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richincolor · 5 years ago

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Last week someone asked if I knew of any good lists of memoirs and coming-of-age novels. We do have a list of memoirs, but that was created four years ago and several more have been published since then that we’d recommend. I couldn’t recall or find a list like she was describing for coming-of-age books either, so the librarian in me felt the need to make one. Here’s an updated collection of memoirs along with a few coming-of-age novels. If you know of others written by BIPOC authors that you would recommend, please share the titles.

Memoirs

All Boys Aren’t Blue: A Memoir-Manifesto by George M. Johnson Farrar, Straus and Giroux (Byr)

In a series of personal essays, prominent journalist and LGBTQIA+ activist George M. Johnson explores his childhood, adolescence, and college years in New Jersey and Virginia. From the memories of getting his teeth kicked out by bullies at age five, to flea marketing with his loving grandmother, to his first sexual relationships, this young-adult memoir weaves together the trials and triumphs faced by Black queer boys.

Both a primer for teens eager to be allies as well as a reassuring testimony for young queer men of color, All Boys Aren’t Blue covers topics such as gender identity, toxic masculinity, brotherhood, family, structural marginalization, consent, and Black joy. Johnson’s emotionally frank style of writing will appeal directly to young adults.

Almost American Girl: An Illustrated Memoir by Robin Ha Balzer & Bray/Harperteen

For as long as she can remember, it’s been Robin and her mom against the world. Growing up as the only child of a single mother in Seoul, Korea, wasn’t always easy, but it has bonded them fiercely together.

So when a vacation to visit friends in Huntsville, Alabama, unexpectedly becomes a permanent relocation–following her mother’s announcement that she’s getting married–Robin is devastated.

Overnight, her life changes. She is dropped into a new school where she doesn’t understand the language and struggles to keep up. She is completely cut off from her friends in Seoul and has no access to her beloved comics. At home, she doesn’t fit in with her new stepfamily, and worst of all, she is furious with the one person she is closest to–her mother.

Then one day Robin’s mother enrolls her in a local comic drawing class, which opens the window to a future Robin could never have imagined.

Banned Book Club by Kim Hyun Sook, Ryan Estrada, Hyung-Ju Ko (Illustrator) Iron Circus Comics [Crystal’s Review] [Q&A with Authors – in a Comic]

When Kim Hyun Sook started college in 1983 she was ready for her world to open up. After acing her exams and sort-of convincing her traditional mother that it was a good idea for a woman to go to college, she looked forward to soaking up the ideas of Western Literature far from the drudgery she was promised at her family’s restaurant. But literature class would prove to be just the start of a massive turning point, still focused on reading but with life-or-death stakes she never could have imagined.

This was during South Korea’s Fifth Republic, a military regime that entrenched its power through censorship, torture, and the murder of protestors. In this charged political climate, with Molotov cocktails flying and fellow students disappearing for hours and returning with bruises, Hyun Sook sought refuge in the comfort of books. When the handsome young editor of the school newspaper invited her to his reading group, she expected to pop into the cafeteria to talk about Moby Dick, Hamlet, and The Scarlet Letter. Instead she found herself hiding in a basement as the youngest member of an underground banned book club. And as Hyun Sook soon discovered, in a totalitarian regime, the delights of discovering great works of illicit literature are quickly overshadowed by fear and violence as the walls close in.

It’s Trevor Noah: Born a Crime Stories from a South African Childhood by Trevor Noah Delacorte Press

Trevor Noah, the funny guy who hosts The Daily Show on Comedy Central, shares his remarkable story of growing up in South Africa with a black South African mother and a white European father at a time when it was against the law for a mixed-race child to exist. But he did exist–and from the beginning, the often-misbehaved Trevor used his keen smarts and humor to navigate a harsh life under a racist government. This fascinating memoir blends drama, comedy, and tragedy to depict the day-to-day trials that turned a boy into a young man. In a country where racism barred blacks from social, educational, and economic opportunity, Trevor surmounted staggering obstacles and created a promising future for himself, thanks to his mom’s unwavering love and indomitable will.

