We Deserve Monuments, Jas Hammonds
We Deserve Monuments, Jas Hammonds
2 Rating(s)
List: $25.99 | Sale: $18.20
Club: $12.99

We Deserve Monuments

Author: Jas Hammonds

Narrator: Tamika Katon-Donegal

Unabridged: 10 hr 22 min

Format: Digital Audiobook Download

Publisher: Recorded Books

Published: 11/29/2022


Synopsis

What's more important: knowing the truth or keeping the peace?
When her family moves to Bardell, Georgia, on the cusp of her senior year, Avery
Anderson is uprooted from DC and thrust into the hostile home of her terminally
ill grandmother, Mama Letty. The tension between Avery’s mom and Mama Letty
makes for a frosty arrival and reveals a decades-old conflict they refuse to talk
about. Every time Avery tries to look deeper, she’s turned away, leaving her
desperate to unearth the secrets that divide her family.
While tempers flare at home, Avery finds friendship in unexpected places: with
Simone Cole, her captivating next-door neighbor, and Jade Oliver, a member of
the town’s most prominent family, whose mother’s murder remains unsolved.
As the three girls grow closer—and Avery and Simone’s friendship blossoms into
romance—the sharp-edged opinions of their small Southern town begin to hint at
something insidious underneath. Avery soon discovers her family’s roots are
deeply entwined with Bardell’s racist past. With Mama Letty’s health dwindling
every day, Avery must decide if digging for the truth is worth toppling the delicate
relationships she’s built—or if some things are better left buried.

About Jas Hammonds

Jas Hammonds was raised in many cities and between the pages of many books. They have received support for their writing from Lambda Literary, Baldwin for the Arts, and the Highlights Foundation. They are also a grateful recipient of the MacDowell James Baldwin Fellowship. Their debut novel, We Deserve Monuments, won the 2023 Coretta Scott King John Steptoe Award for New Talent, among many other accolades.


Reviews

Goodreads review by s.penkevich on November 18, 2023

When your 12 year old tells you they love a book and it is a must-read, you stop whatever you are doing and read that book. And, as with We Deserve Monuments, the debut novel from Jas Hammonds, you often find a book you now love too. Here is what they had to say about it: ‘We Deserve Monuments by Jas......more

Goodreads review by Bookishrealm on January 14, 2023

Sometimes there are books that are written that seem to capture our hearts and souls. Every year, I usually find a handful books that do that to me; however, I've never read one so early in the year. This book has so much meaning to me. It's beautiful, gut-wrenching filled with happiness, sadness, p......more

Goodreads review by emma on May 22, 2024

returning to my first love (ya contemporaries) this book is A LOT. these poor teens are going through it all: coming out, mourning, coming of age, rumors about hired hitmen, racism, homophobia, so much death. they are also putting themselves and each other and their parents through even more. the frin......more

Goodreads review by Rosh on February 13, 2023

In a Nutshell: I can see why the YA audience will go gaga over this. I can also see why some adults will love this. But mine, yet again, is an outlier review. Sigh. Story Synopsis: Seventeen-year-old Avery is moving with her parents from Washington to Bardell, Georgia, in order to take care of her te......more

Goodreads review by Hayley on January 22, 2023

queer black girl unpacking intergenerational trauma with her family... it's like this book was made for me!!......more