I had a really hard time getting on board with this book. I really tried to like it because of the representation within the book and it has an interesting plot, but I just didn‘t like it very much. I can see the value in it and would definitely have it in my classroom, but it's not for me. With that being said, I really am not a fantasy person which I‘m sure plays a role.

I cannot imagine what Manu was going through when she and her mother were in hiding. Unfortunately, we live in a world where I feel like this book may be relevant to some students whose immigration status is in question. I think this book could potentially help those students feel seen.

I thought the book was ok. I felt like it took Garber a while to get to the point of the story. I wish the fantasy aspect of this book came a little sooner and there was less attention directed to her eyes. With that being said, this book is meant for younger people who may need more direct “clues”.

I absolutely love the cover of this book. I think it is by far my favorite out of all the books we have read thus far. The cover captured my attention and made me want to read the book. I also liked how her eyes are so distinct on the cover because it is obviously such a big part of the book.

I am really interested in learning more about Sal‘s issues with physical touch. Chapter 17 is the second time his hatred for it is mentioned. I think it‘s interesting how he describes being unsure of why he doesn‘t like it but that he really wants to when he is hugging Noor. I want to see if that dynamic is eventually unpacked.

I really like how this book is written. I love how the readers get the different points of view from each character. I feel like the readers get a better understanding of this community‘s dynamics because of the different perspectives. I also love the different flashbacks to Pakistan.

Auntie Mishab‘s death was extremely sad and disheartening. My heart broke for Noor because even though Sal rejected her, she continued to be there for his family. I cannot imagine how traumatized she was from the experience and having to be the responsible party. I also feel like Mishab's dying wish, presumably for Noor to forgive Sal, is wild.

At the very beginning of the book, I was conflicted about Noor‘s uncle Chachu. I thought it was amazing how much he had done for her and the amount he gave up in order to raise her. With that being said, I felt like he resented her. I had a hard time labeling him as selfish considering all he gave up, but I didn't like how he told her she couldn‘t apply to college because he wanted to go back. Now I just label him as abusive.

I find the dynamics of Cristian's anger towards CiCi to be really interesting. I understand that he is frustrated that she is an informer and that she framed him. However, he did a similar thing. They both were informers because they thought they were helping Bunu, but I feel like Cristain couldn‘t see that when he first found out.

Throughout the book, I suspected that Bunu was going to die. However, I always assumed he was going to die because of the cancer rather than being beaten to death. His death was sad but the note Bunu left him Cristain was sweet but heartbreaking.

I really liked how Sepetys uses the feral dogs as a mechanism to demonstrate how poor and depraved their society was. In the United States, we treat dogs as members of our family but in the book, they are so hungry that they attack people to get food, which is extreme.

I found chapter three of the book to be very sad. I cannot imagine what Cristian was going through when he was being blackmailed. Even though being a spy for the government is considered “wrong”, he really didn‘t have another choice. Bunu was his best friend and he wanted to save him.

The description of Omar being what I would describe as depressed after his interview is very interesting. I think the authors do a great job of describing this feeling in a way that readers who haven't felt this way before would be able to relate to. I think they do a great job of using language that middle schoolers could absorb/understand.

I felt bad for Omar when he found out he was on the resettlement list. I cannot imagine the amount of pressure he was under. He is just a child, but he was the person having to complete the interview and care for his special needs brother. He also describes how he was becoming retraumatized trying to remember everything that happened in his hometown. That is just a lot of pressure for anyone, especially a child.

On page 37 Omar talks about how “...the star makes [him] feel safe, like [his] mom and dad are nearby“ which made me think about the title of the book and if the authors are foreshadowing. If the stars represent his family, I think the book will probably be about getting separated from his family.

I really liked how the authors framed the first couple of pages of the book. I thought it was interesting how they not only introduced Hassan and Omar but also demonstrated some of their dynamic before letting the readers know Hassan has a disability. I feel like it was extremely intentional to show the readers that they still had “typical“ sibling interactions before sharing information about Hassan's disability.

I have a problem with the letter that the parents of the perpetrators wrote in which they referred to the situation as a “teachable moment“. I feel like the phrasing of that statement is somewhat insensitive and downplays the significance of the situation. While their children should have learned something from the situation, this scenario should have never happened, and I feel like the parents should have acknowledged that.

I think Slater does a great job of tackling the different perspectives of the people involved. When I hear about situations like this, oftentimes I think about how this happened or the logic of the people. This book provides the insight I am often seeking. For example, I found it interesting that Charles admits that he knew what he was doing was wrong and racist, but he essentially cared more about being funny.

I liked this book because I feel like it does a great job of displaying the issues within the education system. Slater continually addresses how the perpetrators and people involved got minimal punishments and the victims were left to fend for themselves. I feel like we often hear about this dynamic in the news when something bad happens, but this is one of the first books I have read that addresses the situation while providing research.

The “Shame“ chapter is important because as teachers we need to find effective ways to redirect harmful behavior without shaming students. I work with the middle school group at my summer camp, and we had an incident a few weeks back where a group of girls were bullying another kid online. The girls were responsive to my “calling in“ and were very remorseful but completely shut down when the director shamed them and “called out“.

The Framing of Operation Iraq was extremely interesting. I was aware that propaganda was extremely popular in most of the wars that have occurred. When I think of this propaganda, I think of the posters that were in newspapers and people like Rosie the Riveter. However, I never considered how videos could be altered/ staged in order to gain support for a war and to spread false information.

I loved learning about the history of the United States Postal Service. It's crazy to think about how not too long ago people were relying on the mail service to receive information about political figures, such as the president. However, in today's day in age, we have that information instantaneously. We have much more access to these individuals, and I wonder if this information affects how these people are viewed in history.

