I was expecting a cute, fantastical graphic novel with little imaginary woodland creatures. I did get that, but I also got a really poignant and wise story about how people handle unexpected loss and grief differently. The insightfulness of this book impressed me so much, and I really hope it reaches a wide audience of all ages. Check it out on KU! 5 beautiful, teary eyed stars. 

Family Lore is Elizabeth Acevedo's adult fiction debut. I have long been a fan of her YA novels in verse, so I was eager to read this ARC. I have hemmed and hawed about how to rate it, because I can name so many things Acevedo did brilliantly in this book and just as many aspects that did not work for me personally. 

Family Lore has a character list a mile long and is told from numerous perspectives. The story centers on a family from the Dominican Republic who have immigrated to New York. The sisters of the older generation are in their sixties and seventies, Matilde, Pastora, and Flor. Flor decides to plan a living wake for herself, and immediately the family is anxious because Flor has an ability to see people's deaths before they happen. 

Told in a combination of the present day and many, many flashbacks to the sisters' youth in the DR and in the US, parts of the book read like a connected short story collection. I found these flashback vignettes very powerful, but also hard to connect back to each individual character because the cast was so large and the stories had so many similarities. 

Acevedo also includes the perspective of Yadi and Ona, two daughters of the matriarchal sisters. Yadi's ex-boyfriend has recently been released from prison and Ona is struggling to conceive with her husband. I found both of their perspectives very relatable and easier to follow than the sisters. 

Overall, this book was denser and harder to follow than I thought necessary but the writing was beautiful. I wish it had the clean pacing of Acevedo's YA works. It felt so much longer and slower than I like, and I truly feel many readers will have trouble differentiating the cast of sisters like I did. So I will continue to read whatever she writes, and I hope that Acevedo's next adult release is even better. 

Thank you to NetGalley and Ecco publishers for an ARC in exchange for my honest review. 

I Have Some Questions for You is well written and engrossing, if you like a slow, detailed mystery that examines cultural biases and the way power structures protect and sacrifice different people. After reading reviews both glowing and scathing, I was completely unsure what I would think of this book. I decided to give it a go on audio because it is narrated by Julia Whelan. As much as I love her narration, I know even she can't save a book (Re: The Measure), so I was prepared to DNF if the book wasn't working for me. 

In fourteen hours of reading, DNFing did not cross my mind a single time. Yes this book is long, but it is well paced in my opinion with just enough happening consistently and a great balance of intrigue and reveals. So let's dive into the plot. Thalia was murdered in her senior year at an elite private school in New Hampshire. About twenty five years later, Bodie Kane returns to Granby School to teach a class and ends up intertwined with some teenagers who are making a podcast about the old case. A black man is in prison for the murder of Thalia, but is he truly guilty? 

The book feels organized by suspects in the murder of Thalia Keith. Bodie methodically explores different potential suspects and lines of thinking around the murder, eventually leading us to the person she is speaking to in the book- thus the title "I Have Some Questions for You." But in true mystery novel fashion, that means there are still twists to be revealed. 

Ultimately, I think this book accomplishes so much. Many criticisms center on the idea that the author takes on too many hot button issues like the Me Too movement and systemic racism in the justice system. I think what this book does so well is show that so many factors come together in any given scenario and we can't examine one without examining the whole. 

So who is this book for? Someone who loves a private boarding school settting, appreciates a slow pace that maintains tension, and someone ready to sit in some uncomfortable topics without clean resolution. If that's you, jump in. 

Can't Look Away is not the book you might expect based on the title and cover. This is mostly a literary drama looking at four adults whose lives are connected by relationships and breakups. Molly is a young twenty something living in NYC and working on her MFA when she locks eyes with Jake Danner at a concert. When Jake gets in touch with her soon after, they swiftly fall in love and move in together. But Jake has a recent ex named Sisi that just can't move on. 

I think knowing more about the plot might make the slow pace of this even more frustrating, so I'll say that the middle of this one really hammers home the same "why did they break up?" and "what a dysfunctional relationship!" points over and over. If you can enjoy that kind of repetitive mess of bad communication and you enjoy a very slow lover's drama, this might be worth a read. I did fly through the first half of the book and the pace did improve in the final quarter. 

I liked what this book had to say about infertility and pregnancy loss. And without giving away a major twist, I also liked what it had to say about complicated feelings within a relationship (on both sides). 

This is solid liked not loved territory for me. I have no regrets about reading this book, but I don't think it will be memorable. 

Parachute Kids is a poignant amalgamation of immigrant stories. If you aren't familiar with the term parachute in this context, it is a kid who is left to live in a country (usually the US) while their parents or guardians are back home in a different country. Sometimes they are left with other relatives, but other times they are largely responsible for themselves. It seems unimaginable to many, but it is a reality that many young people have faced whose families just wanted safety and a better future for their children. 

Feng Li Lin is ten years old and super excited for her family's first trip to the USA, until her parents reveal that they have to return and the kids are staying behind. Feng Li is the middle child, so she must listen to her big brother and help care for her little sister. There are lots of big and small challenges for the Lin kids, and they fight and come together in many ways. 

The end of this book really pulled my heart strings and I cried a few times. This is much heavier than the typical middle grades graphic novel, but not to be avoided. It was done in a way that is respectful and true to the immigrant experience many have had while treading a careful line between too much and not enough emotion for the reader. 

I think this one will stay on my mind for a long time. 

A graphic memoir with a touch of everything, Roots is adorable, romantic, and hopeful. 

Feeling a bit lost and directionless, the author decides to go to the Old World- specifically Ireland- to research her ancestry. What she finds isn't what she set out for, and the result is delightful. This is really a coming of age, finding your way as an adult kind of story. 

This is a quick read with beautiful art and a lovely story. Don't miss it.