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Summary
Summary
An unflinching, honest novel in verse about a teenager's journey into the slam poetry scene and the dangerous new relationship that could threaten all her dreams. From the award-winning poet and author of HOME IS NOT A COUNTRY.
Bad girl. No matter how hard Samira tries, she can't shake her reputation. She's never gotten the benefit of the doubt--not from her mother or the aunties who watch her like a hawk.
Samira is determined to have a perfect summer filled with fun parties, exploring DC, and growing as a poet--until a scandalous rumor has her grounded and unable to leave her house. When Samira turns to a poetry forum for solace, she catches the eye of an older, charismatic poet named Horus. For the first time, Samira feels wanted. But soon she's keeping a bigger secret than ever before--one that that could prove her reputation and jeopardize her place in her community.
In this gripping coming-of-age novel from the critically acclaimed author Safia Elhillo, a young woman searches to find the balance between honoring her family, her artistry, and her authentic self.
Author Notes
Safia Elhillo is an award-winning poet and author. Her debut YA novel in verse, Home Is Not a Country, was longlisted for the National Book Award and received a Coretta Scott King Author Honor and an Arab American Book Award. Sudanese by way of Washington, DC, Safia is a Pushcart Prize nominee, co-winner of the 2015 Brunel International African Poetry Prize, and listed in Forbes Africa's 2018 "30 Under 30." She lives in Los Angeles.
Reviews (4)
Publisher's Weekly Review
Sixteen-year-old Samira has never kissed a boy, let alone done any of the things her former crush claims they did. Still, rumors spread like wildfire throughout her tight-knit Sudanese community. Now labeled a "bad girl," her strict mother upends Samira's vision of a perfect summer by placing her on indefinite house arrest, the monotony of which is only broken by Samira's attending a teen poetry workshop that her aunt drives her to and from. When social media posts of her classmates enjoying the summer and the distance between her and her mother become too much, Samira looks to an online poetry message board for connection. There, she meets an older, magnetic poet named Horus. For the first time, someone is complimenting her poetry--and her. But as their relationship develops, Samira is forced to keep secrets that jeopardize her reputation, her relationships, and herself. In perceptive verse, Elhillo (Home Is Not a Country) navigates hard-hitting topics such as grooming, predation, and sex shaming. Samira's journey of self-discovery--and the external forces trying to dim her light--are sensitively and richly wrought, culminating in both a mesmerizing verse novel and a gripping exploration of the hyper-policing of Black girls' bodies and sexuality. Ages 12--up. Agent: Ammi-Joan Paquette, Erin Murphy Literary. (Feb.)
Horn Book Review
Sixteen-year-old Samira feels restricted by the watchful eyes of her tight-knit Sudanese American community, especially those of her protective mother. The community has labeled her a "bad girl" because of a false rumor that a boy started years ago. Now, while trying to sneak out to a party with friends, Samira is caught by her mom and grounded. Forbidden from leaving the house, she turns to an online poetry forum to stay connected. She begins chatting with an older poet, Horus, with whom she quickly finds herself falling in love. She begins to question him, though, when he pretends her poem is his. Through vivid free-verse poetry, text messages, and emails, Elhillo (Home Is Not a Country, rev. 7/21) creates a realistic picture of a teenage girl trying to push against unfair perceptions. She also highlights the fears of parents who are trying to raise children in a foreign country. In addition, the book offers a glimpse into the world of poetry and how young artists may be manipulated by older ones. Readers will appreciate the believable portrayal of a teen who is dealing with complex issues of family, friendship, and romantic love. Nicholl Denice MontgomeryMarch/April 2024 p.87 (c) Copyright The Horn Book, Inc., a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
Booklist Review
Samira is used to rumors. She's spent her life surrounded by them in her close-knit Sudanese community. There, reputation is everything, and Samira just wants to be a normal teenager. When Samira's mother gets a hold of an incriminating photo, Samira finds herself grounded for the summer, cut off from her friends and her summer plans. When Samira starts to post her poetry online, she meets a man whose insidious charm causes her to spiral down a path of deception and heartbreak. Elhillo's novel is written in a combination of poetry, texts, and internet exchanges, a form that changes as Samira herself evolves. The clever integration of the Persephone myth highlights the inherent danger of girls coming of age in a world where women are often still seen as commodities. Samira's journey throughout the novel is one of haunting self-discovery. The reader learns, along with Samira, that there is a necessity to community and family, even when those institutions themselves are flawed. In particular, we are able to see the viscerally honest rendering of the changing relationship between Samira and her mother. Elhillo has created more than a cautionary tale. Much like the tale of Persephone's abduction, she has crafted a story that contains misery, but, at its very core, harbors hope.
