I can’t start this review off without highlighting how STUNNING this book cover! I think this has to be my most favourite book cover ever – Nala and Tye are so gorgeous!

Nala Robertson wants to fall in love this Summer and she wants it with activist, Tye Brown. The two have many differences, forcing Nala’s insecurities to shine through and become a girl she doesn’t even recognise. She lies her way in to Tye’s heart, worried that he won’t like her for her fun, meat-loving, plastic bottle water drinking self. However, we all know that once one lie has been told, more seem to follow and it becomes exceptionally hard to escape them.

I really loved the character of Nala – she is a young and beautiful, plus-sized black girl, trying to find her way through life and love. She makes lists for just about anything and everything, and doesn’t shy away from vulnerabilities. Whilst everybody else is out trying to save and conquer the world, Nala is out looking to have more lenient Summer filled with fun, love and family. I especially loved her because she was openly struggling with the changes going on throughout her life and that is something I have always struggled with myself. Plus, haven’t we all spoken a few white lies to impress someone?

Although Nala’s story focuses highly on finding love with her handsome and perfect, Tye Brown – the true message that Renee portrays, is self-love. Nala put everybody else before herself, tried to be someone she wasn’t and it concluded in her not knowing who she was or who she wanted to become. Love IS a revolution and once you realise that for yourself, you will start to love yourself and learn ways to love others the same way, at the same time, without losing a part of you along the way.

I also need to give a shout-out to the other additional elements featuring in this story; family and friendship. There was some extremely rocky moments between Nala and some of her family members, however there was also some really beautiful moments – Renee representing true family/friend dynamics perfectly, but all in all, they could conquer everything and anything put in front of them.

Firstly, lets talk about the cover of this book because I am obsessed with how pretty it is!!

I adored 'Love Is A Revolution' and read it completely in one sitting because I just could not put it down. This book follows Nala, who is trying to find herself and work out who she is whilst also falling in love with Tye.

I loved Nala as a main character. I loved how every few chapters we would get a list that she had written, for example a list of what she wanted to do that summer etc. I loved watching Nala grow and develop throughout the book and seeing her become more confident and able to find herself with the help of her family and friends. Nala's character development is one of my favourite things about this book as she was such a well written character and I loved how she was a flawed person who eventually came to realise that her actions had consequences and that she didn't have to lie about who she is in order to be liked by other people. I also loved how body positive this book was.

Nala's and Tye's relationship was so cute and I loved all the cute little moments between them. But my favourite relationships in this book were the relationships between Nala and her family. I loved how Nala's family played such a big part in this book and I loved reading all the scenes where the family were altogether or the scenes with Nala and her grandmother. I also loved the growing friendship between Nala and JT that developed in the second half of the book and how he was always there for her and helped her to overcome any of the issues she had.

Basically, I loved 'Love Is A Revolution'. It was a lot of fun and I definitely recommend you should read it.

Thank you to Bloomsbury Publishing for providing me with an advanced copy of this book via Netgalley in exchange for an honest review.

A massive thank you to Bloomsbury and Netgalley for this review copy!

This book teaches you about body positivity. It teaches you how to love yourself in the face of hard times. It is full of hope and happiness.

The main character, Nala is a typical teenager. I found her extremely relatable. She makes mistakes, like anyone would, and we get to see her grow and learn from those mistakes.

The writing was fast-paced, and well written. It really made you think, and I feel like we need more books like this.

4.5 stars!

Love is a Revolution is a powerful book about finding yourself in the height of your teenage years. It's about love and family and everything that comes with the pressure of growing up and figuring out who you are.

It's summer and Nala Robertson wants to make sure she makes the most of it before her senior year begins. When Nala reluctantly joins her cousin for her birthday celebration/talent show, she ends up meeting Tye Brown and sparks fly instantly. In order to impress Tye, Nala tells a few lies about certain about herself in hope they will have a lot of stuff in common. Quickly, Nala realises that it is unfeasible to pretend someone she's not and that what she really needs is self love and self confidence. I don't think there are enough words I can out down to describe the incredible journey this book takes you on. It's not about a teenage girl who moulds herself to find love or fit into society, it's about a teenage girl who is trying to find her place in the world and takes action to become the person she wants to be.

Love is a Revolution is an amazing story with well crafted characters and a remarkable growth arc. Nala is written exactly as a real teenager would be. She's not perfect, she's only human, and she makes mistakes as such. Plus all the other characters in this are very self aware and working towards a better future - not only for them but also for the our planet.

There's so much to be learned from this book and from Nala's growth story. Renee Watson has a remarkable writing style and creates hard hitting, real, raw stories that are also full of happiness and hope.

