Review: The Sound of Stars by Alechia Dow

Title: The Sound of Stars

Author: Alechia Dow

Publisher: Inkyard Press
Release date: February 25th 2020
Pages: 432
Genre: Young Adult sci-fi
Source: Purchased
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Two years ago, a misunderstanding between the leaders of Earth and the invading Ilori resulted in the deaths of one-third of the world’s population. Today, seventeen-year-old Ellie Baker survives in an Ilori-controlled center in New York City. With humans deemed dangerously volatile because of their initial reaction to the invasion, emotional expression can be grounds for execution. Music, art and books are illegal, but Ellie still keeps a secret library. When young Ilori commander M0Rr1S finds Ellie’s library, he’s duty-bound to deliver her for execution. The trouble is, he finds himself drawn to human music and in desperate need of more. Humanity’s fate rests in the hands of an alien Ellie should fear, but M0Rr1S has a potential solution—thousands of miles away. The two embark on a wild and dangerous journey with a bag of books and their favorite albums, all the while creating a story and a song of their own that just might save them both.

I was super excited about this book both because I love Alechia Dow on Twitter and because the human-alien love story sounded super cool. Not only did this book meet my high expectations and tell a great story; every single detail about it is adorable and the book made me smile throughout. 

The best thing about this book are the characters. I absolutely loved both Ellie and M0Rr1s. Ellie is a fantastic character through which to explore the alien invasion; I love how well the novel blends her experience during this alien invasion with her awareness that for her, as a queer Black woman who suffers from anxiety, the world was never really safe to begin with. Her dedication to saving humanity from this alien invasion, and her simultaneous skepticism of humanity being worth saving, make for a really interesting backdrop to this species survival story. M0Rris is a little harder to connect with than Ellie since he's, ya know, an alien, but I still really loved him. The parallels between Ellie's experiences as a Black woman and M0Rris's experiences as a labmade Ilori (a second-class citizen on his home planet) are really well done, especially in conjunction with both of their relationships to their own sexuality. Their romance is adorable, and I loved them together; I do think that it moved a little fast so that part of their connection was difficult to grasp, but I also think that makes sense under the circumstances.

I also absolutely loved Dow's writing style. Dow somehow managed to make this book feel very informal or conversational, in the sense that the first-person narration seems realistic and fun, while simultaneously dropping some gorgeous one-liners on you that will make you stop and marvel. 

This book makes tons of references to books and music, and a lot of those books are YA, which made me so happy. The whole love story starts with M0Rr1S reading Ellie's copy of The Hate U Give, and I don't know what could be better than a love story grounded in love for The Hate U Give. Ellie makes references to characters from lesser-known YA novels, too, which made me so happy to see. Asides from all of these references just being super fun, they felt very affirming both in the sense of establishing YA as "real" literature (whatever that means) and of creating a connection between Ellie and the reader, so every single one of them made me super happy (except for the Harry Potter references which, ya know, didn't age well--but since Dow wrote this novel before She Who Shall Not Be Named ruined our childhoods, I can't really fault her for that). These references made The Sound of Stars read like the most ~YA~ YA novel ever, which I loved.

My only issue with the novel was the pacing. I felt like some parts in the beginning and middle were a little slow, while the ending happened REALLY fast, to the point where I felt a little lost. I'm not sure how to feel about the ending; I loved all the plot twists and how everything came together, but I still have so many questions! I feel like we need a sequel to this novel, but from what I understand, this is going to be a stand-alone...?

I highly recommend The Sound of Stars if you're looking for a sci-fi book that simultaneously explores a number of important issues and will make you smile the entire time you're reading it. Everything about this novel felt very unapologetically YA, so even the things I've critiqued (the pacing of the plot and how quickly Ellie and M0Rr1S fall in love) kind of works and just made me love it even more. I'll definitely be reading whatever Alechia Dow publishes next!

