kiomarys2000's review against another edition
emotional
funny
hopeful
informative
inspiring
lighthearted
reflective
relaxing
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.0
foxreadsbooks's review against another edition
4.0
Cute with a touch of magic. Audiobook was a great listen.
fox_reads_books's review against another edition
4.0
Cute with a touch of magic. Audiobook was a great listen.
jt_taransky's review against another edition
hopeful
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.5
lavendermarch's review against another edition
5.0
This was an amazing, incredibly well written book. Emoni had one of the most distinct character voices that I've seen in a long time. She, and everyone else in the story, felt so very real, and that was beautiful and made the story so much better. I loved watching her journey from the start of teh story, at the beginning of her senior year of high school, to the end, at graduation. This book had really good character development across the board. Emoni was so full of identity - her home, her family, her culture, her roots, her love of cooking, her insecurities, her joys, all of it was so wonderful to read about. I loved learning about her, and watching her go through her coming of age journey. I feel really proud of her, which is a bit silly, but she's such a strong person, and I wish she were real. I'd love to eat her cooking, haha! I read this in one sitting, and its short chapters were nice, as well as the gorgeous cover art! 4.5 stars. I bought With the Fire on High because it's been on my want-to-read list for a while, and the bookstore sent an email to support black authors (and locally owned businesses), so it was three for one, so to speak, in terms of what I got out of it. I'd definitely recommend this!
bookswithbrittanica's review against another edition
4.0
This novel follows a young, teenage mother named Emoni and her challenges in raising her daughter, going to school, working to help support them, and her trying to figure out her future.
Emoni is a headstrong, confident, determined mother who works her ass off to take care of her daughter with the help her her grandmother, 'Buela. While juggling her schedule, she decides to enroll in a Culinary Arts class as an elective at school. This class involves going to Spain for a week during Spring Break, so a lot of the novel follows Emoni helping to raise money for this trip through her culinary endeavors.
My general issue was with some of the plot points that didn't really serve a purpose, like the petty drama with Pretty Leslie, drawn out conversations that didn't feel relevant, Malachi (she already had enough going on in general- a romance would have been a good plot point for a sequel, but felt superfluous and they should have just been friends), and the fact that we barely met the baby daddy but twice in this novel, and their family drama was waaaaay more interesting than anything else to me.
What would have been satisfying is Emoni punching her ex's mom in the face for how she spoke to her when she accused her of neglecting her child. Damn, that would have been good!
I would have really enjoyed the family dynamic explored a little more. The tension between her and her baby daddy and his family was so enjoyable and relatable, especially how mothers are held to such a different standard than fathers. I wanted more of that and less of the romance subplot which didn't really do anything for me. Malachi is a cool dude, but I'm not sure their romance really did anything for the general plot of the novel and anyone's character arcs. Idk, it wasn't satisfying.
The best parts are the themes on motherhood and the theme of food evoking emotions and memories, and reminded me a bit of Like Water for Chocolate.
Emoni is a headstrong, confident, determined mother who works her ass off to take care of her daughter with the help her her grandmother, 'Buela. While juggling her schedule, she decides to enroll in a Culinary Arts class as an elective at school. This class involves going to Spain for a week during Spring Break, so a lot of the novel follows Emoni helping to raise money for this trip through her culinary endeavors.
My general issue was with some of the plot points that didn't really serve a purpose, like the petty drama with Pretty Leslie, drawn out conversations that didn't feel relevant, Malachi (she already had enough going on in general- a romance would have been a good plot point for a sequel, but felt superfluous and they should have just been friends), and the fact that we barely met the baby daddy but twice in this novel, and their family drama was waaaaay more interesting than anything else to me.
What would have been satisfying is Emoni punching her ex's mom in the face for how she spoke to her when she accused her of neglecting her child. Damn, that would have been good!
I would have really enjoyed the family dynamic explored a little more. The tension between her and her baby daddy and his family was so enjoyable and relatable, especially how mothers are held to such a different standard than fathers. I wanted more of that and less of the romance subplot which didn't really do anything for me. Malachi is a cool dude, but I'm not sure their romance really did anything for the general plot of the novel and anyone's character arcs. Idk, it wasn't satisfying.
The best parts are the themes on motherhood and the theme of food evoking emotions and memories, and reminded me a bit of Like Water for Chocolate.
bekah445's review against another edition
relaxing
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.25
jlhensley's review against another edition
emotional
hopeful
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
5.0
seul_veritable_amour's review against another edition
5.0
Highly Recommended
This was such a great read. The story was gripping and heart-melting. The plot was character-driven. I really enjoyed going on Emoni's journey to see her grow and to go through the struggles at being a teen mom during senior year. As the main character, Emoni is instantly compelling: she is strong and brave, and yet at times vulnerable. Part of the arc of the story is her learning how to conquer her vulnerabilities and to take risks in life. I was invested in all the side characters as well. I wanted to know where each of them will end up and how will they change during the course of the story. They felt like fully-realized characters.
Also the book has so many great quotes that I love. For example,
"Taking risks and making choices in spite of fear - it's what makes our life story compelling."
"I've had a lot of things to feel ashamed about and I've learned most of them are other people's problems, not mine."
“...you can't control how people look at you, but you can control how far back you pull your shoulders and how high you lift your chin”
The book explores so many different themes that are relatable to many like social alienation of teen parenthood, cultural identity, responsibility, motherhood, LGBTQ+, racism, etc.
Overall, this is a beautiful book that I'd recommend for everyone to read it.
Side note: The audiobook is great! It was narrated by Elizabeth Acevedo herself and was amazing!
This was such a great read. The story was gripping and heart-melting. The plot was character-driven. I really enjoyed going on Emoni's journey to see her grow and to go through the struggles at being a teen mom during senior year. As the main character, Emoni is instantly compelling: she is strong and brave, and yet at times vulnerable. Part of the arc of the story is her learning how to conquer her vulnerabilities and to take risks in life. I was invested in all the side characters as well. I wanted to know where each of them will end up and how will they change during the course of the story. They felt like fully-realized characters.
Also the book has so many great quotes that I love. For example,
"Taking risks and making choices in spite of fear - it's what makes our life story compelling."
"I've had a lot of things to feel ashamed about and I've learned most of them are other people's problems, not mine."
“...you can't control how people look at you, but you can control how far back you pull your shoulders and how high you lift your chin”
The book explores so many different themes that are relatable to many like social alienation of teen parenthood, cultural identity, responsibility, motherhood, LGBTQ+, racism, etc.
Overall, this is a beautiful book that I'd recommend for everyone to read it.
Side note: The audiobook is great! It was narrated by Elizabeth Acevedo herself and was amazing!
greenlivingaudioworm's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
emotional
hopeful
inspiring
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Content Warnings
Moderate: Death of parent, Pregnancy, Abandonment, Alcohol, and Grief