Review: A great contemporary read with diverse characters!
Rating: 4 out of 5
Date: 09 4, 2013
I haven't read that many books that have characters with different ethnic backgrounds. I was excited to read this for that reason alone. At the same time, I wasn't sure what exactly to expect and how much I would be able to relate to the characters. Caleb is a military kid who also happens to be one of the high school's football stars. Not really someone I would normally relate to per se. Then Mirriam is from Iraq and has only been living in the US for a couple of years, so I wasn't sure about her either. I found out that I shouldn't have been worried. Mirriam was awesome! I loved her spunk, sarcasm, and the way she stood up for herself. Here is an example of her personality from a conversation between her and Caleb:What could I say? All-American Boy was right. "Fine.""That's your favorite word."I narrowed my eyes. "Only in English."Caleb also turns out to be a great character. At the beginning he is a little arrogant and selfish, but then things change and he realizes that maybe he has been wrong about a few things. I thought that the two of them worked rather well together and I loved a lot of the dialogue between their two characters.The plot is rather interesting too. Both Mirriam and and Caleb have lost their fathers in Iraq, but they have vastly different views on the situation there. That influences the history project that they are working on together and their banter back and forth. For being such a political topic, I thought the author did a great job in not over doing it. She lets her characters give their opinions, but she also allows them to change.It is really a heartbreaking situation that caused both of their fathers' deaths. I did get a little frustrated with Caleb at a few spots where I felt he should have gone a different route initially. I am all about rights and going to authorities with information. There is also plenty of drama for both characters. Caleb got really angry in a few spots (justifiably so) and wasn't really thinking straight. Then at one point I wanted Mirrium to open her eyes to what she knew about Caleb instead of losing faith in him so easily.I wasn't completely sure about the ending. I liked it, but I wished things could have worked out a little differently. Maybe that's just the optimist and mother in me. It still worked, regardless, and I really liked the epilogue, which tied things off nicely.Overall this was an enjoyable read and one I definitely feel is worth picking up. I ended up really liking the characters and where the story took them. I hope that more stories like this are published in the future.Content: Some language, but otherwise clean.Source: Author/NetGalley, which did not affect my review in any way.