Set in Los Angeles in the early nineties, The Black Kids follows seventeen year old Ashley in her seemingly perfect privileged life. She attends a good school and lives in a rich neighbourhood, and she has rich-kid white friends. Ashley, personally, has never really known the struggles of life for her fellow Black people, nor paid much attention to it.

This changes for Ashley when Rodney King is beaten by police officers, and those same officers are acquitted despite their actions being caught on camera. L.A. erupts into protests and riots, rightly screaming about racial injustice. Ashley opens her eyes and sees everything she has let slip without speaking up about, from the micro aggressions from her friends, to the treatment of the other Black kids at her school.

As a coming of age story it cleverly explores race, identity, privilege and ignorance from a Black character’s POV. It highlights things that are still happening today, so to read this in 2020 and know the book is set in 1992, it’s sad to see nothing has changed when it should have long before then.

Even though this isn’t out yet, I highly recommend it. It taught me about Rodney King and the riots, and serves as a reminder that history keeps on repeating itself because of racial injustice and inequality that needs to end.

One small issue I (and a few others, I noticed) did have was with the switching between past and present, it seemed to get a little muddled up in places, but I’m putting this down to the formatting of the eARC and not the author/editor.



Did I like the book? Yes

Did I love it? Yes! I loved everything it stood for and what it taught me.

Would I recommend it? Yes! Not just for now, but to read at any point in time due to the historical moment within. It is honest in its plot and characters and doesn’t shy away from its portrayals.

The Black Kids is an engaging coming of age story set against the backdrop of the 1992 LA riots.

This is a debut novel with real promise, and the author has a brilliant turn of phrase. Some of Ash's observations of other characters and the racist power politics that surrounds them all are genuinely thought-provoking and powerful. The comparisons with The Hate U Give are justified - The Black Kids takes a similarly insightful and nuanced teen perspective.

It's a shame that some of the impact is lost with poor editing. There is some slippage between tenses and jumps in perspective that didn't quite work, and a lot of excess backstory that could have been cut (especially in the opening half). I like that Ash is a complex, and not always likeable heroine (I found her realistic and engaging), but sometimes her tangents distract from the real message of the story.

The Black Kids is a great YA that could've - and should've - hit harder with a few minor tweaks and the right editorial steer.

I am not sure how to feel about this book at all! At times it's amazing. It's historical fiction that is absolutely relevant today. But there were a few things that I didn't like.

The writing style is great, but in places the plot is hard to follow. I think this is an eARC format thing, but the present / past switching isn't smooth.

Ash is the kid of well off Black parents. She goes to a school where most of the kids are rich, and all of her friends are White. Her parents have made sure she has grown up sheltered, and in doing this she sort of just lets her friends get away with being jerks. They are bullies and often racist. Ash doesn't feel like she fits in with them anymore, but doesn't see herself as one of the Black kids at her school.

The historical elements are important, and are almost being replicated in present times. This book definitely educated me as I am ashamed to admit that I didn't know about the 1992 LA protests before. I also liked how Ash grew as a person, and she was definitely much more mature at the end of the book having made a lot of mistakes. She starts standing up for herself and calling people out and I love that.

So what didn't I like? Mostly, that Ash is super judgemental about weight. I think this is partly due to her friends' influence, and her mother's who does exercise tapes really early in the morning. But if someone looks like they've gained weight, Ash comments on it, and that made me super uncomfortable.

Overall, a very educating read but I feel like the plot could have had a better flow. And I wish Ash hadn't been so judgemental, but she was ALOT better than her friends, who are the worst.

