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Hope and Other Dangerous Pursuits is my first Moroccon contemporary read and also it is my first book by Laila Lalami. And I loved the experience. This is a literary fiction written in the form of short-stories.

In the first chapter we see that how a group of people set to leave from Tangiers , on a small boat, to cross the strait of Gibraltar and try to enter Spain illegally. There are mainly four people whose stories we follow in the later chapters. Some made it Spain while some did not and were sent back to their cities. In the following chapters we get to read about each of these people, two men and two women, and what lead them to think about leaving their cities and seek refugee in a foreign land.

There’s Murad, a gentle man living with his mother, sister and younger brother. He had a degree but was still unemployed so he was reduced to hustling tourists around Tangier. He saw Spain as his only hope. Then we have Halima, a married woman with a child whose drunken husband physically abuses her. She decides to flee the slums of Casablanca with her child in hope of finding a better life. Aziz, who lives with his wife and mother, was trying to run his family after his father’s death but was finidng it impossible by each passing day. He decides to leave behind his devoted wife in hope of getting work in Spain. And finally we have Faten, a student and religious fanatic who appears to be very devoted towards her faith. But then she makes a friend and her friend’s father sees Faten as a wrong influence on her daughter and tries to get her out of their lives. Faten finds her faith deviating and decides to flee to Spain seeing no future for herself in the city anymore.

This book is just under two hundred pages but you can’t underestimate the power of it. The book is divided into “Before” and “After”. This is the first time that I am reading a book in which the story actually starts in the “During,” but that unique thing proves to be a great hook for readers. This allows the readers the understand how all four of them got to make the decision they made and what consequences they had to endure because of their decisions. As a debut this book is strong. The writing style is very simple and to the point. It is a pure storytelling with fascinating content and without any unnecessary metaphors or authorial artistic flair. The author left her message clearly through the narratives of these four characters.

At the heart this story is about immigrants and the situations that force them to take those decisions. Although this book was written 15 years ago, it remains true for today too. We often hear news of refugees illegally trying to reach to cities like Cuba, Spain, Italy from countries like Syria, Morocco and Cuba. Some of them make it but most of them don’t but in either case, there are many lives left behind. But the question is what leads them to leave their country in the first place?

Laila Lalami has given some insight into the various segments of Moroccan society through her story. We get to see how the issues like unemployment, corruption, and inequality are major problems and affecting the lives there. Because of this, to Moroccons, the idea of escaping to the West gives them hope and a promise of a better life. They think that it will be easier for them to get a job there and then they will be able to feed their families. But they are often unaware of the prejudices in foregin land. I feel that I am lucky to live in a country like India and have a balanced life. After reading the situation of Morocco and the similar refugees, I feel blessed.

Overall this is a wonderful short novel which is clear and easy to read. It truly explores the idea of hope and what it means to some people. Through the crisp narrative, the author has wonderfully depicted the various social and economical problems of Moroccans that they are still facing. It is sad to see that the situation hasn’t changed much even after all these years. This strong novel shouldn’t be missed.

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This collection is fit for women of every age. It talks about how the aging process can make or break a women. Some take it well while others not. This collection also shows how the society's behaviour starts changing around the aging women. The authors showed how this affects the media and entertainment industry.

There is a mix of prose, poetry and quotes and many of those are included by some classical and famous authors. I really enjoyed a few poems but overall this collection didn't left an impact on me.

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Actual rating: 4.5 Stars

This story is about Callie who is not coping well with the death of her sister which happened recently. To make her condition better, Callie’s father sends her to her aunt Lucy to spend her summer vacation with her in a small beach town where she was supposed to help her aunt with the renovation of her inn.

I love reading stories about sisters and this book was no exception. Though we don’t get to know Chloe in the ongoing story, [a:Katy Upperman|14776974|Katy Upperman|https://images.gr-assets.com/authors/1534694602p2/14776974.jpg] has done a beautiful job of showing her story through flashlights and backstories. She was as much a part of the story as the rest of the characters were. Their bond was so strong even when Chloe was not there with Callie. Of course, there were grudges and misunderstandings and I liked how the author has achieved this with the paranormal mystery theme.