Nala is a Jamaican-American plus size girl and there's never a point in the book where this becomes the sole plot line, or where this makes her life more difficult in any way. This is an incredible joyous book with great representation and I feel there is definitely a need for more of these.

Overall, an incredibly fast paced story with very important discussions about what it means to love and believe in yourself.

This book is published today - Happy Pub Day. It's an easy to read YA Romance, with some nice messages that covers the pressure of being different and the feeling of being less.

The content of this YA fiction novel covers body positivity and self-love, family feuds, teenage relationships, social change and much more in a really digestible manner.

The body positivity in this book is fantastic, and just what is needed in YA fiction to help people recognise from early on that there isn't just one type of person <em>"People always think the only thing big girls cry about is their weight. I'm perfectly fine with my body."</em> I wish that there was a character with Nala's self-love and affirmation when I was a teenager <em>"I don't mind you telling me I'm beautiful. Just tell me because you see it, not because you think I don't know."</em> as I think it can do a lot to see that girls are allowed to recognise their beauty, embrace it and be proud of it (which is something we aren't taught to do).

The character development for Nala is a major part of this book and her redemption arc is enormous. In all honesty, I found Nala's lying and the girl-on-girl hate really frustrating for a lot of this book, but it didn't make it less enjoyable. If anything it was more representative of the teenage experience (particularly mine, unfortunately), so I could relate a lot more to why the girls in this story were so desperate to one-up each other. It is frustrating as this could have been that novel that teaches girls to push each other up, not tear each other down. Nala does a complete turn around from the person she starts the book as "No one expects that. But you've got to decide who you'll become after this", becoming a much more likeable character that you're actually rooting for at the end, which is really nice.

I would still recommend this book, as as a teenager I needed to hear that I didn't need to pretend to be someone else, I should love myself and others and help all the girls around me up with me, instead of competing.

I requested this ARC primarily because I wanted to see if it would be a good choice for the students at the school where I work (and because I've hear amazing things about Renée Watson). And I really think this is almost the perfect summer read for a younger YA audience!

This is a very easy read (I read all 300 pages in a day) and it combats some really important topics with a good overall message. I really enjoyed the writing style and the food descriptions were to die for - I was mentally noting down all the new cuisines and dishes I need to try. The book also has a mixed media vibe with lists and song lyrics that helped keep me engaged in the story.

I adored how subjects like body positivity and activism were woven into the story, but I do wish that the main character had a more positive outlook on the activism side of things as it would've made the message even more impactful.

I also wish that more was done with Nala's mother's storyline - I was rooting for her to get a redemption arc of some sort but was left unsatisfied.

The one big negative I had with this book is the amount of girl hate there was within it and this wasn't really addressed which disappoints me because it was the perfect opportunity to teach girls about loving each other and boosting each other.

Overall, I did enjoy this book and think it would be an amazing summer-y read for a hot day!

This sounded like something that I would enjoy, but I think it was probably pitched slightly younger than I was expecting. I also didn't enjoy the insta love aspect or the fact that she gave Tye an instant pass for the crusading kind of behaviour she dragged her cousin and her cousins friends for.

While there were some important ideas expressed I never quite fell in love with the characters. I did also worry about the messaging for some of this.

Thanks to netgalley and the publisher for a copy of the book in exchange for an honest review.

A cute YA novel, about a young girl who tries to find love but discovers she doesn’t know who she is. I found it really easy to read and flew through it. Lots of drama and excitement although plot-wise there’s not a lot of twists. I really enjoyed getting to know the characters and in particular Imani, Nala’s cousin, as she seemed quite passive aggressive until she discusses her side of things and my view of her changed quite a lot

Overall I enjoyed this book, and I definitely think it’s a great YA read.

This is such a good book. I love a flawed main character who through find love with a boy finds out how to love all the parts of herself that she needs too..
it’s a fast read and a fun one

Wow. I absolutely adored this book. It was moving, honest and inspirational.

This book follows Nala, a young black woman living in New York with her family. At the beginning, Nala come across as quite childish, she wants to spend her summer binging Netflix and isn’t involved in any projects like her cousin and friend. Then she meets Tye and lies about herself in order to be someone Tye would fall in love with.

The story unfolds and Tye finds out about Nala’s lies, her relationship with her cousin is rocky and Nala loses sight of who she is and wants to be. Towards the end Nala learns to love herself and the lists become more positive and centred around her, rather than other people and she wants to get involved in something. Her chats with TJ were heart-warming and I liked her grandmothers no nonsense attitude.

All in all this book was a nice easy read about female empowerment told in a YA perspective. The characters were likeable and relatable and discussed some important topics like staying true to yourself.