Infinite Hope: A Black Artist’s Journey from WWII to Peace by Ashley Bryan Atheneum Books

In May of 1942, at the age of eighteen, Ashley Bryan was drafted to fight in World War II. For the next three years, he would face the horrors of war as a black soldier in a segregated army.

He endured the terrible lies white officers told about the black soldiers to isolate them from anyone who showed kindness–including each other. He received worse treatment than even Nazi POWs. He was assigned the grimmest, most horrific tasks, like burying fallen soldiers…but was told to remove the black soldiers first because the media didn’t want them in their newsreels. And he waited and wanted so desperately to go home, watching every white soldier get safe passage back to the United States before black soldiers were even a thought.

For the next forty years, Ashley would keep his time in the war a secret. But now, he tells his story. The story of the kind people who supported him. The story of the bright moments that guided him through the dark. And the story of his passion for art that would save him time and time again.

Ordinary Hazards: A Memoir by Nikki Grimes Wordsong

In her own voice, acclaimed author and poet Nikki Grimes explores the truth of a harrowing childhood in a compelling and moving memoir in verse. Growing up with a mother suffering from paranoid schizophrenia and a mostly absent father, Nikki Grimes found herself terrorized by babysitters, shunted from foster family to foster family, and preyed upon by those she trusted. At the age of six, she poured her pain onto a piece of paper late one night – and discovered the magic and impact of writing. For many years, Nikki’s notebooks were her most enduing companions. In this accessible and inspiring memoir that will resonate with young readers and adults alike, Nikki shows how the power of those words helped her conquer the hazards – ordinary and extraordinary – of her life.

They Called Us Enemy by George Takei, Justin Eisinger, Steven Scott, Harmony Becker (Illustrator)Top Shelf Productions

They Called Us Enemy is Takei’s firsthand account of those years behind barbed wire, the joys and terrors of growing up under legalized racism, his mother’s hard choices, his father’s faith in democracy, and the way those experiences planted the seeds for his astonishing future. What does it mean to be American? Who gets to decide? When the world is against you, what can one person do? To answer these questions, George Takei joins co-writers Justin Eisinger & Steven Scott and artist Harmony Becker for the journey of a lifetime.

Coming-of-Age

Clap When You Land by Ellizabeth Acevedo Quill Tree Books [Crystal’s Review]

Camino Rios lives for the summers when her father visits her in the Dominican Republic. But this time, on the day when his plane is supposed to land, Camino arrives at the airport to see crowds of crying people…

In New York City, Yahaira Rios is called to the principal’s office, where her mother is waiting to tell her that her father, her hero, has died in a plane crash.

Separated by distance–and Papi’s secrets–the two girls are forced to face a new reality in which their father is dead and their lives are forever altered.

And then, when it seems like they’ve lost everything of their father, they learn of each other.

Darius the Great is Not Okay by Adib Khorram Penguin Books [Interview with Adib Khorram]

Darius Kellner speaks better Klingon than Farsi, and he knows more about Hobbit social cues than Persian ones. He’s a Fractional Persian–half, his mom’s side–and his first-ever trip to Iran is about to change his life.

Darius has never really fit in at home, and he’s sure things are going to be the same in Iran. His clinical depression doesn’t exactly help matters, and trying to explain his medication to his grandparents only makes things harder. Then Darius meets Sohrab, the boy next door, and everything changes. Soon, they’re spending their days together, playing soccer, eating faludeh, and talking for hours on a secret rooftop overlooking the city’s skyline. Sohrab calls him Darioush–the original Persian version of his name–and Darius has never felt more like himself than he does now that he’s Darioush to Sohrab.

Forward Me Back to You by Mitali Perkins Farrar, Straus and Giroux (Byr)

Katina King is the reigning teen jujitsu champion of Northern California, but she’s having trouble fighting off the secrets in her past.

Robin Thornton was adopted from an orphanage in India and is reluctant to take on his future. If he can’t find his roots, how can he possibly plan ahead?