I loved the setting. I am a sucker for small beach town stories where life is usually lazy and slow-moving. Small towns with secrets make this story a page-turner. The plot was fast-moving and all the things perfectly made sense. There are different sub-plots going on like mystery behind the death of Callie’s sister, the mystery behind a missing town girl and the mysterious happenings in the house. This is a haunting tale (involve a ghost!) which was I nice twist to the story. All these things keep the story interesting till the end.

The romance was beautiful and it was so well done. Katy writes her couples in a beautiful way. There were so many sweet moments and I rooted for them so badly. The romance was not the cheesy kind. It was mixed with the perfect amount of emotions as well as angst. Tucker Morgan was a kind of happy-go-lucky boy, always having a smile on his face. But deep down he had the same amount of burden as Callie had.

This story is heartbreaking but also beautiful. They are so many important themes discussed in this book. It is about dealing with grief and how to overcome it. It shows that our life doesn’t end if we face some tragedy or if someone is no more in our life. We still try to live our lives in a way that there is always tomorrow. We should accept the help that is coming our way and should let the light in.

All in all, How the Light Gets In was an amazing read and I would definitely recommend this. It is packed with a lot of emotions, swoon-worthy romance and amazing characters with a paranormal mystery angle and would definitely keep you hooked till the end. It is about grief and guilt and how to overcome it. And if you love stories set in small beach towns, don’t miss this book.

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How to Breathe Underwater is a beautiful book taking you through self-discovery and realization. I thoroughly enjoyed reading this book. It takes you through love and loss and what a thoughtful book it is.

This story is about Kate who is a state-championship winner in swimming. She has spent the last 10 years of her life swimming and competing to please her father, who is also her swim coach. But her father betrays her and her family. Kate moves to a new city with her mom. She tries to decide what swimming really means for her.

She realizes that while she loves swimming and water, she really hate competing. She was doing all of the competing to just please her father who made her work harder every time. Now that she doesn’t have to please him anymore, she quits swimming in her new school. She has to find a new path for her and she is trying to understand all the changes that occurred in her life after she moved to the new city.

I really loved the overall journey of Kate from her self-realization to achieving the things that actually mattered to her. She proved to be a strong character as the story progresses. She made mistakes like all teenagers do. But she was never afraid of consequences and was always ready to face them. Through all of her struggles, she learns to love and to open her heart.

Michael was the love interest of Kate who lived down the hall in her building. She hadn’t known at first that he had a girlfriend and she started liking him. But when she found out about his girlfriend, it was too late for her to retreat her feeling. Between swim classes and salsa lessons, she falls for him and so does he.

I totally shipped this couple and their romance was so adorable. Before they were romantically involved, they were friends and there were some quite cute moments in that friendship. Michael had a habit of smoking, because of her mother, but Kate helped her in quitting it. Both had their own problems to deal with and in this way, they found solace in each other’s company.

I loved all the side characters. They were very well developed.

I really liked how well [a:Vicky Skinner|15852604|Vicky Skinner|https://images.gr-assets.com/authors/1502285951p2/15852604.jpg] has included so many heavy themes in this otherwise simple story. The issues are talked about as drama but in actual they never felt dramatic? Michael’s mom was in terrible condition because of smoking and he also was habitual to it. This shows how parents actions can make impressions on a child’s life. There are lots of teen-relevant issues shown like dealing with parents’ divorce, father-daughter relationship, falling for your friend’s guy, moving in new town and experiencing new love, and I think each of these things has perfectly been captured in the story.

Overall, this is a sweet and painful story of one girl’s quest to find herself and starting her life fresh. With so many important issues handled, Vicky Skinner has shown a story dealing with love and loss in its various forms. If you like reading contemporary with love, loss, drama and challenging relationships, then this book is for you. Kate would make you love her.

