Diverse Books I've Been Meaning To Read! [100th Post!🎉]
I can't believe this is my 100th post! I haven't been consistently blogging but writing my 100th post feels like I've been blogging for so long! I don't have anything exciting planned for today, but I have been adding lots of (new and old) diverse books in my Goodreads lately, and I'd like to share these books with you guys! This year has just been swamped with diverse new releases and honestly I cannot be more thankful! The Bookstagram community has influenced me to reach out to diverse books and I feel the need to spread the word myself. So here are some books I've been meaning to pick up :D
Simon vs. The Homo Sapiens Agenda by: Becky Albertalli
Synopsis:
Sixteen-year-old and not-so-openly gay Simon Spier prefers to save his drama for the school musical. But when an email falls into the wrong hands, his secret is at risk of being thrust into the spotlight. Now Simon is actually being blackmailed: if he doesn’t play wingman for class clown Martin, his sexual identity will become everyone’s business. Worse, the privacy of Blue, the pen name of the boy he’s been emailing, will be compromised.
With some messy dynamics emerging in his once tight-knit group of friends, and his email correspondence with Blue growing more flirtatious every day, Simon’s junior year has suddenly gotten all kinds of complicated. Now, change-averse Simon has to find a way to step out of his comfort zone before he’s pushed out—without alienating his friends, compromising himself, or fumbling a shot at happiness with the most confusing, adorable guy he’s never met
Thoughts:
I've never read a book that focuses solely on a gay couple before, so this one should be really interesting! I've heard amaaazing things. I've had this book in my Goodreads list for the longest time but I never got to actually pick the book up. Hopefully I will soon though! And I hear it's going to be a movie as well? :D The more reason I need to read this ASAP!
Aristotle and Dante Discover the Secrets Of the Universe by: Benjamin Alire Sáenz
Synopsis:
Aristotle is an angry teen with a brother in prison. Dante is a know-it-all who has an unusual way of looking at the world. When the two meet at the swimming pool, they seem to have nothing in common. But as the loners start spending time together, they discover that they share a special friendship—the kind that changes lives and lasts a lifetime. And it is through this friendship that Ari and Dante will learn the most important truths about themselves and the kind of people they want to be.
Thoughts:
I was so close to buying this book in a bookstore but it was sooo pricey :'( Still, it remains 'to be read' because I will read this, mark my words! I've heard nothing but great things. The author is also said to have beautiful writing. Also I hear it's a tear jerker. I'm in! :'D
City of Saints & Thieves by: Natalie C. Anderson
Synopsis:
In the shadows of Sangui City, there lives a girl who doesn't exist. After fleeing the Congo as refugees, Tina and her mother arrived in Kenya looking for the chance to build a new life and home. Her mother quickly found work as a maid for a prominent family, headed by Roland Greyhill, one of the city’s most respected business leaders. But Tina soon learns that the Greyhill fortune was made from a life of corruption and crime. So when her mother is found shot to death in Mr. Greyhill's personal study, she knows exactly who’s behind it.
With revenge always on her mind, Tina spends the next four years surviving on the streets alone, working as a master thief for the Goondas, Sangui City’s local gang. It’s a job for the Goondas that finally brings Tina back to the Greyhill estate, giving her the chance for vengeance she’s been waiting for. But as soon as she steps inside the lavish home, she’s overtaken by the pain of old wounds and the pull of past friendships, setting into motion a dangerous cascade of events that could, at any moment, cost Tina her life. But finally uncovering the incredible truth about who killed her mother—and why—keeps her holding on in this fast-paced nail-biting thriller.
Thoughts:
I haven't actually heard a lot about this book, but once I read the synopsis I was certain this book was going into my TBR list. A thriller + a PoC main character? I'm sold!
Exit, Pursued by A Bear by: E. K. Johnston
Synopsis:
Hermione Winters is captain of her cheerleading team, and in tiny Palermo Heights, this doesn’t mean what you think it means. At PHHS, the cheerleaders don't cheer for the sports teams; they are the sports team—the pride and joy of a tiny town. The team's summer training camp is Hermione's last and marks the beginning of the end of…she’s not sure what. She does know this season could make her a legend. But during a camp party, someone slips something in her drink. And it all goes black.
In every class, there's a star cheerleader and a pariah pregnant girl. They're never supposed to be the same person. Hermione struggles to regain the control she's always had and faces a wrenching decision about how to move on. The assault wasn't the beginning of Hermione Winter's story and she's not going to let it be the end. She won’t be anyone’s cautionary tale.
Thoughts:
A book about rape. That was all I needed to know. The subject matter was enough for me to want to talk about it and read it. I've only read one book about rape (The Way I Used to Be) and I had some issues with it, so I was on the hunt for a book that talks about a similar issue and I came across this! I've also heard Melody (@theliteraryowl on Instagram) rave about how much she loved it. I can't wait to read this! :D
A List of Cages by: Robin Roe
Synopsis:
When Adam Blake lands the best elective ever in his senior year, serving as an aide to the school psychologist, he thinks he’s got it made. Sure, it means a lot of sitting around, which isn’t easy for a guy with ADHD, but he can’t complain, since he gets to spend the period texting all his friends. Then the doctor asks him to track down the troubled freshman who keeps dodging her, and Adam discovers that the boy is Julian—the foster brother he hasn’t seen in five years.