Robin and Kat meet in the most unlikely of places–a summer service trip to Kolkata to work with survivors of human trafficking. As bonds build between the travelmates, Robin and Kat discover that justice and healing are tangled, like the pain of their pasts and the hope for their futures. You can’t rewind life; sometimes you just have to push play.

In turns heart wrenching, beautiful, and buoyant, Mitali Perkins’s Forward Me Back to You focuses its lens on the ripple effects of violence–across borders and generations–and how small acts of heroism can break the cycle.

Hearts Unbroken by Cynthia Leitich Smith Candlewick Press

When Louise Wolfe’s first real boyfriend mocks and disrespects Native people in front of her, she breaks things off and dumps him over e-mail. It’s her senior year, anyway, and she’d rather spend her time with her family and friends and working on the school newspaper. The editors pair her up with Joey Kairouz, the ambitious new photojournalist, and in no time the paper’s staff find themselves with a major story to cover: the school musical director’s inclusive approach to casting The Wizard of Oz has been provoking backlash in their mostly white, middle-class Kansas town. From the newly formed Parents Against Revisionist Theater to anonymous threats, long-held prejudices are being laid bare and hostilities are spreading against teachers, parents, and students — especially the cast members at the center of the controversy, including Lou’s little brother, who’s playing the Tin Man. As tensions mount at school, so does a romance between Lou and Joey — but as she’s learned, “dating while Native” can be difficult. In trying to protect her own heart, will Lou break Joey’s?

Loveboat, Taipei by Abigail Hing Wen Harperteen [Jessica’s Review]

And just like that, Ever Wong’s summer takes an unexpected turn. Gone is Chien Tan, the strict educational program in Taiwan that Ever was expecting. In its place, she finds Loveboat: a summer-long free-for-all where hookups abound, adults turn a blind eye, snake-blood sake flows abundantly, and the nightlife runs nonstop.

But not every student is quite what they seem:

Ever is working toward becoming a doctor but nurses a secret passion for dance.

Rick Woo is the Yale-bound child prodigy bane of Ever’s existence whose perfection hides a secret.

Boy-crazy, fashion-obsessed Sophie Ha turns out to have more to her than meets the eye.

And under sexy Xavier Yeh’s shell is buried a shameful truth he’ll never admit.

When these students’ lives collide, it’s guaranteed to be a summer Ever will never forget.

Parachutes by Kelly Yang Katherine Tegen Books

They’re called parachutes: teenagers dropped off to live in private homes and study in the United States while their wealthy parents remain in Asia. Claire Wang never thought she’d be one of them, until her parents pluck her from her privileged life in Shanghai and enroll her at a high school in California.

Suddenly she finds herself living in a stranger’s house, with no one to tell her what to do for the first time in her life. She soon embraces her newfound freedom, especially when the hottest and most eligible parachute, Jay, asks her out.

Dani De La Cruz, Claire’s new host sister, couldn’t be less thrilled that her mom rented out a room to Claire. An academic and debate team star, Dani is determined to earn her way into Yale, even if it means competing with privileged kids who are buying their way to the top. But Dani’s game plan veers unexpectedly off course when her debate coach starts working with her privately.

As they steer their own distinct paths, Dani and Claire keep crashing into one another, setting a course that will change their lives forever.

Yes No Maybe So by Aisha Saeed & Becky Albertalli Balzer & Bray/Harperteen [Group Discussion]

YES

Jamie Goldberg is cool with volunteering for his local state senate candidate–as long as he’s behind the scenes. When it comes to speaking to strangers (or, let’s face it, speaking at all to almost anyone) Jamie’s a choke artist. There’s no way he’d ever knock on doors to ask people for their votes…until he meets Maya.

Maya Rehman’s having the worst Ramadan ever. Her best friend is too busy to hang out, her summer trip is canceled, and now her parents are separating. Why her mother thinks the solution to her problems is political canvassing–with some awkward dude she hardly knows–is beyond her.

MAYBE SO

Going door to door isn’t exactly glamorous, but maybe it’s not the worst thing in the world. After all, the polls are getting closer–and so are Maya and Jamie. Mastering local activism is one thing. Navigating the cross-cultural crush of the century is another thing entirely.