Full review on: Flipping Through the Pages

I immensely enjoyed [b:The Impossibility of Us|35795898|The Impossibility of Us|Katy Upperman|https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1506446274s/35795898.jpg|55590928] by [a:Katy Upperman|14776974|Katy Upperman|https://images.gr-assets.com/authors/1509122785p2/14776974.jpg] and this is a perfect summer read. I never expected it to love it so much in the first place but then, you know, the unexpected reads are always best 🙂 I expected this to be a fluffy and cute summer contemporary but this book was way more than that.

This is a story about Elise and Mati. Elise is forced to leave San Francisco, by her mother, to live with her sister-in-law and niece in a sleepy coastal town after her brother’s death in Afghanistan. She was hoping to just finish the final year of her school and then return to San Francisco. But she meets Mati there and found herself attracted to him. Mati was from Afghanistan and came there with his family because of the medical issues of his father. When Elise family finds out about Mati, her mother and sister-in-law objected to her closeness with him, because they can’t look at him without thinking of the death of her brother in Afghanistan. On the other hand, Mati’s mother also disapproved of her. Elise tried to understand why her family can’t see Mati for other than being a Muslim and an Afghani.

Pros
-----------------
** I loved the storyline, especially how well Katy Upperman has included a diverse character in the story having an affair with a native American. It was interesting to see how two entirely different cultures mix with each other.
** I loved both the main characters- Elise and Mati. Elise was so down to earth. She had trouble making friends but she always tried to be positive and held her so well after the death of his brother. She was so strong that she made the decision of befriending Mati while knowing his background and nationality. Mati was such a sweetheart. He firmly believed in his beliefs and convictions and dared not to go against the rules of his family. But he was unable to resist his love for Elise.
** The story was from both Elise and Mati’s PoVs. While Elise’s chapters were usual, Mati’s chapter was in verses and I enjoyed them immensely.
** The plot was definitely heartbreaking, yet, it was hopeful. The story makes us look forward to our convictions and reservations. Both Mati and Elise showed so much strength that my heart was crying for them.
** The thing that I appreciate most here is that there were no cliches. Even I found all those stuff quite realistic.
** All the secondary characters were fabulous. While Elise’s sister-in-law and mother were against her relationship with Mati, they were apt for their characters. I loved Mati’s father. He was so friendly and adorable and I really wished throughout the story that he would get better. I hated Mati’s mother but again, we can’t blame because she was shown as a typical religious Muslim woman who believed in following her religion blindly.
** This book shows a lot of racism that is still existing in our society.
** I loved the relationship between Elise and her niece. Those moments were so cute and made me cry. I was almost able to picture those scenes. And have I mentioned her dog, Bambi? God, I want that dog.

Cons
-----------------
** I felt that the end was a little rushed? I mean, I am happy with the ending but I wanted to read some more details about Mati and his struggles. In the end, it all felt too easy.
** Also, most of the book was from Elise’s PoV. Mati’s PoV was written in verse and though I enjoyed reading them, I ended up wanting more of his side of the story.

Final thoughts
[b:The Impossibility of Us|35795898|The Impossibility of Us|Katy Upperman|https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1506446274s/35795898.jpg|55590928] is a wonderful read and it deserves more readers for sure. A perfect read for summer, this will make your heart happy and sad at the same time. It’s a beautiful story of family, friendship, religion and cultural differences. This story certainly proves that in the end love conquers all. If you like reading contemporaries, then do pick it up for sure. You won’t be disappointed.

** Thank you to the author and Swoon Reads for providing me a copy for this blog tour!

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Why are more people not talking about this book? I am really surprised. This is such an understated and important read. This book really surprised me but I am so glad I found this gem. In the Neighborhood of true is a young adult Historical Fiction. It is hard to find a historical fiction with Jewish rep that’s not about the Holocaust. I love reading Holocaust stories but it is good to find something different set during that time.

