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Visiting my bestie this week!!!

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Quick road trip to Minnesota today to spend the weekend in the woods. 💚💚💚

#natureheals #haikuhive #haikuaday

McBride resonates with many students through its relatable characters. It addresses mental health challenges & the prejudice faced by Black youth in a way that is honest but still appropriate. The story doesn‘t shy away from these difficult topics, yet it presents them in a way that‘s accessible to YA readers. By exploring these issues, young readers are empowered to engage with real-world problems & find the confidence to speak up for change.

#5JoysFriday @DebinHawaii

1. Flowers
2. Family BBQ this afternoon
3. Watched Hamilton on Hulu (wow!!)
4. Three days off before I go back to work!
5. Tiny glimmers of hope for kindness and rational thought plus empathy
Took me this long to find 5 things 🎆🧨😐

Seeing formations like this always makes me think about my high school English teacher who had us write a poem in the shape of a thing relating to the theme (shape poems). Even if this isn‘t necessarily a shape I think the scattered-ness of it brings about a theme of scattered thoughts. Shapes are all about bringing an experience of reading the poem, or in this case the novel and I think McBride executed this in a cool way when you notice

This description and personification of sorrow was super interesting to me. I had not thought about people being so engulfed with sorrow and pain that they felt like it was holding them in a grip so tight they couldn‘t move. It seems like McBride personifies sorrow throughout this novel to show the hold it has on this person, on page 172-3 “sorrow chuckles…taps its fingers…smiles.” It was neat to me to read this and acknowledge what others feel

I think this book covers some heavy topics and includes language that might make some students uncomfortable, so I probably wouldn‘t use it as a whole-class read. That said, it could be a great option for students who are dealing with mental health struggles and ask for recommendations. I‘d definitely give a heads-up about the content, but it‘s still a thoughtful and creative resource for the right reader.

“We need to remember that the mind is still a mind, floating like a newborn cloud or bird wings drowning in hardened chocolate. My point is that a leaf knows it‘s important, at all moments of its life even when it is broken.  People always forget that a rough day, a bad year— doesn‘t equal a bad life.”
While this book is not my cup of tea, it is undeniable that it harbors many beautiful, important quotes, that would be helpful to one struggling.

The book deserves credit for tackling important, often taboo topics like mental illness and generational trauma, particularly within the Black community. That said, its execution falls short. The fantasy elements are vague, the worldbuilding lacks depth, and key terms are poorly explained. With so many competing themes, none are given the depth they deserve.