I really enjoy verse stories and I think that Manjeet Mann is a new shining light in the poetry world. It was a really great story and I think that Manjeet Mann knows how to portray a story in so little words and it conveys so much in a story span of time. I did enjoy the story and I really did love The Crossing too so I can't wait to read what comes next.

[Trigger Warning: Physical, Emotional Abuse]
“...One say I will change the world. Not only for my younger sister and my daughter, but for all women. I will lay the foundations, and I will lead the way.”

I keep thinking all day today is the best word to express what I thought of this book. Because Run Rebel is really remarkable. It was written in verse that was beautifully well crafted. It was said that the less the words, the better it will able to speak out to the people. And it really does. I love the book so So much. It was very easy to follow the story flow and grasp the emotion from each of the characters.

Run Rebel is powerful, empowering women and girls, hope, and love. It is about two women - Amber and her mom, Mrs. Rai who lives in fear because of the father/husband which he uses emotional & physical abuse to both of them. Amber and Mrs. Rai together rising up to fight from living in fear with the man who keeps on abusing them.

The moment I step into the first page I was quickly immersed with the story and hard for me to put the book down. Run Rebel is a powerful book that I could not stress enough how great it is and definitely, every one of you needs to read Run Rebel.

The narration style of this novel lends well to audio format, which is how I consumed it over the span of a couple of hours.

This is a story of pain, fear and coping with trauma.

Amber, our protagonist, has always felt useless, ugly and unwanted. The only time she's ever felt special was while she was running. Her place was secure as a necessary part of the running team - however, that security is jeopardized when her father decides that it's not a girl's place to take part in sport.

We follow along as she deals with the fallout of that decision, under the backdrop of her parents' abusive relationship, her emerging crush on a childhood friend and jealousy.

It wasn't as emotionally draining as I had been expecting it to be, so I had a much better experience than I had anticipated. I will definitely keep an eye out for more things by the author for sure.

This book was absolutely outstanding. A powerful and emotional in verse YA novel that is a must read for all.

This book blew my mind. It reminded me of my days of teenage rebellion. A must read YA novel. You are in for an adventure diving into this book.

Powerful verse novel which explores domestic violence in a nuanced way within a specific cultural context.

I am loving every verse novel I read lately, & 'Run, Rebel' by @ManjeetMann is no exception. As she says in the author q&a, "...deal with big emotional subjects by getting straight to the heart of the issue and saying more with very little." & BOY does it do that 😭 #UKYA

Run, Rebel was different to other verse novels I've read as each poem or verse has its own title like a collection of poems, rather than one long story. I loved it. Amber has a difficult home life that makes her feel claustrophobic; there is a lot of responsibility and expectation placed on her as a girl in a conservative Indian family, where her parents do not speak English and she has to help them navigate their life. She finds her escape in running, but it isn't something her father approves of. The dad in this novel made me so, so angry. I loved seeing Amber and her mum grow more determined to find a place for themselves that they are happy with. Amber's mum is an absolute hero in this book. I won't spoil it, but she was my favourite character in this, and if you read it, I hope you will see why. Run, Rebel is not an easy read, but it is an important read and it really packs a lot of narrative and emotion. I would be cautious if domestic violence, abuse and alcoholism are triggers for you.

This is such a gut-wrenching, beautifully written and important book. I honestly have never read anything quite like it. It's one of those books that I would like to press into the hands of every single person; everyone should read this book, I can recommend it so so much!

I may not be impartial because I love YA novels in verse, but that just makes me even harder to please... And "Run, Rebel" is one of the best I’ve ever read! A strong, feminist, coming-of-age story about cultural constraints. A beautiful voice.

A way to freedom and poetry for teenage readers and adults alike. The perfect pick for my first YA book group for adults.

For fans of Sarah Crossan and Elizabeth Acevedo.

This is the first full novel I have ever read in verse and I was a little unsure if this style at the beginning but by the end I feel in love with this writing style and will be making an effort to read more novels in this style in the future.

This novel follows Amber who is the daughter of immigrant parents who are both illiterate and don’t speak English and so Amber isn’t only trying to find her own way through life but she is also trying to navigate the world for her parents while also trying to cope with her father’s drinking and abuse.

