e-Audio, 09:50:18
Narrated by: Marcella Cox
Release Date: May 9, 2023
Published by: Balzer + Bray
Read from: May 16-17, 2023
Stand-alone
Source: Library’s Libby
TW: Mention of Medical trauma with Death as a result, Grief, Mention of wanting an abortion
For Readers Interested In: Coming of Age, YA, Vegan Rep, Homeschooled, Black Panther Party lifestyleFrom Ibi Zoboi, bestselling, award-winning author of American Street and co-author of Punching the Air, comes a bold new YA coming-of-age story, which explores race, feminism, and complicated family dynamics, about a girl whose father is the leader of a Black liberation group. The ideal next read for fans of Roxane Gay, Jacqueline Woodson, and Elizabeth Acevedo.
Warrior Princess. That’s what Nigeria Jones’s father calls her. He has raised her as part of the Movement, a Black separatist group based in Philadelphia. Nigeria is homeschooled and vegan and participates in traditional rituals to connect her and other kids from the group to their ancestors. But when her mother—the perfect matriarch of their Movement—disappears, Nigeria’s world is upended. She finds herself taking care of her baby brother and stepping into a role she doesn’t want.
Nigeria’s mother had secrets. She wished for a different life for her children, which includes sending her daughter to a private Quaker school outside of their strict group. Despite her father’s disapproval, Nigeria attends the school with her cousin, Kamau, and Sage, who used to be a friend. There, she begins to flourish and expand her universe.
As Nigeria searches for her mother, she starts to uncover a shocking truth. One that will lead her to question everything she thought she knew about her life and her family.
From award-winning author Ibi Zoboi comes a powerful story about discovering who you are in the world–and fighting for that person–by having the courage to be your own revolution.
*MY THOUGHTS*
I knew that this would be a hard review to write. This book is beautifully written, but trying to make sure I have accurately described or talked about all the layers in this book is going to be so hard. I don’t want to leave anything out because doing so I feel like would be a disservice.
Ok so first off, let’s talk about the characters. I LOVED Nigeria. This story is a coming of age novel for her, but also a coming to terms novel for her. She has been raised by her father who is lives life by the Black Panther Movement. She’s been taught by him the way of life, but as she gets older she begins to see things differently. She wants to go to school, she sees that there are people out there that don’t like her for whatever reason, but there are also some out there that want to help in some ways. What I found frustrating was the fact that she didn’t give anyone a chance to mess up and then fix it. Which of course I get because as a Black person, it could mean your life. But I did feel like she was given grace, from everyone because of her grief. Why couldn’t she afford that same thing to everyone else? But I did feel like her journey was an interesting one and I really enjoyed reading it and seeing how she lived.
On the other side of that, I liked experiencing the way she saw things differently for the first time. It was really interesting to see how things that she thought she knew started crumbling. I loved being able to watch her coming into her own. It’s just something powerful about watching as people grow up and learn.
The grief in this book was palpable tho. I remember at first getting so mad that her father did this to her and then put her in this situation with her mom. I remember thinking she was dead wrong. But as the book goes on I knew where it was going. But I didn’t know the depth behind it. Just because you know, you don’t really know. I felt so sad for her. I wanted nothing more than to hug her once I figured it out. But being there and watching her uncover all the things and then realizing what actually happened? That was torture. That poor girl! I hate that she had to relive that all over again. And with those new details that no one should have to hear. Especially since she couldn’t help at all.
This book is so layered. There’s devastation and heart ache and loss and love and learning and Blackness. So many things that a Black woman needs to learn and grow. Some of them I hated that she had to learn, especially so young, but I was thankful that after a while her community gave her the space to do so. I thought it was important that she learned to be her own person and I was glad to see that she never completely lost who she was or what her father taught her. She just used it in a different way and gave some people grace. And while I understand that’s not a thing she HAD to do, she figured that out on her own terms, and that’s all that I would ask. Let her grow and become her own person, not some robot that someone has made her.
I hope I did this book justice. This review is long af, but I had to make sure I included everything in there. I’m still almost positive I forgot something. This book is like an onion, but it is completely worth it to peel back layer after layer. I understand this novel might not be for everyone (the dad and his brainwashing behavior and the info about her mother) but if that’s something you’re ok with, I say give this a shot!
Overall, I give this
