“Waiting on Wednesday” is a weekly meme hosted by Jill at Breaking The Spine!
This week I’m waiting on…
Title Lies We Tell Ourselves
Author Robin Talley
Pages 304 Pages
Genre Young Adult, Historical Fiction, Romance, LGBTQ
Publisher Harlequin Teen
To Be Published September 30th, 2014
Find It On Goodreads
In 1959 Virginia, the lives of two girls on opposite sides of the battle for civil rights will be changed forever.
Sarah Dunbar is one of the first black students to attend the previously all – white Jefferson High School. An honors student at her old school, she is put into remedial classes, spit on and tormented daily.
Linda Hairston is the daughter of one of the town’s most vocal opponents of school integration. She has been taught all her life that the races should be kept separate but equal.
Forced to work together on a school project, Sarah and Linda must confront harsh truths about race, power and how they really feel about one another.
Boldly realistic and emotionally compelling, Lies We Tell Ourselves is a brave and stunning novel about finding truth amid the lies, and finding your voice even when others are determined to silence it.
It wasn’t long ago that I learned of this novel, but from the instant I first read the synopsis, I knew it was one book I had to make time to read in 2014. The civil rights movement and the process of integration has always been of great interest to me, and the fact that this is also an LGBTQ story makes it all the more fascinating. Admittedly, my experience with LGBTQ novels is limited, but this is something I’ve been working to correct. While steps have been taken in recent years to diversify the young adult genre, with novels like Bill Konigsberg’s Openly Straight, David Levithan’s Two Boys Kissing, Caela Carter’s My Best Friend, Maybe, and A.S. King’s Ask The Passengers, there will always be a great need for stories that feature characters from a diverse selection of racial, social, economic, and sexual backgrounds. Everyone deserves to have their story told. Thankfully, Robin Talley’s debut promises to do just that.
13 Responses
Great choice; I’m excited for this one as well. It has such a unique concept that isn’t in most books, so I’m intrigued.
Krystianna @ Downright Dystopian recently posted…Waiting on Armada!
YES. This one sounds so so good! I love the diversity aspect to this one, too. I’m excited for you to read and review it! Happy reading, Jen!
Yes! Want! It sounds so good and unique.
Nobody@The Story Goes… recently posted…Waiting On Wednesday #21 -The Sorcerer Heir
I posted about this a while ago on my WOW – it sounds so good! I The concept sounds really great and for some reason I really like the cover, even though I usually don’t like covers with photographs of people on them. 🙂
Milka recently posted…Waiting on Wednesday (#11)
I haven’t heard of this book before, but now I definitely want to read it! Sounds like a very good novel.
Anne @ booksbakingandblogging recently posted…100 Happy Days – Week 7
I have not seen this before, but it sounds fabulous! Thank you for introducing me. I will definitely give this one a try.
Stephanie recently posted…Waiting and Wishing
I picked this one during LGBT April, definitely sounds like one EVERYONE should read, it has that feel. I’m hoping MiraInk are publishing it in the UK so I read it early, because ugh September. 🙁 Okay, it’s not long, but still.
Kirsty-Marie recently posted…Waiting on Wednesday (#51)
I’m really excited for this one, too. I was lucky enough to pick it up at BEA and I’m really excited for it. I also haven’t read many LGBTQ books but want to correct that.
Quinn @ Quinn’s Book Nook recently posted…Audio Review: Landline by Rainbow Rowell
Wow…this book sounds fascinating. My father was heavily involved in the civil rights movement so it’s always been something I’ve heard so much about. I will definitely be picking up a copy of this novel when it comes out this fall…thank you so much for sharing!
Sarah recently posted…Waiting on…Red Queen by Victoria Aveyard
This sounds really intense. Just like the times it is set in. Definitely a book for me. Thanks for sharing. Here is my Waiting on
Wednesday
I had got this at Book Con. I can’t wait to start it. Especially since this is the 50th anniversary of the Civil Rights Act. It just feels appropriate. Great pick!
Our WoW!
Nikki @ Lazy Book Lovers recently posted…Book Review: Virgin by Radhika Sanghani (@radhikasanghani)
This is the first I am hearing of this one. It sounds great and I love the cover! Recent LGBTQ books are among some of my favorites-Ask the Passengers, Winger, Aristotle and Dante. I am really interesting in this being a historical LGBTQ story. Thank you so much for sharing! ~Megan
http://wp.me/pzUn5-23N
Megan@YA? Why Not? recently posted…Waiting on Wednesday 7/1/14
Haven’t heard of this one before. It doesn’t sound like my kind of read but it sounds very inspirational.
My WoW
Fiza @ I’ll Read Till I Drop recently posted…~Book Beginnings & THE FRIDAY 56 #10: Mary Hades by Sarah Dalton