#memoir #Coming of age #YALit

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cullnstm · 5 years ago

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hi everyone ! my name’s koa , i’m 21+ ( with a birthday coming in t - mius four days 🥴 ) , and i absolutely love any form of cheesecake so please , i’ll take it via amazon fresh for my birthday . this intro for my son has�� been vastly overdue , and i apologize ! i finally feel much better after slipping into a slight funk , but i finally up to writing his intro ( and don’t roast me , it’s the exact same one from another rp but it’s fine ) and so here’s everything you need to know about mister cullen !

[ ALEX FITZALAN / ALETHEIA / ANADEIA / MUSE 13 ] / CHRISTOPHER CULLEN is a 21 year old POLITICAL SCIENCE major. HE is known for being NONPARTISAN & AUTHENTIC but MACHIAVELLIAN & UNSYMPATHETIC . when i think of them , i imagine FEMINIST ENAMEL PINS LITTERING HIS BACKPACK , THE LINGERING COLD THAT FOLLOWS AFTER HE’S GONE , AND MASTERING THE ART OF FAUX INTEREST IN A CONVERSATION . and even though they’re a proud HU student now , we all have our roots . theirs run back to them being a NEWCOMER . i asked around and it turns out they ARE an AOP student . in their interview , they managed to woo the admissions team by SHARING A VIDEO OF HIS BEST ARGUMENTS FROM HIS TIME ON HIS HIGH SCHOOL’S DEBATE TEAM .

statistics .

FULL NAME : christopher patrick bartholomew cullen .

NICKNAME(S) : chris , topher , and toffie ( by his little sisters only ) .

BIRTHDATE / AGE : september 15th , 1998 / 21 .

ZODIAC : virgo .

HOMETOWN : darien , connecticut .

GENDER : cis male .

NATIONALITY : american .

ETHNICITY : white caucasian .

HEIGHT : 5′9″ .

LABEL(S) : the zealous and the connard .

ROMANTIC ORIENTATION : biromantic .

SEXUAL ORIENTATION : bisexual .

OCCUPATION : political science student at hatchet university .

LANGUAGES SPOKEN : english , latin , and conversational spanish .

POSITIVES : desirous , spellbinding , ingenuous , nonpartisan , and authentic .

NEGATIVES : worrisome , machiavellian , cocksure , unsympathetic , and narcissistic .

background .

patrick cullen was a wide eyed and bushy tailed first year law student who knew he wanted to make a change in the world . from the get go , he knew that he wanted to be a criminal defense attorney as he was not a rich kid by far and saw that there needed to be a change in the american justice system . it wasn’t easy for him by far , and he was the student who needed to work throughout college in order to make ends meet , but he wasn’t going to let that deter him from his goals . during his first year in law school was when he met a political science graduate student named stephanie daniels .

stephanie was made up of unruly blonde curls and an australian accent , but she’ll still debate you until she’s blue in the face . coming from a wealthy family , stephanie found herself constantly being told one of two things : she’d either be the perfect housewife or the perfect mother . determined to change that narrative , stephanie went through college with the best grades and she was not idle to being interrupted by the men who attempted to speak over her . stephanie is a woman who knew what she wanted and she was determined to get it .

so , when she met patrick at a party she told herself she wasn’t going to attend , their worlds flipped on their heads , but in the best way possible . their first date was filled with gentle laughter and it wasn’t at the fanciest restaurant in town , but they enjoyed themselves nonetheless . despite their major differences , the couple managed to make it work and following two years of dating and engagement , patrick and stephanie married . despite patrick coming from a poor background , there was never a reason for the two to not be together – it was evident with the way that they looked at one another from the moment they met .

as the years passed , patrick found himself working at a law office while quickly rising in the ranks while stephanie ran for city council . during that same year , patrick and stephanie welcomed their first child , a sweet baby boy named christopher . their son was the apple of their eye , and they absolutely loved having him in their lives . from the get go , christopher had always been around his parents and around their political ties . christopher was always found attaching himself to his parents’ pant leg as they worked to provide him the life that he had in darien , connecticut .

