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A review by melaniereadsbooks
Yesterday Is History by Kosoko Jackson
adventurous
hopeful
reflective
medium-paced
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.25
Thank you to Sourcebooks Fire and Netgalley for the e-arc of this book!
Yesterday is History follows Andre as he deals with the aftermath or not only surviving cancer and a liver transplant, but also developing the ability to travel in time and a connection to two different boys--one in the past, and one in the present.
There is a lot to love about this book, and I think that the good elements make up for the somewhat clunky writing. I don't typically like love triangles unless they end in polyamory, but the queer take on this time-traveling love triangle didn't bother me like they usually do. Instead, it gave a queer boy the ability to have what thousands of straight protagonists have had over the years of fiction--two boys he has to choose between.
The time-traveling element itself was definitely not hard science and you have to really roll with the punches on this one, but I found that it was quite the entertaining premise for a book that was really more contemporary than scifi. It would have been nice if the time Andre spent in the past affected him in other ways than just his love interests; as it stands, it feels like Michael could have been in the present day and still had the exact same effects on Andre.
I thought some of the characters needed to be fleshed out a little better, but Andre himself was a great protagonist to cheer for and follow throughout the novel. All in all, I would definitely recommend picking this book up when it releases!
Yesterday is History follows Andre as he deals with the aftermath or not only surviving cancer and a liver transplant, but also developing the ability to travel in time and a connection to two different boys--one in the past, and one in the present.
There is a lot to love about this book, and I think that the good elements make up for the somewhat clunky writing. I don't typically like love triangles unless they end in polyamory, but the queer take on this time-traveling love triangle didn't bother me like they usually do. Instead, it gave a queer boy the ability to have what thousands of straight protagonists have had over the years of fiction--two boys he has to choose between.
The time-traveling element itself was definitely not hard science and you have to really roll with the punches on this one, but I found that it was quite the entertaining premise for a book that was really more contemporary than scifi. It would have been nice if the time Andre spent in the past affected him in other ways than just his love interests; as it stands, it feels like Michael could have been in the present day and still had the exact same effects on Andre.
I thought some of the characters needed to be fleshed out a little better, but Andre himself was a great protagonist to cheer for and follow throughout the novel. All in all, I would definitely recommend picking this book up when it releases!
Content Warnings
Graphic: Alcoholism
Moderate: Cancer, Death, Homophobia, Racism, and Medical content
parents disowning queer child