CW: racism, casual ableism, pregnancy & birth (graphic/on page), violence, alcohol use, drug use mentioned, gun violence, police brutality, death of a parent mentioned, infertility & miscarriage mentioned, classism, bullying, violence, child abuse

this type of contemporary isn't usually my go-to, so I had a bit of a hard time getting into it, but overall a really good read. Johnson has a way with words and I'd be interested in what she writes next.

"Perfect mothers didn't exist, only perfectly flawed ones did." 

This book is all about the secrets we keep out of love & protection. To give our loved ones every single advantage they can have in this world to succeed. It's a beautiful message but as this story proves - it can be messy & complicated all the same. Every decision has its consequences, but you won't always know its consequences right away. 

I was just a little bit older Midnight & Corey in 2008. I was wrapping up 8th grade and I didn't know what a new presidency, a recession, & the financial fallout would bring. All I knew is that the adults around me were nervous.  This book did a great job of showing the fears of all different kinds of people at that time. 

It took me a little bit to get into Midnight's storyline in the beginning. I struggled to figure out his role in all of this, but the last 100 pages or so flew by as I couldn't want to find out what happened. 
The book ended with some questions - I'd like to find out how Xavier and Ruth move on & if they decide to have children.