Genesis Begins Again

This was amazing! My heart just breaks for Genesis but I'm also so proud of her. She's brave and kind and resilient in a way that she shouldn't have to be.

It was also nice to see parents in a middle grade/tween book so humanly depicted. Her father is deeply flawed and not a great dad but I do think he was trying. And he did try his best to love her.

content warnings: colourism, (internalised) racism, bullying, alcoholism

This book is going to be so so important for so many young people and I really hope it reaches a wide audience. It's unflinching, it dares to confront tough topics and it bravely and accurately depicts the anxieties of a modern teenage girl.

I adored Genesis, and whilst she felt slightly mature, she also made choices which were completely in line for a character of that age which made her seem more realistic. She was completely nuanced and my heart ached for her as she struggled with trying to fit in in a world that seemed to be lighter skinned than she was.

Read this for a complex, well-developed main character. Read this for important representation. Read this for multi-dimensional supporting characters. Read this for a story that deserves to be told.