The Art of Reading

~My Thoughts~

Thanks to Harper360YA for providing me with an ARC!

This book had been on my radar for awhile so I was thrilled to receive an arc! The topic is one that I relate to a lot. Being a 1/4 Mexican and 3/4 Caucasian, I struggle with the idea that is pushed on mixed people that we need to fit into one box or another and also with the feeling of not being completely whole in my ethnic identity. These questions and challenges, among others, are explored with so much heart and empathy through the 20 shorts stories in this book which each offer a unique perspective on the mixed experience. Overall I rated this one five stars because it left such an impression on me but if you’re interested in individual ratings for each story, I’ll leave those down below 🙂

~ The Chair Far Away from the Table by Akemi Dawn Bowman 5/5
When I read this story I had just finished another book by the author and I just love her writing so much!
~ Hispanic Jewish Bingo by Goldy Moldavsky 5/5
~ The Perils of Beige by Nasugraq Rainey Hopson 4/5
~ Invisible by Emiko Jean 3/5
Probably my least favorite story from the collection but it did contain my favorite quote, “You want to talk about race. But you are not ready to talk about race” -pg. 79
~ Mariachis vs. Bluegrass by Loriel Ryon 5/5
One of my favorites!!
~ I Am Not a Papaya by Veera Hiranandani 4/5
~ Between Visibilities by Adi Alsaid 4/5
~ Enough to Be a Real Thing by I. W. Gregorio 4/5
~ Thicker Than Water by Ismee Williams 3/5
~ My Kinda Sorta Badass Move by Karen Yin 5/5
Another favorite!
~ I Like to Be in America by Anika Fajardo 3.5/5
~ Michelle and Yvette in Kaiserslautern by Melina Mangal 5/5
~ Irish Soda Bread by Eric Smith 5/5
Another great quote from this one about why the main character loves his history class, ” she makes history feel so personal, like it belongs to me in a way that my own history, as an adopted kid, really doesn’t.” -pg. 236
~ The Mortification by Shannon Gibney 4/ 5
~ Between Layers by Tara Sim 5/5
Loved how the author summed up the end of her story, “It’s all right to tell people what I am and remind them when I need to, because then it means I’m not passing – I’m embracing.” -pg. 285
~ Different by Torrey Maldonado 3/5
~ Confession by Erin Entrada Kelly 3.5/5
~ A Halfie’s Guide to Mexican Restaurants 5/5
This one had me laughing out loud! What a fun short story idea that was executed so well!
~ Effing Nico by Randy Ribay 4/5
~ Searching by Jasmine Warga 4/5

Happy Reading!