Adam is ecstatic to be reunited. At first, Julian seems like the boy he once knew. He’s still kindhearted. He still writes stories and loves picture books meant for little kids. But as they spend more time together, Adam realizes that Julian is keeping secrets, like where he hides during the middle of the day, and what’s really going on inside his house. Adam is determined to help him, but his involvement could cost both boys their lives…
Thoughts:
Not going to lie, the cover was what got my attention first. But of course, reading the synopsis made me want it even more. I hear this book is gut-wrenchingly angsty, but important and poignant as well.
When Dimple Met Rishi by: Sandhya Menon
Synopsis:
Dimple Shah has it all figured out. With graduation behind her, she’s more than ready for a break from her family, from Mamma’s inexplicable obsession with her finding the “Ideal Indian Husband.” Ugh. Dimple knows they must respect her principles on some level, though. If they truly believed she needed a husband right now, they wouldn’t have paid for her to attend a summer program for aspiring web developers…right?
Rishi Patel is a hopeless romantic. So when his parents tell him that his future wife will be attending the same summer program as him—wherein he’ll have to woo her—he’s totally on board. Because as silly as it sounds to most people in his life, Rishi wants to be arranged, believes in the power of tradition, stability, and being a part of something much bigger than himself.The Shahs and Patels didn’t mean to start turning the wheels on this “suggested arrangement” so early in their children’s lives, but when they noticed them both gravitate toward the same summer program, they figured, Why not?Dimple and Rishi may think they have each other figured out. But when opposites clash, love works hard to prove itself in the most unexpected ways.
Thoughts:
How adorable is the cover though? It's adorable! I also really like the colors and the representation <3 Props to whoever made the cover ;D I've been seeing this book literally everywhere! It's a cutesy contemporary read and it's suppose to be hilarious as well. Quite a contrast to the books I've mentioned previously huh? xD The idea of an arranged marriage between two indian families is super interesting! I'm aware that this tradition is common in Indian culture but I don't know much about it so I'm really excited to see how this book tells the story!
The  Love Interest by: Cale DietrichÂ
Synopsis:
There is a secret organization that cultivates teenage spies. The agents are called Love Interests because getting close to people destined for great power means getting valuable secrets.
Caden is a Nice: The boy next door, sculpted to physical perfection. Dylan is a Bad: The brooding, dark-souled guy, and dangerously handsome. The girl they are competing for is important to the organization, and each boy will pursue her. Will she choose a Nice or the Bad?Both Caden and Dylan are living in the outside world for the first time. They are well-trained and at the top of their games. They have to be – whoever the girl doesn’t choose will die.What the boys don’t expect are feelings that are outside of their training. Feelings that could kill them both.
Thoughts:
You guys. A book about two male spies whose mission is to get a girl to fall in love with one of them. But instead they fall for one another. I FREAKING NEED THIS BOOK RIGHT NOW *flails*.
The Hate U Give by: Angie Thomas
Synopsis:
Sixteen-year-old Starr Carter moves between two worlds: the poor neighborhood where she lives and the fancy suburban prep school she attends. The uneasy balance between these worlds is shattered when Starr witnesses the fatal shooting of her childhood best friend, Khalil, at the hands of a police officer. Khalil was unarmed.
Soon afterward, Khalil’s death is a national headline. Some are calling him a thug, maybe even a drug dealer and a gangbanger. Starr’s best friend at school suggests he may have had it coming. When it becomes clear the police have little interest in investigating the incident, protesters take to the streets and Starr’s neighborhood becomes a war zone. What everyone wants to know is: What really went down that night? And the only person alive who can answer that is Starr.But what Starr does—or does not—say could destroy her community. It could also endanger her life.
Thoughts:
Man I don't even have to read the synopsis. One look at the cover and I can tell that this read is super relevant to society today and a MUST read.
When The Moon Was Ours by: Anna-Marie McLemore
Synopsis:
To everyone who knows them, best friends Miel and Sam are as strange as they are inseparable. Roses grow out of Miel’s wrist, and rumors say that she spilled out of a water tower when she was five. Sam is known for the moons he paints and hangs in the trees, and for how little anyone knows about his life before he and his mother moved to town. But as odd as everyone considers Miel and Sam, even they stay away from the Bonner girls, four beautiful sisters rumored to be witches. Now they want the roses that grow from Miel’s skin, convinced that their scent can make anyone fall in love. And they’re willing to use every secret Miel has fought to protect to make sure she gives them up.
Thoughts:
I sense some Magical Realism elements. :o <3 Â The synopsis doesn't reveal very much but it involves friendship and apparently some LGBT elements as well. I couldn't ask for more.
Let me know some of your favorite/to be read diverse books! I can always add more to the list ;)
Have a great day everyone!
Cath xx