This book was very quick and easy to read but I couldn’t really figure out the point of it. There wasn’t a lot of plot (although there were plot points that were alluded to that I would have liked to have seen explored more) and I found it difficult to side with any of the characters involved in the main conflict.

On the one side we have people judging our main character for not being involved enough in various forms of activism. On the other side we have our main character who basically just spends the whole book lying to everyone for no real reason. Neither of these viewpoints gave me anything to root for. Not a book for me unfortunately.

This book is completely different to what I thought and hoped it would be. From the cover, I thought the story would be of a plus size Black girl loving herself. Although I liked the body positivity in the book I couldn’t enjoy the main story revolving around Nala who is lying to impress her boyfriend only leading to toxic relationship. Also, I Stan for good female relationships but there was just too much girl hate which wasn’t even explained properly. I would have loved to see more friendship or sisterly bondings with Sadie, Nala and Imani. Although I get it it’s the teenage story and perhaps many could even relate but unfortunately this book just wasn’t for me. However, it’s a short quick read and can be finished in one reading; it goes on with a good start but I didn’t enjoy much of the story and I just wanted to get it done.

Thankyou Netgalley and Bloomsbury for the e-arc.

This is such a good book. It has great fat representation. Plus an excellent flawed main character who through find love with a boy finds out how to love all the parts of herself that she needs too.

*Disclaimer: I received this book for free from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

This was one of my most anticipated releases of 2021 and I’m sad to say that this is one of the most disappointing books I’ve ever read.

I read Watch Us Rise last year which Renee Watson co-authored with Ellen Hagan and it was amazing so I was excited to see a solo project that also had themes of social activism in a YA contemporary. However, the execution was awful.

The story itself feels like younger YA to me which would have been fine were it not for the terrible messaging throughout the novel. I felt that there was an uncomfortable level of girl-hate in this; this is one of my biggest pet peeves and it seemed that every female character in the book was in fierce competition with each other. There were some well-built characters, Tye particularly, but overall they seemed a bit flat.

My main issue with this book is the pacing. 75% of the book involves Nala trying to fit in with the people around her, lying to everyone in the process. The last 50 pages or so saw her being caught out in quite a horrible way that seemed out of character for those involved and yet by the end of the book she has been forgiven for everything and in a similar place to where she started. Don’t get me wrong, Nala did learn more about who she is but most of that came so late in the book that the pacing just felt off to me.

Overall I was really disappointed in this novel and unfortunately I wouldn’t recommend it. The pacing of the book almost changed the meaning because Nala didn’t have to work very hard to apologise or to find herself which seems like a strange message to send. I’ll read more from Renee Watson but for a 2021 release, this felt outdated in some of its tropes.

1 out of 5 stars!

*I was given an arc of Love is a Revolution in exchange for an honest review. Thank you to Bloomsbury publishing and Renée Watson*

This review was posted on Young Creative Press if you like this review check out my others at youngcreativepress.com

Love Is A Revolution is a book about every form of love from friends, family, partners and most importantly yourself.

Synopsis:
Following Nala who after attending an open mic put on by activist teens in her area, finds herself falling for Tye Brown. Tye is a member of the activist group; Inspire Harlem. In order to impress Tye, Nala changes parts of herself to fit what she thinks is Tye’s ideal girl. Being vegetarian and participating in frequent charity work. As the pair grow closer over time it becomes more and more difficult for Nala to keep up the lies.

Although this book does focus quite heavily on the romance side of love it also focuses on family. Nala’s cousin Imani is also in Inspire Harlem and is a huge activist. She often tries to push her eco-friendly agenda onto Nala and has more than once tried to get her to join Inspire Harlem. This is an important relationship that is explored throughout the book as since they were 13, Nala and Imani have been living together so they are more like sisters.

Not just focusing on romantic love, Love Is A Revolution is a book about familial love and self-growth.

Review:
This was a very quick read for me, and I finished the entire book in just two sittings. The writing style was nice and simple and I would definitely say that this is more of a teen read. It does have important lessons that everyone can learn something from, however, most of the issues are very much teen related.

As someone who is not too far out of their teens, I really enjoyed this. However, I would say that an older reader may not be as interested.

There is an insta-love aspect to this which I’m not sure a lot of people will enjoy. But it is YA so I didn’t mind it too much. One part I didn’t like was the fact that there was also a part where Tye and Nala got into a tiny fight (over a water bottle believe it or not) and they were instantly like ‘I’m not talking to you until you apologise’. I know they are quite young characters but this felt very juvenile for me. Especially when they were hardly dating.

