Reviews with content warning for Gun violence - The Making of Yolanda La Bruja

Timely and powerful, and overall a great debut. Occasionally the phrasing seemed a little rough and took me out of it, but the story itself is wonderful. The beliefs and practices observed by Yolanda and her family are treated with respect and reverence. The characters are well developed, their relationships ring true, and the setting comes alive.

Spoiler

I could have done without the inclusion of COVID towards the end - it didn't seem to really affect the plot line and felt like it had been added last minute. The discussion of white supremacy and school shootings is difficult and may hit too close to home for some readers, but it's important to address these issues, especially now, especially with a YA audience who are all too familiar with the threats.

Content Warnings

betweentheshelves's review against another edition

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emotional reflective tense slow-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

3.0

There is a lot that happens in this book, that's packed with a lot of relevant social topics that are worth exploring! At times, though, it felt like a little too much and that the story went on for a little longer than it needed to. I was also a bit thrown off by the incorporation of COVID at the end, and I do wish there would have been a little more warning about that becuase I still think it's too soon.

But I digress! The premise of this book is lovely, even if it wasn't quite as fantasy-esque as I expected. The topics are hard hitting, and it is overall well-written; a different editor might have taken out some of the more unncessary plotlines.

All in all, I really wanted to like this one more than I actually did. But this will definitely be an author to watch in the future!

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lettuce_read's review against another edition

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emotional

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes

4.0

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amobrien's review against another edition

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challenging emotional hopeful reflective sad tense 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? It's complicated

4.5

A difficult story told with a compelling, poetic voice. I loved how this story touched on spirituality as it discussed race, education, and justice. If you love Elizabeth Acevedo, I would highly recommend this book for you! Please check content warnings before reading.

Thank you Netgalley for providing a digital ARC.

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maudee's review against another edition

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emotional hopeful inspiring medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Loveable characters? Yes

4.25

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bookdragon217's review against another edition

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dark emotional funny hopeful informative inspiring reflective sad tense 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? It's complicated

4.75

"This is a place where an entire race has oppressed and sat above the rest. On this land, the blood-spills always bubble back up to the surface, and instead of cleaning it, the oppressors constantly cover it with cement."

The Making of Yolanda La Bruja by Lorraine Avila was my first read for Caribbean Heritage Month and it was pure perfection. The story focuses on Yolanda, a deaf Afro-Dominican teenager who is coming into her ancestral power while navigating her own anxieties about feeling that a new white student is a possible threat to her school community. She is wise beyond her years and has a heart for her Bronx community and high school made up of mostly Black and Brown students.

I loved Avila's deep exploration of themes of racism, gun violence, mental health, social and restorative justice, activism, spirituality, disability, feminism & misogyny, white supremacy and colorism and anti-blackness in the Caribbean. Her passion for youth shines through and is evident in the way she tells this story through the perspective of Bronx, NYC teenagers. It's authentic, heartfelt, gut wrenching and emotional. It really highlights how racist institutions fail BIPOC students, create anxieties and fears and silences victims. But Avila still finds ways to show teenage joy, laughter, discovering love, friendship and the ways communities of color pull together and heal.

Avila also does a great job of showing how Black women are not believed, especially if they don't conform to societal standards of behavior & spirituality. Avila celebrates Afro-Caribbean spirituality practices & gives validity to their power in helping communities in very real ways. This book would be a powerful tool in the hands of youth because of how it voices how gun violence in suburban schools has bled into the inner city. It's also a nice reminder of how much teachers care but are limited in what they can do for student safety. I'm left pondering how true social justice would look like if the affected communities were allowed to lead these movements, not the rich & politicians motivated by pandering.

Thanks to @levinequerido for the gifted copy. I highly recommend you go grab a copy.

Content Warnings

yadira315's review

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challenging emotional reflective

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

Thank you so much NetGalley and Levine Querido for providing me with this arc.

Wow! What an incredible book. I resonated so much with Yo and what she was going through. There were so many heavy issues of racism, gender, ableism and gun violence that were challenged and handled extremely well. The writer has these amazing prose throughout the book that beautifully capture the characters emotions and the depth of the situations they were out in. The diverse cast of characters in this book have dealt with so much trauma and this novel really hones down the message that our ancestors are here to guide us and they went through so much so that we can have a little bit more freedom to continue the fight. All the side characters also play such and important role and add so much to the story. I love that we got to see them hold each other accountable for their flaws and are there to support each other through each of their own personal journeys. This book has such amazing representation across the Black diaspora.

I will definitely be reading Lorraine other works!

Content warning: Racism, classism, gun violence, mental health

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