Ashley Woodfolk

In a now-and-then narrative, readers are introduced to Cleo, who has had a horrific breakup with her best friend, but at first, we don't know the details. Cleo now navigates school without Layla; Cleo has no protection from loneliness at school, and no one to talk to about her parents' separation. Cleo hesitates to trust overtures of friendship from Sydney, who she tutors for English class, and treads carefully with handsome new boy Dominic. There's romance, but at its core, this book is show more about friendship, especially the intense friendship between teenage girls, and what happens when people change.

Outstanding.

Quotes

Everything feels like a memory in a city when it snows. (first sentence)

I didn't want her to. But what I wanted more was for her not to want to. (70)

But it was starting to feel like all the things we used to do together weren't as important to her as they once were. (125)

"No such thing as too brave. Only brave enough." (Syd to Cleo, 167)

But girls cling to their friends for dear life as they wade through the rough waters of learning who they are while everything around them and inside them is changing minute by minute. And aren't we all a little bit in love with our best friends? (197)

That's the thing about words: they can leave you both unscathed and completely gutted. (250)

"We were changing, or maybe we'd already changed. And I don't think either of us was willing to make the kinds of compromises and sacrifices the newer version of the other person needed." (Cleo's mom, 316)

Somehow I am a girl who makes all the wrong choices, but I am also a girl who aches in every way to be wanted despite my mistakes. (339)

"Things you can't control happen all the time. But you can control what you do next." (Dom, 348)

...every friendship is an island. (370) show less

I started out reading this book thinking, oh just another high school drama - same old, same old - but by the last chapter I was crying, and grateful that I persevered. A book that can elicit strong emotion is a good thing. But it was an uphill struggle - both for the main character, and for me to stick with her.

Cleo Baker, who is African American, and Layla Hassan, from a Bangladeshi family, have been best friends ever since they met in middle school. (Other characters in the book run the show more gamut of diversity, although it is never a plot point.) When the story begins, however, Cleo and Layla haven’t spoken for twenty-seven days. The author then goes back and forth in time to explain what happened and how Cleo reacted to the falling out with her best friend. Cleo feels much like she did when her beloved grandmother Gigi died four years earlier:

“That person you loved? They’re gone. . . . I’m sick of crying every time I see or hear or feel something that reminds me of [Layla]. But before I can move on, I have to shake off the weight of my past. Of our past. I need to rewrite our prologue before it destroys me. So that’s exactly what I’m going to do.”

She also needs to grow up, and let her friends and loved ones lead their own lives that don’t revolve around her. She needs to learn that love and friendship don’t have to be exclusive. But it takes a long time.

In the process, she makes some very bad mistakes out of hurt and jealousy, but also finds some new friends, meets a possible boyfriend, and learns that her parents are human beings who have flaws like everyone else. As Dom (her new possible boyfriend) tells her, “Things that you can’t control happen all the time. . . . But you can control what you do next.”

Discussion: The characters we get to know best in this book - both the teens and the adults - are complicated human beings trying to navigate an ever-changing world of uncertainty. Woodfolk wants us to understand that relationships of all kinds - whether between friends, family, or love interests - are a complex mix of attraction, expectations, and adaptations to change. In addition to their positive aspects, they can elicit jealousy, hurt, and the need to reevaluate who you are and what you want. Friendship is no less powerful than any other type of connection and affects one's sense of belonging and self-esteem. Like any other bonds one makes in life, friendship deserves thought, care, and granting each other the freedom to evolve.

Evaluation: I appreciated that Woodfolk tackled a problem not regularly featured in books about relationships: that is, the powerful pull of what one wants a person to be like, and how it can distort one's ability to assess who that person really is. Such idealistic projections are unfair to both parties, and causes a lot of hurt that could have been avoided. This is a book not only worth reading, but would be valuable for parents to read together with their teens and discuss. show less

I enjoyed this. A rare look at the "good (church) girl" without going to either extreme-- a self-righteous goody-goody or an out-of-control rebel. I liked Micah's narrative, and her realization she didn't know her brother as well as she thought she did. Woodfolk makes vibrant, fun characters so easily. Micah's narrative was good enough to serve sliced with butter on the top!

Ty and Micah's relationship and desires to "go further" mixed with questioning abstinence is handled with care and show more doesn't demonize either path.

A lot of teens will relate to this book. I'm dazzled by Woodfolk's ability to make us care about characters in so a few pages.

4.5 show less

“To Black kids everywhere: your stories, your joy, your love, and your lives matter. You are a light in the dark.”

BLACKOUT is a contemporary YA romance collaboration between six powerhouse voices in YA — Dhonielle Clayton, Tiffany D. Jackson, Nic Stone, Angie Thomas, Ashley Woodfolk, and Nicola Yoon. Need I say more?! Honestly, no… probably not. BUT I WILL!

A series of six interconnected love stories all taking place during a sweltering summer blackout in NYC, BLACKOUT is truly a show more delight to read. Each chapter follows its own set of characters, with the novel unfolding in alternating narrations as they all attempt to make their way to a block party in Brooklyn. It hits all of the best tropes — meet-cutes, longtime friends, bitter exes, love triangles, masquerade balls, and self-love — without feeling too juvenile or unrealistic.

All of the stories are fantastic in their own right, but it was so fun to make connections between characters and try to anticipate how all of the narratives would come together. And not to pick favorites, but my little librarian heart soared during the NYPL scenes between Lana and Tristán — which says A LOT because the characters in question were *gasp!* hiding in the library after hours. I don’t say this often, but I REALLY hope that this is optioned for a film because it is the YA “Love, Actually” that Gen Z deserves (and this millennial will co-opt).

BLACKOUT is very character-driven and perhaps in less adept hands it would have felt slow or disjointed, but these authors achieved the exact opposite. Seamlessly weaving in and out of narrative voices that feel distinct and yet complimentary, BLACKOUT is an ode to every type of love — romance, friendship, love for our communities, and for ourselves.

BLACKOUT brings a necessary joy to Black and queer love stories without centering the pain and suffering we often see in these narratives. It needs to be on every single classroom and library bookshelf so it can find its way into as many hands as possible. I can tell you with certainty that the next teen that comes into my library looking for a romance novel will be leaving with BLACKOUT in hand!

CW: panic attack show less