May 2019 Standalone BOTM - On The Come Up, by Angie Thomas

[Alaina]

Sixteen-year-old Bri wants to be one of the greatest rappers of all time. Or at least make it out of her neighborhood one day. As the daughter of an underground rap legend who died before he hit big, Bri’s got big shoes to fill. But now that her mom has unexpectedly lost her job, food banks and shutoff notices are as much a part of Bri’s life as beats and rhymes. With bills piling up and homelessness staring her family down, Bri no longer just wants to make it—she has to make it.

On the Come Up is Angie Thomas’s homage to hip-hop, the art that sparked her passion for storytelling and continues to inspire her to this day. It is the story of fighting for your dreams, even as the odds are stacked against you; of the struggle to become who you are and not who everyone expects you to be; and of the desperate realities of poor and working-class black families.

[Amy]

This was an amazing read!

[[deleted user]]

I'm gonna try to join this one... hopefully my library gets it soon.

[Tiffany]

Angie Thomas is a machine .... This book blew me away just like the hate you give.

Her reader to character connection is unreal.

[Amy]

I just got wrapped up in the truth of it all. It is not a book about my life or my reality but feeling it was so eye opening. I felt the chareacters and their stories. I felt the pain and the decisions and the heartache. It all comes to life in one tale about a girl who, if under different circumstances, we all could be. My reality is not someone else's

[Tiffany]

Amy wrote: "I just got wrapped up in the truth of it all. It is not a book about my life or my reality but feeling it was so eye opening. I felt the chareacters and their stories. I felt the pain and the decis..."
Angie Thomas is the only author I have found that can induce this reaction. How about yourself?

[Amy]

Tiffany wrote: "Amy wrote: "I just got wrapped up in the truth of it all. It is not a book about my life or my reality but feeling it was so eye opening. I felt the chareacters and their stories. I felt the pain a..."

This is the first I have read of hers but will certianly not be my last. I am starting The Hate You Give soon. I have not read anything like this before that was able to transport me into a different life by getting me into the mind of a character that I could not understand simply by common circumstances. My normal reaction to a character is because I can see similarities in myself. This was the complete opposite and I feel like that made it all the more powerful.