This novel is a heart-breaking read but it is also full of such hope and Manjeet does such a good job at portraying the emotions of this novel. This novel is so beautifully written and while it focuses on so many heavy topics this doesn’t take away of the overall message of empowerment and hope.

Overall, I feel in love with this and gave it 4 out of 5 stars.

Trigger warnings for: parental and domestic abuse, alcoholism, bullying and trauma.

The protagonist, Amber, is torn in so many different directions. Her frustration and desperation almost flies of the page as she deals with friendship, love, family and abuse. She also has issues finding her place in the world with the cards she has been dealt. She questions her father's ideas of how a woman should be and tries to come to terms with her own (family's) poverty that contrasts her friend's wealth. This is a story about race and unfairness, feminism and the difficult task of Amber discovering who she really is.

The whole novel is written in verse and this was my first verse book ever. I have to admit that it was quite difficult for me to understand and to grasp a lot of the issues while knowing that there was something important on the page that I didn't fully understand. Maybe I should've read an easy love story in verse before this, but I doubt that it would've made the same impact. Because an impact it did make.

I liked Run, Rebel and I recommend it to everyone who loves reading about difficult subjects, about being hit with emotion twice as hard because the words Manjeet Mann finds and the way she displays them are very special. I also recommend this to anyone who likes a good book about a strong heroine, because Amber definitely is one!

I expected to learn a lot from this book but I didn't expect to like it as much as I did. Run, Rebel, is a raw, emotional verse novel about an Indian-British teenager as she rebels against her abusive parents and tries to live her life on her own terms.

It was only my second verse novel but definitely not the last one - damn, they hit HARD. There is less of a wall between the characters and the reader and the emotions hit straight into you. This one would have been a powerful story on its own, but the medium made it all the stronger.

It's a story of injustice, of rebellion, of fighting for the right to be yourself, of family and friends and belonging. It's the story of the struggle between staying true to who you are, staying true to your family and community but without sacrificing yourself. I believe that a lot of people will relate to the protagonist in one way or another and, since I can think of only one other UKYA written by a POC (Black Flamingo), it's this much more important. Everyone deserves to see themselves in fiction and I hope that it's another book showing that the publishing industry is moving in the right direction.

Books written in verse can be incredibly powerful if done well. Run, Rebel is done EXTREMELY well! I am actually in awe of how the author is able to pack such a gripping narrative into such punchy and sparse text. It is an incredibly emotional book, as you continuously want to reach into the pages and help save the characters.
A particular highlight for me is how imperfect everyone is - even Amber has her flaws and gets things wrong, as she's only human. We can understand her mistakes more easily than she can, and we're allowed to simultaneously see the characters' darker sides but still love them deeply.
The intertwining of slowly revealing secrets and the anatomy of a revolution is very clever, and gives the whole story a solid structure that keeps you reading on.
I think the characters and storyline maintain cultural sensitivity and avoid stereotyping, whilst also managing to explore issues faced by real people in the real world (from a wide variety of cultural backgrounds). This feels very important, as a book that allows some readers to see themselves represented on the page, while others have a chance to better understand others' experiences.
I have nothing negative to say about this outstanding book at all, except that I'm not physically able to climb inside and embrace Amber, her mum, and Ruby!

Run, Rebel is a trailblazing verse novel that thunders with rhythm, heart and soul - perfect for fans of Sarah Crossan, Elizabeth Acevedo and Rupi Kaur.


I did worry beginning to read this book how powerful it would be as I felt there was a lot of internalised misogyny going on, however as the book delves deeper and gets into the story, you begin to understand why and it becomes a powerful and brilliant learning curve for our brilliantly written and perfectly flawed lead in Amber, who leads a brilliant cast of relateable and well developed characters in this book.

The poetry moves in different directions to allow us better depth to these characters and the story, giving us a more rounded tale and though sometimes it feels like it moves in a place where it is not needed, as the book goes on, it shows actually those moments were in the perfect place the entire time - how this collection of poems builds to create this story is done so incredibly well and makes for an emotional and powerful read from start to finish.