Review: Midnight Sun by Stephenie Meyer

Title: Midnight Sun

Author: Stephenie Meyer

Publisher: Little, Brown BYR
Release date: August 4th 2020
Pages: 662
Genre: Young Adult paranormal romance
Source: Purchased
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When Edward Cullen and Bella Swan met in Twilight, an iconic love story was born. But until now, fans have heard only Bella's side of the story. At last, readers can experience Edward's version in the long-awaited companion novel, Midnight Sun. This unforgettable tale as told through Edward's eyes takes on a new and decidedly dark twist. Meeting Bella is both the most unnerving and intriguing event he has experienced in all his years as a vampire. As we learn more fascinating details about Edward's past and the complexity of his inner thoughts, we understand why this is the defining struggle of his life. How can he justify following his heart if it means leading Bella into danger?

This book feels like it should be in a category of its own; any rating would be justified because I absolutely loved and despised this book at the same time. For nostalgia and making my inner 12-year-old happy, this book gets 5 stars; for everything else, probably more like 2 stars. I pretty much hated every second of this book, but hating it made me so happy, and I wouldn't have wanted this book to be any other way.

Being in Edward's head is, in a word, terrible. He is one of the most annoying characters I've ever met. If you thought that Bella's falling in love with a boy she barely knew was bad, she actually seems much more reasonable after reading Midnight Sun because Edward is so much worse. His obsession with Bella is a lot to handle, even though I do think the book does a good job of explaining how the allure of her scent and his inability to read her thoughts create this mysterious appeal. His constant whining and self-hatred are simultaneously annoying and reasonable, since he, ya know, is a monster. Edward appears entirely incompetent and as if he would be completely useless if he wasn't able to read other people's thoughts, and especially watching him learn to understand physical attraction as a confusing and new sensation despite being 104 years old is simultaneously the most annoying and funniest thing about this book. This book did not make me like him whatsoever, but it was extremely fun to despise him while reading.

The ending of this book was so terrible to read from his perspective. It's not surprising, since we know what happens in New Moon, but it was so sad to read the ending of the first book that was so happy in the original but knowing that Edward is planning on leaving. Before reading this book, I was hoping Stephenie Meyer would rewrite the whole series from his perspective, but after reading that ending, I fully understand why she doesn't want to write New Moon from Edward's perspective, and I honestly don't know if I could handle reading it. If you're going to read this book, prepare to be emotionally gutted by the ending.

My favorite thing about this book was finding out more about the vampire world and the things Bella didn't get to see. The more detailed explanation of Alice's vision and Jasper's skills, specifically, were super cool. I loved seeing how the whole family interacted with each other, and how they have thought-conversations with Edward. Everything between the baseball scene and the terrible ending was super fun to read, and I was on the edge of my seat with suspense despite obviously knowing the outcome. Seeing what the Cullens' attempts to protect Bella looked like that we didn't get to see, since Bella wasn't with Edward for most of that, was super cool, and I especially loved seeing the way they worked together and used their individual abilities to make that happen. I wish we had gotten even more insights into the vampire world and their family dynamics!

I was expecting Stephenie Meyer to maybe have updated some elements of the story after all the critiques she's gotten, but... Midnight Sun is just as problematic as Twilight. The appropriation of Indigenous culture is just as bad in this version, and Edward's stalker-like and controlling behavior, his denigration of teenage girls other than Bella, and the generally outdated ideas of gender roles and relationships are even worse than they were in Twilight. In a way, that was frustrating to read again, but, in hindsight, anything else wouldn't have felt authentic, and maybe this can lead to some more conversation and reflection.

This book was terrible for all the same reasons Twilight is bad, and those are the same reasons that I wholeheartedly love this franchise. I think this book is required reading for anyone who loved the series when they were younger; the nostalgia alone makes it worth it, and even the parts I hated I loved to hate.

Whether you love or hate or love-hate Twilight, please consider donating to the Quileute Tribe whose culture Stephenie Meyer appropriated! They have not received any compensation for this widely successful franchise that was built on their culture and legends. Their land is at sea level and some of the tribe's homes have been destroyed by flooding, as well as being located in a tsunami zone, so they are collecting donations in order to move to higher ground. I donated the same amount of money that I spent on this book to somehow compensate for participating in the appropriation of their culture, and I would encourage you to do the same! You can find out more and donate at https://mthg.org.

