When You Were Everything

When You Were Everything by Ashley Woodfolk
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

My friend Anna said I should read this, so I read it. Halfway through, I texted my three high school librarian friends and said it was a must for their libraries. All the way through, and I wish I was still teaching so I could recommend it to students. It's a book that features kids of colors as the protagonists. It covers friendship, divorce, disability, expectations, and so much more without being an issues book. Those topics are just woven in through the story. It also features a lot of fun Shakespeare references and a quality dating relationship that doesn't just build to sex. I like that Woodfolk validated the struggles so many teens deal with without oversimplifying or overdramatizing them. The overall book reads like a less lyrical Elizabeth Acevedo, who you know I love. Really well done-

One other thing to note is so few books discuss when friendships end - it's actually a common experience that we outgrow or end up parting ways, but it's rarely acknowledged in fiction. I appreciated that since so many teens (not to mention adults) go through it.

Happy reading--

ps. 4.5 stars