I read With The Fire On High by Elizabeth Acevedo a little while ago but the review kept getting pushed back! I am so excited to write about it and share my thoughts with you all!
Elizabeth Acevedo has become a favourite author of mine since I read Clap When You Land in June and The Poet X in November. Clap When You Land was my first YA Book Of The Month and I was very excited to read another one of her books, especially since this one isn't written in verse and the others are.
I found this review very hard to write, mainly because all the adjectives in my brain seemed to have been reduced to 'relatable' and 'realistic'. I loved this book so I hope I did it justice.
Official Synopsis:
With her daughter to care for and her abuela to help support, high school senior Emoni Santiago has to make the tough decisions, and do what must be done. The one place she can let her responsibilities go is in the kitchen, where she adds a little something magical to everything she cooks, turning her food into straight-up goodness.Still, she knows she doesn’t have enough time for her school’s new culinary arts class, doesn’t have the money for the class’s trip to Spain—and shouldn’t still be dreaming of someday working in a real kitchen. But even with all the rules she has for her life—and all the rules everyone expects her to play by—once Emoni starts cooking, her only real choice is to let her talent break free.
This is such a joyous yet realistic read that approaches so much and makes you want to cook! The relationships between the characters were beautifully done and so relatable. Emoni doesn't always make the right choices but she is such a lovable character!
This has a great romance too, and I have this beautiful vision of Emoni and her love interest roaming the streets of a particular place together. They are so sweet! This book's setting was also very insightful and transported me to Emoni's world, one so different from my own.
Her relationship with her grandmother was SO heartwarming and the way that her grandmother cares for her daughter was equally so. I loved the way the book also covered their disagreements and secrets and didn't try to idealise what their relationship would be like.
Totally on trend for Elizabeth Acevedo, we also had representation of a girl-girl relationship, with Emoni's best friend having a girlfriend. This reminded me a lot of Yahaira in Clap When You Land, who also has a girlfriend, Dre. I didn't think this book would have this kind of representation but I shouldn't have doubted - Elizabeth Acedevo is so skilled at slipping in diversity and yet none of it feels forced.
Read this if:
- You want a book full of cooking joy
- You want a book with an honest grandmother - granddaughter relationship
- You want an effortlessly diverse book
- You want something that has a romance that is not the focus of the plot, but still has an active part
Rating:
This definitely cemented my love for Elizabeth Acevedo and her books, she's one hundred percent one of my favourite YA authors!
Thank you so much for being here!
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Have you read this? What did you think? What have you been reading recently? Do you have any recommendations for me?
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