[Review] A Woman is No Man by Etaf Rum

Cover image from the goodreads website.

Series or Stand Alone: Stand Alone

Release Date: 5 March, 2019

Publisher: HarperCollins

Genre: Adult Fiction/Contemporary/Literary

ISBN: 9780062699763

Edition: Audiobook (also available in Hardback and eBook)

Rating:★☆☆☆☆ (1.5)

Review Written: 27 July, 2021
Warnings: Domestic abuse, Rape, Emotional abuse, Physical abuse, Misogyny, Sexism, Suicidal thoughts, Toxic relationship, Violence, Alcoholism, Death of parent, Murder, Sexual assault, Suicide, Child abuse, Death, Sexual violence, Grief, Child death, Mental illness, Miscarriage, Abortion, Religious bigotry, Confinement, Self harm, Pregnancy, Xenophobia, Blood, Suicide attempt, Ableism, Body shaming, Bullying, Hate crime, Infertility, Panic attacks/disorders, Racial slurs, Racism, Sexual content, Slavery, Islamophobia, Medical trauma, Gaslighting

Summary:  

This debut novel by an Arab-American voice,takes us inside the lives of conservative Arab women living in America.

In Brooklyn, eighteen-year-old Deya is starting to meet with suitors. Though she doesn’t want to get married, her grandparents give her no choice. History is repeating itself: Deya’s mother, Isra, also had no choice when she left Palestine as a teenager to marry Adam. Though Deya was raised to believe her parents died in a car accident, a secret note from a mysterious, yet familiar-looking woman makes Deya question everything she was told about her past. As the narrative alternates between the lives of Deya and Isra, she begins to understand the dark, complex secrets behind her community.

See more by Etaf Rum on her goodreads page.

[Review] The Stars Beneath Our Feet by David Barclay Moore

*2018 Winner of the American Library Association's Coretta Scott King/John Steptoe New Talent Award*

Series: N/A

Release Date: 19 September, 2017

Publisher: Random House Children’s Books

Genre: Middle Grade/Fiction

ISBN: 9781524701260

Edition: Ebook

Rating: ★★★★☆

Review Written: 30 December, 2017

Summary: It's Christmas Eve in Harlem, but twelve-year-old Lolly Rachpaul and his mom aren't celebrating. They're still reeling from his older brother's death in a gang-related shooting just a few months earlier. Then Lolly's mother's girlfriend brings him a gift that will change everything: two enormous bags filled with Legos. Lolly's always loved Legos, and he prides himself on following the kit instructions exactly. Now, faced with a pile of building blocks and no instructions, Lolly must find his own way forward.

His path isn't clear—and the pressure to join a "crew," as his brother did, is always there. When Lolly and his friend are beaten up and robbed, joining a crew almost seems like the safe choice. But building a fantastical Lego city at the community center provides Lolly with an escape—and an unexpected bridge back to the world.

David Barclay Moore paints a powerful portrait of a boy teetering on the edge—of adolescence, of grief, of violence—and shows how Lolly's inventive spirit helps him build a life with firm foundations and open doors.

See more at David Barclay Moore's Website.