The Black Kids is a coming of age Historical fiction set amongst the 1992 LA Riots. Through the book we follow Ashley, a fairly privileged in comparison to many, black kid as she navigates the complexities of friendship, race and privilege in the midst of a hugely significant time in history.
Firstly, I appreciated this book for how much of a history lesson that it gave, in particular appreciating the complexities of the lived experience of being black and navigating different worlds. It was confronting and heart wrenching, and at this present time indicates how history appears to be repeating itself! The almost cruel irony that the events of current day are similar to that which Reed writes about in this book will hopefully serve an educational purpose. I for one learnt a lot about riots that were before my time and that I had never been taught about in the educational system - yet again another reason that we have to try harder!
I also really loved the characterisation in the book, Reed wasn't afraid to write about unlikeable characters and didn't shy away from some of the flaws that teenagers often have. To an extent it felt as though we were learning alongside Ashley, and this is always something I respect in this type of literature - as we know, nobody is perfect!
My only misgiving with the book is that it changed from previous occasions to current events and sometimes changed tense with almost no warning which often led a little confusion. Although, this could because of the layout in arc and in actual print it may appear a lot clearer.

The Black Kids is a coming of age story about finding the right friends who see you as you truly are without the boundaries of the skin you have. It was about settling in home with the people who are willing to reciprocate the same feelings you have for them. To be there for one another and figuring out the things and the company you keep that matters most.

This story set in 90's and I'm reading it now in 2020 yet they are still facing the same thing. Nothing much has changed nor are there any progressive development. Why exactly is that? We currently live in the 21st century and black people are still fighting for their rights.

I know I will never be able to understand the circumstances and the situations that black people have gone through and are still going through against racists and oppression but I stand solidarity with them and their cause. But what I can do is by knowing, listening and reading more about their voices and stories. Just like this story, The Black Kids is capable of making me live through their eyes and have empathy on them.

I don't know why people would have so much hate merely just because of the colour of their skin. And the main character Ash faces this on a daily basis with the people she call her own friends. And just like her, I really question why she's still putting up with them.

There are parts when its about the present and it swiftly moves back to the past and then back again to the present. I'm not sure if its the format of the ARC or the story is written this way but I got confused. It was kind of hard to differentiate that. I'm a bit saddened to say this but I wasn't really feeling this book. The premise is captivating and the story was enough to pull the readers in but I just couldn't really get into it.

t is a fact that what they go through is extremely unfair and injustice. I feel their anger and I wish I could fight along with them. Honestly, this book is exactly what's happening across the world over there in America. The protests, riots and fighting for their rights. Racism is not something to make excuses for and it is utterly intolerable. #blacklivesmatter

The Black Kids is an unflinching and honest exploration of the everyday racism members of the black community face. It looks at privilege, class and the battles young people face as they move in to adulthood. It's one of the most powerful and necessary reads within the YA world.

It's hard to separate reading this book from the background of news reports about George Floyd's murder in Minneapolis. Almost 30 years after the 1992 Los Angeles riots, when this story is set., you wonder if we have learned anything as human beings. We need this story, we need to hear Ashley's voice and see the changes in her life as the events after Rodney King was brutally attacked unfold. Ashley is such a believable character; her parents have protected her, carefully chosen which area they live in and which school she attends, but this has made her blinkered and naive. Her teenage life is very relatable; parties, friends, relationships, school, family... she makes mistakes, she isn’t perfect and this is why I like her so much. Her life pivots on this moment in time; school is ending, friendships are broken and made, family split and come together, she discovers family secrets and more about her own identity. The riots are a crucible of fear, anger and frustration and it is this shock to Ashley's system that enables us, through her eyes, to experience what it means to be an African-American.

Thank you to netgalley for this advance review copy. (For reference I read this during Covid lockdown)

I enjoyed being in Ashley’s world for a while.

It was a nice read, quite dark in parts, but truthful to real life. I love the colour and it is the sort of book you can re-read whilst feeling like your reading it for the first time. Love it!!

Reed's novel deals with so many themes; race, girlhood, growing up, privilege, sisterhood, identity. Compelling, sincere, powerful.

A sincere thank you to the publisher, author and Netgalley for providing me an ebook copy of this book in exchange for a fair and honest review.

This is not my usual genre, I’m more of a crime/thriller reader however this story intrigued me. I absolutely loved it, truly one of the best books I have read. I am extremely pleased and grateful to both for opening up my mind to something totally different.