Review: This Is My America by Kim Johnson

Title: This Is My America

Author: Kim Johnson

Publisher: Random House Children's Books
Release date: July 28th 2020
Pages: 416
Genre: Young Adult contemporary
Source: Purchased
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Every week, seventeen-year-old Tracy Beaumont writes letters to Innocence X, asking the organization to help her father, an innocent Black man on death row. After seven years, Tracy is running out of time--her dad has only 267 days left. Then the unthinkable happens. The police arrive in the night, and Tracy's older brother, Jamal, goes from being a bright, promising track star to a "thug" on the run, accused of killing a white girl. Determined to save her brother, Tracy investigates what really happened between Jamal and Angela down at the Pike. But will Tracy and her family survive the uncovering of the skeletons of their Texas town's racist history that still haunt the present?

A day after finishing this novel, I am still in awe, and struggling to express how important and how well-done This Is My America is. Part mystery novel, part exploration of the criminal (in)justice system, incarceration, and institutionalized racism, gripping and beautifully written, I can't recommend this book enough.

I am so glad to see a book that explores policing and incarceration in relationship to racism, rather than just police brutality. While of course discussions of police brutality and the state-sanctioned murder of Black people are incredibly important, these murders are just the tip of the iceberg of the broader system of policing and incarceration that are deeply tied to institutional racism. Kim Johnson does a fantastic job of illustrating how these systems affect Black families and allowing young readers to understand the history of racism in the criminal (in)justice system. It is heartbreaking to see what these systems have done not only to incarcerated people, but also to the families they leave behind, like Tracy and her family, who, regardless of the outcome of this story, will never be able to get back those 7 years that her father spent behind bars for a crime he didn't commit--and to the other families around Tracy's who will never get justice. This is such an important story for teens (and adults!) to read about.

This book does a fantastic job exploring a number of issues related to the criminal (in)justice system and racism in nuanced ways. The discussion of the idea of "good" or "not racist" white people is especially well done in relationship to Dean, Tracy's white best friend, and his family (who employ Tracy's mom). Especially the scene where Dean admits his own biases is really well-done. The novel clearly demonstrates how "good" white people abet racism and how racism is passed down in white families, encouraging important conversations about what it really means to be actively anti-racist.

Additionally, Beverly is a fascinating character who encourages important conversations. A Black woman whose dad was killed and whose brother was injured by the police, Beverly became a police officer in order to try to change the culture of policing from the inside. Other characters (especially Jamal) criticize this choice, encouraging important conversations about the possibility of police reform and how to enact change. I was a little disappointed by how neatly this conflict is wrapped up in the end, and especially since this book came out at a time when ideas about abolishing or defunding the police have become more mainstream, I could see how some people might critique that this take isn't radical enough or perpetuates the idea that there are some good cops and some bad cops, rather than critiquing the whole structure of policing. However, I think it opens up the opportunity to have really important conversations about different approaches to enacting change, especially since the whole premise of the novel illustrates the deep ties between the police and white supremacy, pushing back against the "bad apples" narrative that some discussions of police brutality rely on.

While this book is most explicitly about incarceration and criminal (in)justice, it's also a fantastic mystery novel. In order to clear both her dad's and her brother's name, Tracy launches her own investigation into the two murders. The mystery had some great twists and turns, and is a big part of what made this novel such a page-turner; especially in the second half of the book, once Tracy has revealed some secrets and found some other suspects, is super intense, and I couldn't put the book down. I especially loved how seamlessly the unveiling of the town's racist history and present is tied to this mystery element. Part of me even wishes that this book was more explicitly marketed as a mystery to attract mystery readers who might not otherwise be as willing to pick up a book marketed as a racial justice book--but regardless, if you're a fan of YA mysteries, you definitely need to pick this one up!

This Is My America is a fantastic read. With nuanced and complex characters, powerful writing, a gripping mystery, this novel makes accessible conversations around a range of topics relating to policing, incarceration, racism in the criminal (in)justice system, and white supremacy. Highly recommend!