more years passed , and their world changes again as stephanie is elected as congresswoman for the state of connecticut . for christopher , who was ten at the time he saw the world change for the first time since his parents were now in the public eye and there was suddenly security detail around their home . christopher while growing up , though , found that this was exactly what he wanted out of life , as weird as they may sound . he liked what his mom did , and he liked seeing what his father do with ensuring that the justice system was held accountable for their actions .

when christopher was in middle school , not only did his parents welcome his younger twin sisters cassandra and courtney , but this was when he started his development into someday becoming a president . middle school was when he began joining student organizations and even developed his love for lacrosse . during high school , christopher continued with lacrosse as midfielder and was elected as student body president during his sophomore year . he knew from the get go that he wanted to be someone who made major differences , so while he’s making his way to someday being mr . president , for now he was more focused on ensuring a place at a college .

now a student at hatchet university , christopher is studying political science as he has plans on attending law school once he graduates . he’s president of the student association , vice president of speak to lead , and a midfielder on the lacrosse team ! when it comes to the fact that he’s an aop student ( and pertaining to his subplot ) , a lot of people don’t think he got into hatchet based on his own merit since his parents are extremely influential and his spot could have easily been bought . christopher really makes no effort to tell people the truth since he’s convinced that they won’t believe him anyways , so lets people have their rumors .

headcanons .

he’s on the lacrosse team and plays the position of midfielder . he only ever learned latin because it made sense to his parents so now he knows a dead language that only ever works when he’s reading difficult books or traveling !

has his driver’s license but he doesn’t really drive . he’ll get an uber if he needs to go far distances , but he likes being able to walk places since his dorm isn’t far from different campus locations .

topher spends most of his time outside of his dorm , and usually doesn’t get back until late at night . his days start really early for training and practice , then he has classes pretty much all day and he likes to study right after . of course , he has his student association meetings and then he goes to the gym so he probably only gets a wink of sleep before he starts all over again .

he doesn’t like leaving his apart without being put together , and it mostly stems from being a congresswoman’s son ! his style is mostly made up of chinos , long coats , turtlenecks , chunky sneakers , and a gucci belt to flex .

he can make people worry about him sometimes ? and it’s mostly because he will literally go days without answering phone calls or texts , but then he’ll pop back up like nothing ever happened . he really does hate how much he’ll make people worry about him sometimes , but that’s the d*pression doing all the talking .

personality .

since he has really big ambitions for himself , christopher can be really overbearing at times . he hates when things don’t work out for him and he really hates when people try to overstep . he definitely is the guy who takes over group projects and assigns people a part because he wants things to work as smoothly as they can . he can be pretty charming as explained by his aesthetics : he’s mastered the art of having a faux conversation with someone so sometimes he might not be truly listening . he’s getting the important parts and then that’s what he works off of . he’s not that way with his friends , though . i can promise you that . he’s the most chaotic boy on the entire planet and will definitely find a way to ruin your life if he wanted to . despite all of that , though he’s a jock at heart ! when he’s with his friends he can be really laid back and all about enjoying himself in the now .

desired relations .

for specific plots , i’d love for him to have his best friend ! the person who really knows him the best and can tell when he’s truly dealing with something . topher’s a crier because toxic masculinity is not a thing ‘round these parts , so get ready for him to show up being a soft boy .

i’m really feeling a one night stand with some substance ? like yeah , they have their fun together but they don’t pretend to not know each other in public ( unless they have like a fierce rivalry going on or something ) so they probs tend to be a little like confidants at times but it’s still them having fun !

give me a plot where they full on hate each other . no lingering feelings , no soft moments – give me a full bred spicy hate ship that literally gets your blood pumping . it’s all i want in life , thank u .

something soft ? something really sweet and enough to make my freaking teeth rot ? i don’t know something literally anything just give me the softness that i’ve been craving for my boy .

#hatchet:intro #🖤🖤

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