic—and yet she couldn’t articulate the deep sense of isolation she increasingly felt as she grew older. Everything changed…

Review: Your Corner Dark by Desmond Hall

Synopsis: Things can change in a second:The second Frankie Green gets that scholarship letter, he has his ticket out of Jamaica.The second his longtime crush, Leah, asks him on a date, he’s in trouble.The second his father gets shot, suddenly nothing else matters.And the second Frankie joins his uncle’s gang in exchange for paying for…

Review: Victory Colony, 1950 by Bhaswati Ghosh

Synopsis: When she lands in Calcutta’s Sealdah railway station on a humid day in 1949, Amala Manna has managed to flee from the communal violence in her village, but not from all her trials. Within moments of crossing over to India as a refugee from East Pakistan, she loses Kartik, her younger brother. Thanks to…

Review: Black Sun by Rebecca Roanhorse

Synopsis: A god will returnWhen the earth and sky convergeUnder the black sun In the holy city of Tova, the winter solstice is usually a time for celebration and renewal, but this year it coincides with a solar eclipse, a rare celestial event proscribed by the Sun Priest as an unbalancing of the world. Meanwhile,…

Review: Magic Lessons by Alice Hoffman

Synopsis: Where does the story of the Owens bloodline begin? With Maria Owens, in the 1600s, when she’s abandoned in a snowy field in rural England as a baby. Under the care of Hannah Owens, Maria learns about the “Unnamed Arts.” Hannah recognizes that Maria has a gift and she teaches the girl all she…

Review: Teen Aged by Jason Singh

Synopsis: Still reeling from tragedy, Johnathan finds himself struggling to finish high school, help his single mother, spend time with his crush, and be the man of a house that he doesn't own. When life takes another turn, Johnathan is forced to grow up quickly and pay for university himself. Out of nowhere, he takes…

Review: Dreams of Gods & Monsters by Laini Taylor

Synopsis: Two worlds are poised on the brink of a vicious war. By way of a staggering deception, Karou has taken control of the chimaera's rebellion and is intent on steering its course away from dead-end vengeance. The future rests on her. When the brutal angel emperor brings his army to the human world, Karou…

Review: The Vanishing Half by Brit Bennett

Synopsis: The Vignes twin sisters will always be identical. But after growing up together in a small, southern black community and running away at age sixteen, it's not just the shape of their daily lives that is different as adults, it's everything: their families, their communities, their racial identities. Ten years later, one sister lives…

Review: Days of Blood & Starlight by Laini Taylor

Synopsis: Once upon a time, an angel and a devil fell in love and dared to imagine a world free of bloodshed and war. This is not that world. Art student and monster's apprentice Karou finally has the answers she has always sought. She knows who she is—and what she is. But with this knowledge comes another…