At times I found Nala’s views to be a little ridiculous i.e the water bottle fight. That whole scene came across as very bratty on Nala’s part. Obviously, I understand why she acted how she did, but it was a bit too much considering they were in public and it was honestly a really thoughtful gift.

With that being said I enjoyed the development arc that Nala went through and it did make me like her character a lot more. However, she was the only character with any type of development. There was definitely an issue with an overriding plot and the majority of this book felt like several subplots joined together.

I will say that this was something that made it a very easy story to read. There was still tonnes of drama and enough interesting characters that I flew through the book. I’d more than recommend Love Is A Revolution to anyone who is looking for a book similar to To All The Boys I Loved Before.

Renee Watson's new novel 'Love is a Revolution' is about love in all forms: love in a family, love towards a partner and, above all else, love for yourself. Nala is a flawed, yet real, protagonist and grows across the novel, the story delivering the message of love and acceptance to all readers. It is an uplifting read which I certainly enjoyed.

Nala attends an Inspire Harlem open mic night, run by the young activists in her neighbourhood, and immediately falls for the MC, Tye Brown. In order to impress such an accomplished person, she may exaggerate a few things... such as her vegetarianism and frequent charity work. As the pair grow closer, it becomes more difficult for Nala to reconcile her true self with the lies she has told. This all takes place alongside exploration of Nala's family, particularly her relationship with her cousin Imani, aunt and her mother. As we follow Nala's journey, we wonder if she will ever be comfortable embracing who she truly is rather than living up to the imposed standards of others.

Despite Nala's decisions initially being questionable, coming from a place of insecurity about her 'wokeness' around a group of teenage activists, the realisations about her self and place in the world will make this a perfect read for young adult audiences. Also, Nala may be unsure about her future and who she is but she is never unhappy in her own skin - the body positivity is uplifting throughout. My main reason for docking a star is Tye - I just did not see the chemistry between him and Nala and found him both dull and patronising at points. I was glad Nala was able to grow herself and refuse to rely on Tye to 'teach' her about the world and activism.

An overall uplifting and enjoyable read. 4 stars.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher who provided an ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review.

I really loved this story - full of friendship, self-love, activism and family.

I liked the different media within the book - the lists and the song lyrics - as they gave a deeper insight into the mind of Nala, the main character. She used these to express herself or her frustrations over certain things.

A lovely YA book that has some good representation, the only thing that was missing was any LGBTQ rep - there were lots of characters and none of them were mentioned as being LGBT.

Would definitely recommend!

Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for this ARC.

I think any teenage girl would love and identify with this book. Watson has written a great coming-of-age story for Gen Z, discussing issues of body image, finding your place in the world and the fact that the most important person you can love is you. The diversity of the characters is welcome and the story engages strongly with current issues around community activism, race and giving back in a way that is never preachy. A great new addition to the contemporary YA canon.

This wasn't my favourite, there were aspects I really loved and aspects I just couldn't get behind.

So, what did I enjoy?
I liked the scenes where Nala is hanging out with the old people that live with her Grandma, these were really, really cute. I also loved that Nala had a good relationship with her extended family even though her relationship with her Mom is complicated. I also loved all of the culture references from food to hair, these details were perfect.

What wasn't so good?
I really wasn't a fan of the teenage drama. Nala lies to her friends and new boyfriend, which I really don't like as a plot device in general. I also didn't really like how the Inspire Harlem kids were so judgemental, that's not how to get more people into activism and to help them understand social issues. The romance between Nala and Tye is also insta-love and built on Nala's lies, so I wasn't happy with how it worked out.

Overall, a good book but there was a little too much teenage drama for my taste. Some really good family dynamics though.

"Love Is a Revolution" is a contemporary, young adult novel following Nala, a 17 year old girl on summer break exploring relationships, self-love and family. There is a broad cast of characters, many of whom stand out, you're sure to find someone you can relate to. The entirety of this novel revolves around Nala's relationships and dynamics with her family and friends, however some of these dynamics are definitely more thoroughly developed than others.

The relationship between Nala and Tye had a fair amount of insta-love, however that is fair game in a YA contemporary, but more than that there was the quick changes in judgement and attitude between them, leading to not only insta-love but also insta-im-not-talking-to-you-until-you-apologise. They aren't my favourite couple, but there is something human about the way they interact with eachother.

My overall issue with this book is the lack of overriding plot; it feels much more like a bunch of sub-plots taking turns to be in the spotlight. I would have loved for one of these sub-plots to take the lead and offer an opportunity for some real character and relationship development however that didn't happen.

Overall, I would recommend this book if you're looking for a super easy read, reminiscent of <i>To All The Boys I've Loved Before</i>.