We Are Not From Here by Jenny Torres Sanchez (★★★★★)
Audiobook • Libby • Fiction • 2020
Short synopsis: Three teens—Pulga, Chico, and Pequeño—are on the run. They are running from a future that is uncertain and dangerous and scary. Their eyes set on the U.S. border, they attempt a complex and harrowing journey of traveling from Guatemala to Mexico to the U.S. border.
Oh, my goodness. This book was excellent. It’s probably my favorite of the year so far. I listened to it on audio and it pulled me in from the beginning and kept my attention until the end. I learned so much from this book, especially what it’s truly like to endure a border crossing and how courageous it is to leave your home and venture into the unknown. I was drawn into Pulga, Chico, and Pequeño’s stories and all I wanted was for them to make it through and find their way to a better life. This is the book I want people who want closed borders and strict immigration regulations to read because it reminds you of the humanness at the center of the immigration debate. They aren’t pawns in a political game, but real people with real lives and hopes and dreams and families, and they deserve so much better from us.
Something About You by Julie James (★★★★☆)
E-Book • Owned (Amazon) • Romantic Suspense • 2010
Short synopsis: After Cameron Lynde witnesses a crime, she’s pulled into a major FBI case involving a U.S. senator. The bad news? The agent leading the case is none other than Jack Pallas, her sworn enemy.
This is my third time reading this book! I’m not much of a rereader, but I tend to reread my favorite romance series when I need something light and easy. Julie James used to be one of my go-to authors but she stopped writing books a while ago, with her last book published in 2017. This is the first novel in her U.S. Attorney/FBI series, and I was curious to see if it would hold up all these years later. At times, the writing was a little rudimentary and Jack has some toxic masculinity traits, but all in all, a solid romance that was still fun to read.
True Biz by Sara Nović (★★★★☆)
Print • Owned (Book + Bottle bookstore) • Contemporary Fiction • 2022
Short synopsis: Welcome to the River City School for the Deaf where the students just want to have a normal life without doctors and politicians trying to tell them how to live. There’s Charlie, the new girl with a cochlear implant who has never learned ASL; Austin, the school’s golden boy; and February, the school’s headmistress. Their lives are inexplicably drawn together due to a series of events that could have an unfortunate ending.
This book taught me so much about the Deaf community, the controversies surrounding cochlear implants, and the way sign language functions. I loved that there were informational tidbits between chapters teaching us ASL and providing stories about the Deaf community in general; this is where the book was the strongest (both the informational sections and the way Deaf culture was weaved into the story). I also really, really loved the characters. They stole my heart from the very beginning, especially Charlie. She was such a well-developed character.
However, the plot itself was really weak. There just wasn’t much to it overall, and the ending felt very rushed. It felt like the author just lost steam at the end and wasn’t quite sure how to finish the book. I just wanted something else from the plot, a different type of tension propelling the plot forward. In the end, I would give this book 3.5 stars, which I’m rounding up to 4 stars.
What are you reading?
I read so much last week, but had laser eye surgery on Friday so haven’t read much of anything since then! The last book I finished was The Maid which…was fine, but maybe not quite what I was expecting given all the hype when it came out.
More generally, I’ve started reading the entire Chronicles of Narnia series. It’s not my favourite genre, but it’s one of my reading goals for the year so I’m jumping in with two feet. I’ve read a few of the books in the series but never all of them and never in chronological order.
I hope the recovery is going well!
I read the first book in the Chronicles of Narnia series when I was a kid and really loved it. I should make reading the whole series a goal for myself, too. I can’t wait to hear what you think of them!
I really enjoyed We Are Not From Here. I especially was intrigued by the story of La Bestia, which I had heard briefly about but this gave a more closer tale of how hard (and dangerous!) it really is to travel from afar to try to get to the US.
I am reading a book called We Both Die At The End, which is a tale of friendship and as the title states, death. For some reason I got a lot of books off hold recently that are all death related and I didn’t even mean to! I think my next book needs to be more upbeat! Actually the book before that was Pretty Girls which is a thriller, but was about murder and rape, so it was not really that cheerful either…
I had never heard of La Bestia and I was so horrified and enthralled by it. I can’t imagine trying to jump onto a running train like that. How scary!
I read Pretty Girls a few years ago and whew, that book is not for the faint of heart. It was so gory!
I immediately put We Are Not From Here on hold at the library. I was debating if I should try to read it in Spanish, but I opted for English to make sure I got all of it entirely. I do have approximately a dozen books out from the library right now, so we’ll see how long it takes me to get to it, though. High hopes!
I hope it provides the same impact for you as it did for me! It was just so good.
Stephany, remember how you mentioned I’m Glad My Mom Died, and I said I was dithering about whether or not to read it? Well, it came in on my holds last week and I started it yesterday. YIKES. I shall report back but UGH I DIDN’T KNOW SHE WAS A HOARDER. I’m not sure why I’m focused on that point, but it’s definitely a well written book (even if I don’t really know who the author is, I never saw anything she’s been in).
I finished A Likely Story yesterday and it was really good!
LOL – I think I forgot about her mom’s hoarding tendencies because the other things she did were just so much more horrifying! But yeah, she was a real piece of work.
I need to read We Are Not From Here. I haven’t heard of it! I also read and enjoyed True Biz. I learned so much! Like I did not realize cochlear implants were so controversial.
I just finished Romantic Comedy – which I loved! And now I am reading Happy Place by Emily Henry!
Oh, Lisa, you will LOVE We Are Not From Here. I really, really recommend it and I think you will fly through it. It’s such a compelling (if horrifying) story.
I’m reading Happy Place now, too!
Sigh- that’s disappointing about True Biz. It’s an interesting subject matter- I listened to podcast with a guy who is completely blind AND deaf, who has a cochlear implant. Ever since then I’ve been fascinated by it, so I want to read this… but I don’t like books that don’t have a strong plot. I see that Lisa liked it though- maybe I’ll try it.
i’m about to start Vita Nostra, which Lisa (coincidentally, again) gave a luke-warm review of- but it sounded so good to me that I ran out and bought it. We’ll see!
I still recommend True Biz because I think it really does a lot to help hearing people understand what it’s like to be Deaf and the way it is truly a community for people. And I never knew how controversial cochlear implants are!
True Biz sounds fascinating. I’m not sure I’m in a mental space where We Are Not From Here would sit well with me. However… here’s hoping that when I see it in the future, I remember your rave review. 🙂