American Street

American Street by Ibi Zoboi     324 pages

From Goodreads:

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? 

Wow, this book really packs a punch! I did not have any idea the book would end up where it did. Zoboi does an excellent job of slowly building tension, of taking a single issue and branching it out, weaving it into a network of issues so tangled that you, the reader, can't imagine what the best path would be to take. You can only sit back and hope that Fabiola makes it out okay, and preferably gets her mother back. The writing is excellent, every character with strong, distinct voices creating a tightly woven fabric of family, because, after all, it's what you you do for fam.

I cannot say I enjoyed reading this book because it was so sad. I don't like reading sad books. But it's an important look into immigrant life in America, and of a particular city that has suffered much at the hands of gentrification. Fabiola's story is powerful, evocative, and it demands reading.

American Street

American Street by Ibi Zoboi, 324 pages

“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?” I liked this book but not as much as I wanted to.  This is a good book for teens who want gritty, realistic fiction.

Aftershocks of History

Haiti: The Aftershocks of History by Laurent Dubois, 370 pages

"Poorest nation in the Western Hemisphere" is a description that, as Laurent Dubois notes, has at times seemed almost an official part of the name of the country of Haiti.  After the 2010 earthquake, there was a great deal of speculation as to why, with some religious fundamentalists claiming that an alleged deal with the devil was to blame, while some secular fundamentalists laid the blame on the Haitian people's failure to embrace some particular version of "progress".

Dubois gives a readable, interesting, colorful tour through the eventful history of Haiti.  Born out of the only successful slave revolt in history, the country has endured decades of international ostracism, republics, monarchies, military dictatorships, a twenty year American occupation, and both Papa and Baby Doc.  Dubois demonstrates that it is the common people of the countryside who have suffered most, and also how they and their culture have proven indestructible.  What he fails to do is give a compelling answer to the central question, or any meaningful hope that things will improve.

A Song For Bijou

A Song For Bijou by Josh Farrar, 296 pages

Bijou is a girl recently arrived from Haiti.  Alex is a boy who really wants to get to know her.  From the first time he saw her, he thought she was amazing and as he gets to know her, he knows she is amazing.  Unfortunately for them, Alex attends the all-boys school, St. Christopher, and Bijou attends its sister all-girls counterpart, St. Catherine.  Also, because of the cultural background, Bijou isn’t really allowed to have any contact with boys that aren’t related to her outside of school.  Since they don’t even go to the same school, that makes getting some time to spend together very difficult.  Alex is persistent though, and the two of them actually get some time to talk, at a school dance and through letters, and even some other opportunities achieved through friends’ plots.  Alex and Bijou begin to be friends and maybe even a little bit more, but something major happens that could spoil everything.  A sweet little story about first love that will probably appeal to more girls, but some boys may like also, this would work best for older elementary kids.

Serafina's Promise

Serafina’s Promise by Ann E. Burg, 299 pages

This novel in verse follows the life of Serafina, a young girl in Haiti, who wants to go to school. Her family doesn’t have much money and her mother needs a lot of help because she is about to have a new baby. Serafina’s big ambition is to become a doctor and she is determined to convince her parents that she said be able to go to school. This book would be appropriate for most 4th to 6th grade readers. The story would probably appeal to children who like to read, but reluctant readers might be convinced to try it because of the amount of white space on the pages. It was an uplifting story, although a little sad at times.