This Side of Home (Book Review)

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This Side of Home is the story of Maya Younger and her community. New shops have been opening up on their street and people that have been living in homes for years are suddenly having to move because of rising costs. While Nikki, Maya’s twin sister, embraces the new neighbors and cool shops, Maya isn’t so open to the changes. And with a new principal mouthing on and on about “diversity,” Maya’s having trouble understanding how to handle all the new things in her life. Including new love.

I want to begin my review by saying representation matters and talking about these tough issues matter, too. Being colorblind is not the solution to the problems we’re facing.

It felt amazing reading a story with a main character that I truly connected to. I’m so used to reading about characters who are different from me in appearance, outlook, and personality. This was certainly not one of those situations.

This Side of Home is one of the few books I’ve read where I’ve gotten an instant connection to the main character. It is also a story where I could understand every single character in what they stood for. I could relate them all to people in my own life, both past and present.

I laughed, I cried, I danced up and down with joy while my mom looked at me like I was crazy. This is a story that will give you all the feels. It’s a must read for everyone, especially girls like me who just want to be represented.

13 responses to “This Side of Home (Book Review)”

  1. […] raved about This Side of Home for well over three years now. I keep saying I’ll reread it but I need to get a copy of it to […]

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  2. […] you’ve been here for any time at all, you’ve probably heard me rave about This Side of Home. It’s the first book I remember reading and feeling an instant connection to the main […]

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  3. […] I had never related to novels the way I have with her novels until pretty recently. I talk about This Side of Home a lot and that’s for good […]

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  4. […] need to reread This Side of Home with how much I talk about it. I read this three or four summers ago but it still resonates with […]

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  5. 7 YA Books with Black Main Characters – The Paradigm Press Avatar

    […] you’ve checked out some of my reviews before, you already know how much I love This Side of Home. I’ve been talking about it ever since I read it two years […]

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  6. […] This Side of Home by Renee Watson is one of those books I read years ago, but still think about regularly. The story just resonates with me on so many levels. […]

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  7. […] Watson is another author that I absolutely love! I still think about This Side of Home pretty often. Her writing style is truly beautiful and her characters are so […]

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  8. […] this blog for a while, you already know how much I love to rave about Renee Watson’s This Side of Home. It’s been three years since I read it and I’m still give it a plug every chance I get. […]

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  9. […] you’ve been following my blog for a while, you already know how much I love This Side of Home. I’ve been talking about it ever since I read it two years ago. I recently picked up Piecing […]

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  10. […] library ventures. I’ve been wanting to read Piecing Me Together ever since I finished This Side of Home two summers […]

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  11. […] This Side of Home by Renee Watson […]

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  12. […] few months, I find myself bringing up This Side of Home by Renée Watson. I absolutely loved reading it last year and I continually think about it from […]

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  13. […] many levels. I think she was one of the first YA characters I read and I really felt connected to. This Side of Home is one of my favorite YAs, I think it warrants a […]

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