Susan Kaplan Carlton‘s novel is set in 1958 and is about a Jewish girl, Ruth Robb, who moves to Atlanta from New York City after her father’s death, to live with her grandmother. Ruth was raised a Jewish and her grandmother was exactly not happy with this. She pushes Ruth to be a part of high society and thus she gets involved in debutante training, tea parties and lots of clubs. While doing all this, she kept her Jewish side a secret. On the other hand, she also attends prayers on Sundays with her mother. She was living two separate lives but soon, because of a violent crime, she had to expose her true self and had to choose what she really wanted to be.

This book is inspired by a true event (which is mentioned in the author’s note). I personally don’t know much about that historical time apart from the Holocaust and I was glad that this book touched such an important time of history. This book mainly addresses antisemitism and racism and what it is to view these from the eyes of a teenager. It shows us a mirror to our society which is not much different as it was 60 years ago. That time too racism was prone in the society and these days too, though we have come a long way, we often hear the instances of racism and antisemitism. I appreciate Susan Kaplan Carlton for putting this tough topic into a better perspective. The author has done a wonderful job of showing the two different lives of Ruth and hiding her religion but I loved how slowly she realised that there are far more important issues to handle.

I loved Ruth’s character. In the beginning, she wanted everything her grandmother wanted her to be. She enjoyed the social life and attention and tea parties. But her growth throughout the story was incredible and loved her even more page after page. She eventually learns to stay true to herself. Like any other teenager, she liked boys and fashion and wanted to belong. But soon she realised her privileges. While she could easily pass as another Christian, there were African Americans around her who had no way to conceal their identity. The author is beautifully shown this.

The hate crime in the story is handled pretty well. I loved the writing and the story’s settings. It takes us straight to 1950s. I was glad that the romance didn’t took a large space in the story because this book was about many other important topics than being a love story.

Overall, I would definitely recommend this book, though I am aware not everyone would enjoy this. But if you like quite YA and stories about less-talked time-periods and activism, then this book is for you. It looks soft and is understated but it is a strong read which makes you think. In the end, it teaches you to be your true self and to stand for what’s right.

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This is a simple children's poetry book but a beautiful one. The illustrations done by Kristin Blackwood are really great and colors used are just beautiful.

This is a story of a girl named Ivy waiting for the spring, after dark winter. The idea of this book was very unique - It took lines from some poems from famous authors and combined them to create a single poem about spring.

At the end the author has also given the full excerpts of the poems from which the lines were taken, as well as the author details. This way you can also read some famous poems of known authors. I think this book is very much suitable for children and they will love the artwork.

I thank Vanita Books and Netgalley for this copy in exchange for an honest review via NetGalley

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⚠️ Content and trigger warnings: Abduction, Stockholm syndrome, manipulation, PTSD, obsession, stalking

It’s been a long time since I read a YA that was this serious and complicated. It was intense and a real emotional roller coaster and I enjoyed this experience very much.

- This story is about Jane who was kidnapped, and her life after she returns from captivity.
- The author was clever to alternate the story between NOW and THEN– her time in captivity and the current day after she got out. This kept the tension alive in the story.
- This story freaked me a little and I had goosebumps when I was reading how Jane’s kidnapper stocked her room, where she was captured, with all her favorite snacks, clothes and toiletries. You are supposed to freak out, right?
- Though I guessed the big “twist” in the initial chapters itself, the story kept me invested because of its fast pace and how switching between past and present helped to understand Jane’s trauma in a better way.
- It was stressful and heartbreaking to read how Jane was living in her trauma of kidnapping. She felt safer in her closet. Her bed now scared her.
- This book has a wonderful set of characters and each of those characters had their own role in Jane’s healing.
- I really loved the way Jane’s parents were portrayed. We don’t only see how difficult it is for the victim to come out of such traumas, but we also get to see how such incidents affects the parents lives and life of those who are connected to the victim.
- Jane Anonymous is a thriller and a suspense story, but more than that it is a story about learning to heal from a traumatic event on your own terms.
- If you are thinking that you would get to see a ‘healed’ Jane at the end of the story then you would be disappointed because this story is actually about her coming to the terms that she needs help and therapy to come out of that trauma.