How in moments we see the poems move from the focus of Amber to her mum and to her sister makes this book a whole new level of brilliant, their perspectives adding to the story and giving us glimpses of these women and the impact of their father on their lives in different ways and it makes for heartbreaking but brilliant reading.

for me when a book makes you both not want to read but carry on anyway, that is a book that deserves five stars and that's why this book has it. Intense, emotional and euphoric, I was in tears at the end and it makes for a very quick but wonderful read.

Disclaimer - I received a free digital download of this book by NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.
Page turning becomes a necessity as you start to unravel the dark secrets in the Rui family and discover what the future holds for Amber. I find myself haunted by the sufferings of Amber and her female relatives and the thought that so many women are still suffering in tyrannical households. This book was both heart warming and heart breaking at the same time, a definite recommendation that I think everybody should read.

I didn't expect a verse novel and so it took a while for me to get into the book. I did at a few points consider not finishing the book.but I actually really enjoyed the book, once I got more into the story and rhythm. I've read a few other verse novels which I've love but I did struggle with how to write a review for this.

The characters are well developed and the story, once it got started was good. I enjoyed how it dealt with issues of immigration, ignorance, and bullying.

Run, Rebel is the perfect example of why I adore verse novels. I've read a few verse novels so far and I have loved every one, and Run, Rebel is no exception. Verse novels always have a depth of emotion that I don't usually find in some books. When I saw this book on Netgalley, describing it as a diverse verse novel I knew I needed to read it!

The author discussed heavy topics within Run, Rebel, including domestic abuse and bullying. Although I was a little confused as to the point of the harassment and bullying of another character within the novel, the reason is played out through the storyline in an interesting way that shows the possible repercussions of abuse.

Something I particularly liked about Run, Rebel was how it focused mostly on self-worth. Amber knew she deserved to be happy and running made her happy, so she was determined to find a way of achieving her dreams. There was a hint of romance but it took a back seat to the major themes.

Amber's story comes alive through the use of verse and the formatting of the words and sentences. We feel her anxiety about her friendships, we feel her hope in her favourite sport and we feel her pain in dark times. This novel was utterly captivating, I could hardly put it down, the words flowed from page to page.

Run, Rebel is a powerful, feminist verse novel full of emotion, heartbreak and hope. It's an inspiring read about resilience and rebellion. I would most definitely recommend Run, Rebel to everyone, and particularly to fans of novels told through verse.

Run, Rebel is a compelling debut novel written in verse and I found myself flying through it. It explores many prevalent real-world issues such as feminism, identity, poverty, class, friendship, family and the many forms of abuse and it really hit home for me having grown up with a narcissistic and misogynistic abuser. The story follows teenager Amber who grew up with an alcoholic and abusive father who targeted both her and her mother. Her father wants her to conform to his ideals like her sister Ruby did, but Amber is not so pliable and knows she needs to escape this situation before she can achieve her dreams. For such a short novel it packs a powerful emotional punch and all I wanted was to see Amber escape and live her life by her own rules. She doesn't want the arranged marriage they insist upon as they search for a ”perfect” suitor.

Mann has created a story whereby you feel the claustrophobia and sense of tension emanating from the pages, and I know the feeling of constantly walking on eggshells and so you try to keep out of the abusers way completely. If feels so authentic that I feel Mann either experienced this herself or researched the topic of abuse thoroughly. This is a heartbreaking and rather heavy read for me as a lot of what happens actually happened and is still happening to me. But it also features a character who has hope despite the adversity which is empowering and inspirational. It is beautifully written with stunning characterisation and one of the toughest and best books on abuse that I have picked up. It very much reminded me of Rupi Kaur and it's clear that talented Mann has a bright future in the publishing industry. Highly recommended. Many thanks to Penguin for an ARC.

A fantastic novel following characters that felt so real to me. The novel is written in with an extraordinary use of verse that adds so much to the story and makes it impossible to put down. This book tackled difficult subject matter in such an heartbreaking yet hopeful way. I would highly recommend this book for fans of The Poet X by Elizabeth Acevedo. This is undeniably the best book I have read in a long time.

Thank you to NetGalley and to Penguin Random House Children's UK for providing an advance copy in exchange for an honest review.