On My Bookshelf: American Street by Ibi Zoboi

The basic plot from Amazon: In this stunning debut novel, Pushcart-nominated author Ibi Zoboi draws on her own experience as a young Haitian immigrant, infusing this lyrical exploration of America with magical realism and vodou culture.

On the corner of American Street and Joy Road, Fabiola Toussaint thought she would finally find une belle vie—a good life.

But after they leave Port-au-Prince, Haiti, Fabiola’s mother is detained by U.S. immigration, leaving Fabiola to navigate her loud American cousins, Chantal, Donna, and Princess; the grittiness of Detroit’s west side; a new school; and a surprising romance, all on her own.

Just as she finds her footing in this strange new world, a dangerous proposition presents itself, and Fabiola soon realizes that freedom comes at a cost. Trapped at the crossroads of an impossible choice, will she pay the price for the American dream?

Why I liked it: In American Street. 

the narrator Fabiola is coming from Haiti with her mother, but her mother is detained. She joins her three cousins and aunt in Detroit alone. 

Fabiola's eldest cousin Chantal is in college and the most level-headed of the three girls. Donna is the “pretty girl” and dating Dray. Pri is Donna’s twin sister. She is a lesbian and fiercely loyal to her sisters. Fabiola starts school where her cousins have a reputation as the three B’s. 

It's not long before Fabiola is approached by a detective outside of school who suspects Donna’s boyfriend Dray is connected to a bad batch of drugs. Her efforts to help her mother spiral out of control when she finds out her cousins, not Dray were responsible for dealing the bad batch of drugs. Her Aunt Jo, who acts as a money lender in their neighborhood has recently had a stroke. The girls get into dealing drugs to get themselves out of finical trouble with Q. In the meantime, the narrator falls for Kasim, Dray’s best friend, and is devastated when he is killed by police at a party that she tipped the police off about. 

The narrative is interspersed with characters’ backstories. For example, it is revealed that the three B’s father was actually killed by Dray as a young boy when he was training under Q. His volatile relationship with Donna is largely due to his self-hatred over it. I liked the different voices of these backstories as well as the infusion of Haitian voodoo and magical realism.

Classroom application: American Street is appropriate for high school and up. The novel focuses on the American Dream and how elusive its attainment can be. It would make a great contrast to classic novels like The Great Gatsby, The Jungle, Maggie: A Girl of the Streets and more contemporary books like The Last Shot by Darcy Frey.

If you are interested in purchasing a copy of American Street for yourself, you can find it on Amazon here.

Note: The Literary Maven is a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for sites to earn advertising fees by advertising and linking to amazon.com.

On My Bookshelf: Far From The Tree by Robin Benway

The basic plot from Amazon: Being the middle child has its ups and downs.

But for Grace, an only child who was adopted at birth, discovering that she is a middle child is a different ride altogether. After putting her own baby up for adoption, she goes looking for her biological family, including—

Maya, her loudmouthed younger bio sister, who has a lot to say about their newfound family ties. Having grown up the snarky brunette in a house full of chipper redheads, she’s quick to search for traces of herself among these not-quite-strangers. And when her adopted family’s long-buried problems begin to explode to the surface, Maya can’t help but wonder where exactly it is that she belongs.

And Joaquin, their stoic older bio brother, who has no interest in bonding over their shared biological mother. After seventeen years in the foster care system, he’s learned that there are no heroes, and secrets and fears are best kept close to the vest, where they can’t hurt anyone but him.

Why I liked it: In Far From The Tree the narration alternates between three siblings separated from birth. The oldest Joaquin is biracial and has spent his life in the foster care system. He is currently close to being adopted despite his age, but is afraid of getting too close to others. Grace, the middle child, has recently given up her own daughter for adoption. That experience sparked her interest in finding her birth siblings and possibly also her birth mother. The youngest, Maya, feels like an outsider in her own family because she was adopted and her sister was a natural birth. Her parents are in the midst of separating and her mother’s drinking problem escalates to a stay in rehab. 

Maya and Grace meet first and then seek out Joaquin together. The three begin bonding and quickly begin to rely on their relationships with each other. They decide to look for their mother together and learning her story helps each of them to better accept themselves and appreciate their adopted families.

Classroom application: The novel has mature themes including teen pregnancy and alcohol and drug use, and would be appropriate for high school and up. 

If you are interested in purchasing a copy of Far From The Tree for yourself, you can find it on Amazon here.

Note: The Literary Maven is a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for sites to earn advertising fees by advertising and linking to amazon.com.