Overall, Jane anonymous is a gut-wrenching and gripping story that explores trauma and will surely remain with you for a long time.

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I would say I liked the book but not too the extent that I expected. We Indians have heard many stories about Lord Shiva’s and Parvati’s son, Lord Ganesha, from our childhood, but there are rare stories about their another son, Lord Kartikeya. So when I read the title, I definitely wanted to know more about him. But I am sad to say that there were many occasions when I just wanted to mark it as DNF.

The purpose of Kartikeya’s birth was to kill the Asura king, Soorapadma, one of the three sons of Maya. I thought the story is going to be more about how he killed Soorapadma but it was more of what happened after that? To my surprise, the main antagonist was not Soorapadma but was the God of the heaven Indra. I can say that this story is far from what I have read about Kartikeya in stories from Puranas. It is definitely more of a retelling. This story was more about the emotions of others involved in the story. Most of the first part revolves around the birth of Kartikeya, but I wanted to know more about his doings after his birth. There are too many details about the events before his birth and were not at all necessary. I would definitely say that the writing of the author was the most difficult part for me. There were so many new words which made it really hard for me to go smoothly throughout the story. It was kind of too “advanced”. I am not sure if it is her general writing style or it is just for this book. However, the main issue that I had with this book was the explicit erotic content. It was a LOT which I don’t expect in an Indian mythology. It was there in the almost whole book right from the beginning to the end and it was too graphic. There were a few sections where women were shown as full of desire and lust. Even the portrayal of Shiva is in the same way which I didn’t like at all.

In spite of all these shortcomings, I gave this book 3 stars instead of just 2 because of the last 20-30 pages where we get the introduction of Chitra and Ganesha. That part was quite good and fast pacing. But here also, the story that the author told about Ganesha’s birth was quite different from what I knew since childhood.

I would recommend this book for only those who have read this author’s work previously and like her writing. Also, certain mythological fiction lovers can like this but yes it is not at all suitable for someone below 18.

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Lot by Bryan Washington is a collection of 13 stories set in Houston. These stories are raw but very powerful and emotional. The stories are interconnected and at the center of it is a young man, son of a Latino father and a black mother, as he grows into adulthood coming to terms with his sexuality, sees the life-changing in his community, which is a community of immigrants, and tries to confront the social and economical realities of his community.

It didn’t take long to see that there’s the world you live in, and then there are the constellations around it, and you’ll never know you’re missing them if you don’t even know to look up.

The stories vary in themes ranging from broken family relationships, to what masculinity means to society and treatment of women as mere sex objects and maids, to the dangerous job these boys are forced to do in this neighbourhood because of financial struggles.

I didn’t love every story but some of these stuck with me, like:
- the one where the family had to sell their restaurant because of financial problems and then it shows us the family dynamics
- one where it shows how their father left them for another woman still their mother accepts him every time he comes back
- the one where the community reveals an affair of a woman to his husband (instead of him finding out) without thinking about what chaos it might cause
- the one which reveals how an unexpected guest can create chaos among family members
- the one where we see a group of young hustlers and what happens to the man who took them into his refuge
- and the one where we get to know how the narrator finally finds his husband.

Most of the stories are simple but it is Washington’s writing that makes them powerful and poignant. Most of the stories are sad, but we get a glimpse of Houston and its Latinx and black community. We get to see their difficulties and the jobs they turn to because of lack of proper education and money. Washington has drawn the characters in a way that you could imagine them in your head.

I appreciate how Washington included the LGBTQIA community in the book and how they are at a greater risk of sexually transmitted diseases. We see how the narrator was afraid to come out and when he did, what was the reaction of his mother. He also talked about how he always kept his relationships strictly physical.

Lot is an understated work which gives voice to Black and Latinx community of Houston. Washington made the neighbourhood alive with his words. Though tough, these stories have yearning and tenderness to them. With the themes of family, poverty, homosexuality, unrequited love, infidelity, fatherhood, loss and community, this collection will certainly leave its marks.

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