Kirkus Review
A teen poet in Washington, D.C., becomes entangled with an older man as she tries to break free from her mother's expectations. Sixteen-year-old Sudanese American Samira Abdullahi has long had a tarnished reputation within her ever watchful community. She continually challenges her strict mother's rules, yearning for the freedom to express herself: "i want the world, / all of it, & it is on the other side / of our front door, outside my mother's / house &, it seems, outside my mother's love." Samira's defiance leads to her being grounded for the summer, save for the poetry workshop her aunt already paid for. Bored, she connects with Horus on an online poetry forum; he initially appears kind and attentive, providing the affection she craves--but over time, his controlling tendencies surface, and Samira neglects her other relationships. Through the poetry workshop, however, Samira forms new connections, discovers her own identity as a poet, and finally sees Horus clearly. Elhillo masterfully portrays the universal theme of naïve first romance, including the potential for exploitation in moments of vulnerability, through the perspective of a girl who's grounded in the Sudanese diaspora. Notably, the intricate relationship between Samira and her mother is authentic, highlighting the complex connections between immigrant mothers and their daughters. The poems eloquently convey Samira's experiences, making the novel relatable to readers whether or not they've faced similar challenges. A stunning work that deeply explores poetry, the complexities of identity, and the longing for love. (Verse fiction. 13-18) Copyright (c) Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.
Excerpts
Excerpts
1 In the tale of Persephone which should be read as an argument between the mother and the lover-- the daughter is just meat. --Louise Glück, "Persephone the Wanderer" why did i do it? why did i lie? everyone wants me to blame religion, my mother, the country in flames behind us, but i was not an unhappy child. we danced and colored and folded little paper boats to float in the bathtub. we tried our best and locked the doors and installed sensors in the windows. if i am to blame, it is only because i was forever curious, forever climbing onto the sill to peer out the locked window at the lives continuing outside. i was not unhappy, only restless. only hungry to know what we were trying to keep out. it was i who opened the doors, the windows. it was i who let him into the house. BAD GIRL all the aunties in the neighborhood love to remember that i was a sweet kid laughing & dimpled & affectionate & these reveries always end with a sigh as they look at me now, sixteen & what they call, sorrowfully, boy crazy but ever since i was small i've wanted to be loved when it was the aunties i'd reach for to be embraced, to be kissed, it was fine but ever since i was small i would lock eyes with boys on passing buses, in passing cars & wonder if i could make them love me though all my life, mama has taken great care to make sure i never find out MY NAME it all started when a boy whose name i wish i did not remember he & his family long since returned to sudan told a lie that begat another that begat several more & in the eye of that storm hissed my name samira the littlest exaggeration, intended, i'm sure, to be harmless to get his friends to stop laughing at his inexperience his chest puffed out, an untruth forming between his teeth the insistence that he had, that he does. with who? they mocked. samira we liked each other, passed notes back & forth at sunday arabic school, glanced shyly over at each other at eid gatherings, our hands brushing once at an iftar buffet but nothing more. we barely spoke. never touched. but still samira & now he's long gone, years since the story took root & poisoned my name, so long ago that people barely remember the lie itself, the story, only the feeling they get when they look at me, the disgust, the reproach, embarrassment on behalf of my mother, & also something darker, something gleeful & carnivorous, sinking into my name, my reputation & drawing blood, teeth wet & red & shining samira Excerpted from Bright Red Fruit by Safia Elhillo All rights reserved by the original copyright owners. Excerpts are provided for display purposes only and may not be reproduced, reprinted or distributed without the written permission of the publisher.
