2025 Reading Challenge discussion

Tell us what you thought of the book! You can leave your review here. Even if you read the book outside of the group, please feel free to let us know what you thought of it.

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I thought this was well written, and quite an enjoyable read! Yes, Brianna has some teenage moments, but it's still an engaging, compelling read. Looking forward to some discussions!

https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...

Here's my review. I liked this book a lot more than I thought I would. I do not seek out contemporary YA because I find myself annoyed at teenagers thinking they know better than their parents, but I really enjoyed this. THIS is why I read the group read books every month. Sometimes I find really good books where I would not have looked for them.

so i’m almost done with the book and this is such a good book. i didn’t think i would like the book as much as i am. its well written and i was smiling at points and getting mad with brianna and getting sad and happy i was just really connected with her. but i absolutely recommend the audiobook because there’s a full cast. can’t wait for this decision !

This was really good! I enjoyed Brianna's snark and wit. I only had a couple issues with the book. The drug bust was a bit too...easy. Bri and Curtis just walked away from it and went to his apartment? Not likely to happen in real life. With the undercover driving by a couple times and sitting there and a SWAT team moving in to make the arrests? Nobody, regardless of their skin color, would have just walked out of there. The cops/SWAT team members would have seen them and at least detained them to talk to them.

I recommend the audio book, too. I enjoyed it very much. The woman that narrated did a great job of delineating between the characters.

You know a book is good when, at the end, you think, "Man, I wish some of these people were real. I'd like to meet them!" Because, I would love to meet Bri's grandpa. He sounds a LOT like my dad... :)

I listened to this on audio last year. I didn't like it as much as The Hate U Give but I enjoyed listening to it on audio especially with the rap sections. I thought it was a fun book to listen to. I ended up rating it 4 stars. I definitely recommend listening to the audio. I usually only listen to audio for non-fiction and I listened to this one on a whim and was thoroughly surprised. Since then I listen to a fiction book every now and then on audio.

4.3 stars rounded down

I’d love to hear Bri actually rap her songs, because the lyrics alone felt very powerful already. This book was a page-turner. Angie Thomas addresses weighty topics such as gang life, drug abuse and racism, but also implements light-hearted dialogue, references to “nerd shit” and punny one-liners like “Y’all been lacking shade like a sunny day.”

Feel like the character development could have been a bit better, but then again Bri is quite the head-strong, sixteen year-old, so it makes sense she hasn’t figured everything out yet. Will definitely be reading more of Thomas’ work.

I didn't like the rapping on audio actually. I might have if they had included a beat but the tempo/rhythm seemed awkward when she was just doing it.

Most of it was okay I guess but the "You can't stop me nope nope" drove me crazy.

I listen to the audiobook and enjoyed it! I think I was expecting more after THUG, so i was a little let down, but it was fun. I do think I liked the secondary characters more than Bri, but she had moments I really did love.

4/5

The book had a lot going on. Poverty, adolescence,drugs, gangs, it was an interesting read for me. I didn't really ever have to deal with the extra stress going up. Living in the country we didn't have all messed up stuff that the cities have.

This book is about a black teenage girl who amongst all odds takes up rapping. She believes and pursues her dreams. Novel is set in the backdrop of racism against African American community, drug trafficking and street gangs. It beautifully explores school life, friendships, family and bonding in a little humorous way.
I simply loved the book.
My detail review is in the link: https://wordcruisein.wordpress.com/20...

I loved this book. It got me caring deeply for minority communities. It has been a while since I enjoyed a young adult book so much.

3 stars.

I read this book last year, and found it a little more unfocused than The Hate U Give, especially since the latter's concept gave it a more firm pivot point for the story. Rereading it, I forgot half the stuff that happened. Nonetheless, it's still a pleasingly gritty read, just maybe it could have hit as hard as THUG.

www.goodreads.com/review/show/3510187645

I gave this 5 stars.

While I think that The Hate U Give covered bigger issues and I'd recommend it to more people, this story personally resonated with me more. And I also love that Thomas has experience as an amateur rapper herself--so much of this felt so real.