I really liked learning about the Dunning-Kruger effect. I feel like it's connected to every conversation we had in methods class about the importance of background information. This concept would be extremely helpful to bring into my classroom prior to having any type of debate. I would use this cognitive bias to encourage students to do research prior to entering into any type of discussion.

I found the analogy of the false information being like the Corona Virus to be extremely informative and helpful. I never considered how false information originates with one person and spreads to everyone else. In today's society, I feel like false information is extremely common, yet many people blindly accept information as facts.

I found chapter 21 to be so sad. I cannot begin to imagine what Lily was experiencing. Her parents are constantly emphasizing the need to be “American first“, but then she goes to a show and two people asked her if she speaks English. On top of being asked an inappropriate/ignorant question, people are laughing at her response or lack thereof when she is already in a situation that is out of her comfort zone. She had to have been so embarrassed.

In chapter 15, Lily stands up for Kathleen when Shirley is talking about how she needs to stay away from her because she is gay. While Lily isn't directly standing up for herself, she is not only taking a stand against Shirley but also defending a topic she has a lot of shame about which is important. This book would help kids of the LGBTQIA+ community feel seen to see someone going through the process of coming to terms with their sexuality.

I really like the historical context throughout the book and the insight into how scared and suspicious people were at the time. Textbooks explain that everyone was suspicious of one another, but this book shows how the dynamics play out. A perfect example of this is when Grace implies Lily could be getting brained washed and notes that Lily “...doesn't notice they're putting ideas into [her] head“. Grace is somewhat distrusting of her child.

I think Malinda Lo does a great job of characterizing Lily's struggle with her own identity and her mother's struggle with Lily's identity. Lo does a great job identifying the constant burden that Lily is subjected to during the simplest of tasks. When my mom and I go shopping our primary focus is trying to find cute clothes. However, Lily's mother is worried about the “message“ that her clothes are sending and making sure she is “respectable“ .

While this moment isn't super relevant to the grand scheme of the book, I keep coming back to it. I just cannot get over the teacher's reaction to Whimsy's ex-boyfriend making a joke about her killing herself shortly after she was hospitalized. Obviously, she shouldn't have threatened to shove a book down his throat, but I don't understand the teacher's response. Kevin was targeting a vulnerable student and somehow Whimsy was sent to the office.

The first moment in this book that I would describe as jaw-dropping is on page 22 when she says, “I get why Mom & Dad brought me here for the 11th time in 10 years“. Up until this point, the readers would have gathered that it was not Whimsy's first time in the hospital, but this moment confirms just how badly Whimsy is doing mentally and how she is not getting better.

I found the note from the author at the beginning of the book to be extremely special. I think in a world of book banning this message was extremely strategic. McBride gives an overview of the topics that she will be covering but also explains her intent with the book. I think it's awesome how she not only created a book that is validating for many students but also has an author's note where readers can feel her empathy.

At first, I found this book's structure extremely annoying. As soon as I saw that the book was in verse, I preemptively decided I wouldn't like it. However, the more I read the more I saw how McBride was extremely intentional in her decision-making and realized the structure didn't inhibit my understanding of the story. I was enjoying the book by the second chapter.

I think the poem “The Point Is' would be an important poem to study in the class. As a future teacher, I worry about presenting enough material that students can relate to at some point. Obviously not every student is going to relate to every piece, but I would like them all to feel seen or at least be able to relate to a work at some point. I think this piece could highlight the perspective of some of the quiter students.

I think Kwame Alexandar's poem “How to Write A Memoir“ is a fantastic way to open a unit of narrative writing. I think that writing can be a very daunting task for some students and this poem really shows that this type of writing can be whatever the students want it to be. I think his poem makes writing feel more accessible to all studnets.

I really liked the first page of the story “The Difficult Path“. I felt like there was a shock value to the first sentence because the speaker immediately mentions how she was “sold to the Li family“. As a college student I did a double take and reread the sentence to make sure my understanding was correct. I feel like a middle schooler would have a more intense reaction and that it might be a good attention grabber.

I loved the story “Secret Samantha“. I think this story has the potential to be so validating for middle school student who have yet to find their friend group and the place where they feel they fit in. I feel like at some point in one's life everyone has a point where they feel like an outsider or even not confident in where they fit, so this would be a far-reaching story.

Generally speaking, I liked the book. I found the topic to be very interesting and loved how he incorporated Spanish into the book. However, I am so disappointed that we did not get more information about his reunification with his parents. He talked so much about being excited to get to America and how he imagined his parents‘ house. I was shocked when all we got was “Two shadows appear. At last.” and the note about how he hugged his mom.

I was surprised by the scene where Patricia stands up for the men in the group. I knew the six of them had gotten to know one another throughout the trip, but I was shocked that she was willing to sacrifice not only her safety but also Zamora‘s and Carla‘s. If I was in Patricia's situation, I don't know if I would have been able to do the same thing.

The scene where Zamora splits up from his grandpa broke my heart. While I could not fully understand his feelings, I can relate to him. In addition, I loved seeing his Grandpa‘s personality develop over the first part of the book. I thought it was really interesting to see him go from the quite man who wouldn‘t speak to Zamora while walking him to school to the man who was waiting outside the bathroom so the toilet wouldn‘t drown Zamora.

In Solito, I liked how Zamora was able to include the perspectives he had as a child. I think it would have been easy to write the book in retrospect given the information he has now. However, he was able to portray the limited perspective and knowledge he had about America when he was a child. A primary example of this is when he mentions how he wants to lay with his parents but noted the need for a mosquito net over the bed.