The Black Kids by Christina Hammonds Reed {Blog Tour}

I want to thank Simon Schuster for having me on this tour! This book was absolutely amazing! Keep reading for my thoughts...

“Infused with honesty, heart, and humor, The Black Kids is a true love letter to Los Angeles, highlighting the beauty and flaws of the city, and the people who call it home.” —Brandy Colbert, award-winning author of Little & Lion

Perfect for fans of The Hate U Give, this unforgettable coming-of-age debut novel explores issues of race, class, and violence through the eyes of a wealthy black teenager whose family gets caught in the vortex of the 1992 Rodney King Riots.

Los Angeles, 1992

Ashley Bennett and her friends are living the charmed life. It’s the end of senior year and they’re spending more time at the beach than in the classroom. They can already feel the sunny days and endless possibilities of summer.

Everything changes one afternoon in April, when four LAPD officers are acquitted after beating a black man named Rodney King half to death. Suddenly, Ashley’s not just one of the girls. She’s one of the black kids.

As violent protests engulf LA and the city burns, Ashley tries to continue on as if life were normal. Even as her self-destructive sister gets dangerously involved in the riots. Even as the model black family façade her wealthy and prominent parents have built starts to crumble. Even as her best friends help spread a rumor that could completely derail the future of her classmate and fellow black kid, LaShawn Johnson.

With her world splintering around her, Ashley, along with the rest of LA, is left to question who is the us? And who is the them?

My Rating:

My Thoughts:
This was a beautifully crafted story from beginning to end. I thoroughly enjoyed the writing of this and how relevant it was to what's going on in today's society with racism, riots and messed up justice system we have. This book didn't hold back on the injustice of black people which I loved.

I'm giving this a 4.5 star rating only because Kimberly and Michael pissed me off as characters throughout the story and the fact that neither one of them had repercussions to their actions was both annoying, but also realistic.

I enjoyed watching Ashley learn about her blackness. She was surrounded by white people and mainly had white friends, but during the events of the murder of Rodney King she begins to learn that her skin color means something in the world.

I hated seeing how her "friends" treated her -- mainly Kimberly. I did think that Heather was the best of all her "friends" though. The little romance with Michael was cute at first, but the way things ended I hated.

Ashley's parents frustrated me to the core. They didn't realize, the mother mainly, that they were putting their daughters (Ashley and Jo) into these categories of good daughter-bad daughter which was causing a major strain. LaShawn was EVERYTHING toward the end!!! I shipped it!!

The family dynamics, the exploration of black lives, the conversation of self-identity was all so beautifully done. I loved learning about LA from a historically stand-point as well.

I would definitely recommend this! And the cover is ABSOLUTELY GORGEOUS!!

About the Author

Christina Hammonds Reed holds an MFA from the University of Southern California’s School of Cinematic Arts. A native of the Los Angeles area, her work has previously appeared in the Santa Monica Review and One Teen Story. The Black Kids is her first novel.

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The Black Kids by Christina Hammonds Reed {Blog Tour}