e-Audio, 08:15:50
Narrated by: Angel Pean
Release Date: July 2, 2024
Published by: Disney Hyperion
Read from: July 14-15, 2024
Stand-Alone
Source: Library’s Libby (I also received an ARC of this from the 2024 Texas Library Conference)
Content Warning: Climate Destruction
For Readers Interested In: Climate Change, Romance, Enemies to Lovers, Activism, Racial/Ethnic Diversity (Black, Samoan), YALemonade Mouth meets climate change activism in this enemies-to-lovers YA romance. A tied election throws two rival teen activists together to lead their school’s environmental justice club, and they are taken by surprise when their clashes reveal deeper feelings hidden beneath their antagonism.
What’s more romantic than saving the earth?
Two presidents. One club. A sizzling connection.
Isa Brown wishes her life would slow down. She doesn’t want to leave for college. Not now that her dad finally gets to spend some time at home. Not now that she’s finally been in one place for longer than a year. But nothing lasts forever. With wildfires ravaging her community and a new natural gas pipeline threatening her dad’s job, the last thing Isa can do is relax. The school’s environmental justice club seems like a promising way to make real change. If only her annoying co-president Darius would stop being such a control freak.
Darius Freeman can’t stop hustling. If he does, how will he beat the other honors kids to be valedictorian? How will he get into the top schools in the country? How will he launch his political career? No. Darius can’t stop, and the next step in his plan is leading the environmental justice club this year—putting on a policy summit and rounding out his college applications with a leadership role. But then Isa joins the club and becomes co-president. Is she the stumbling block on his road to success?
As Isa and Darius clash over the best way to lead the environmental justice club, deeper feelings emerge. About what’s at stake for their communities if they can’t figure out how to work together. And about the sparks they feel between them.
Will Darius and Isa figure out how to burn brightly together? Or will their flames leave nothing but ashes behind?
*MY THOUGHTS*
Ok so I read the first part of this as a physical ARC. I was so set on seeing if we can get this as a pick for the Tournament of Books, but it was released too late. Sad day, because even though the romance did have its faults, I was very impressed with the way the climate activism was shown.
Ok so the thing that I didn’t care for in this one was the main characters. Isa was ok. She wasn’t very fleshed out, but I did like the way she stood up completely for what she believed in. And I really liked the way that she had that get up and get out there attitude. It was impressive to me because I’ve never been that type of person. I have always been the one behind the scenes that does the research and all the work, so seeing anyone, even if they are teens, getting out there and being the face of things is really something that makes me feel so proud.
But Darius……….. Yeahhhh he was annoying. I didn’t like that he kept not giving her the time of day. And then out of nowhere he was like “Oh yeah somewhere along the way I felt something more for her.” And I was like uhhhhhhhhh. It was very telly and not showy. It would be different if he was just like eh. But he was so mean to her. And he was so mean in general. He only wanted that one thing and refused to see anything else. Even when they were trying to help. And it was very weird the way he acted like he knew everything when the only thing he thought of, he hadn’t asked anyone else about it.
What I did like was the actual climate work they were doing. This book had so many great ideas. I really hope that some students somewhere use these ideas and make something big of themselves. I even learned some things from this book too. That moment with the posters were amazing. I even wrote some of those names down. I had no idea that that movement started right in my home state. I won’t say more to avoid spoilers, but this was important to learn. I loved this part because even though it was about wildfires, I still really related to it as someone who lives somewhere near a place where there’s hurricanes and now earthquakes as of recently.
I think this would have been a bit better if it was more showy than telly and if the character was more agreeable. But even if I didn’t like those things, I still really enjoyed the climate activism part and my hope is that it really hypes up some teens and gets them fired up and ready to work.
Overall, I give this
