Don’t Ask Me Where I’m From by Jennifer DeLeon is a story that needs to be told. We need minority characters who aren’t perpetuating some of the negative stereotypes out there, and Lilianna is a great example. She is an American girl with Latinx blood living in the city with her parents and two brothers when suddenly she is accepted into the METCO program which ships in inner-city minorities to an all-white, uber-rich high school in the suburbs. It’s her father’s dream for her to attend this school. She would love to tell him about it, but he’s been gone for almost a month now. Her mom is spiraling into depression, and while her new school is nice, she is really starting to see a sharp contrast between the other METCO students and the regular students and the racial tension is building. Lilianna tries her best to straddle both worlds while worrying about her family. When she discovers where her father is, so much of her sheltered life starts to make sense. Definitely an eye-opening discussion starter of a novel. This would make a great book club book for high schools. Publish date May 5th 2020 #dontaskmewhereimfrom #jenniferdeleon

I feel like there aren’t many books on the market with main characters who are POC and even less who are LatinX. When I read the synopsis for Don’t Ask Me Where I’m From I immediately put it on my TBR, I was so excited and a bit nervous to see the portrayal of a Latina. I have to say I enjoyed this book a lot. It was interesting but also an important read that dealt with topics that aren’t represented often in books, much less YA. We see Liliana navigate her way at a new, prominently white, school and the racial tensions that result from it. On top of that, she has to deal with her family, an absent father and struggling mother. I’m definitely going to be keeping an eye out for whatever the author publishes next.

Thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for the ARC!

I read this book in one sitting. I thought the author did a beautiful job capturing Liliana’s character. The reader felt every moment of struggle, every spark of joy along with her. I also loved that there was no pretty, perfect ending. Too many authors wrap everything up so tidily that it isn’t believable, but this story wasn’t like that. There was some happiness in the ending (Dad making it home, Dustin finally turning on Steve), but the high school was still far from perfect, so it all felt authentic.

Thanks for letting me enjoy this book!

I'm looking forward to getting my hands on a copy of Don't Ask Me Where I'm From. I believe it will be a wonderful addition to my classroom library. A realistic story and for me a very plausible ending that is not wrapped up neat and tidy but left for the reader to consider. This one is going to stay with me for a long time, already in my top 10 of 2020.

Liliana is a Latino teen. She is sent to a Metco school as part of a special program to diversify. The students there are mostly white and she struggles to fit in. She discovers her father was deported so she has to deal with that too. An excellent story about how teens struggle with racism
I voluntarily read and reviewed an advanced copy of this book. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

I liked this book because it gave real-life perspectives of what teenagers go through when dealing with a family crisis and their future. Liliana is a super-smart but reclusive teenager who only shares a friendship with her best friend, Jade, who has suddenly abandoned her for her new boyfriend. On top of that, she is dealing with going to a new school in a new neighborhood and everything she knows and learning about the deportation of her father. With ISIS and everything going on now in the world, I think this is a great book for teenagers to read to find comfort or understanding that they aren't alone with struggles they may face in life.

I liked the main character development, and the story was relatable on a number of themes, but it felt like De Leon was trying to do just a bit too much in that plot. Too many secondary characters that were flat and underwhelming, and the dialogue that initially felt genuine ended up feeling forced by the end.

Sleep or read? If you're reading this book, then you are not sleeping. As a librarian in a highly diverse Title I middle school, this is exactly the kind of book I want to recommend. Yes, there are other books with a poor, minority main character who is chosen to attend a privileged, predominantly white high school. This book heads in an unexpected direction as the Latinx main character's father has been deported. As she deals with the trauma at home, she faces prejudice and discrimination at school.

This story of school, family, friendship, and racism drives home that, although illegal, segregation still exists. Racism is sometimes subtle and sometimes blatant, but in all cases must be actively fought. This empathy building book is a must read for teens and adults. I already plan to buy copies for my middle school library and the high school library. I hope my students can find their voices just as Liliana finds hers.

Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for the arc in exchange for an honest review.

This story takes place in Boston, it is about a high school girl Lilianna who has been accepted into a program called METCO. The program means she will be attending school an hour away in a mostly white school. While she and the other METCO kids are experience racist tension at Westburg High, Lilianna is trying to deal with what has happened to her father. I enjoyed that the story was current and even though it was told from Lilianna's point of view it did offer up some other ideas from other points of view.

I found this story to be both compelling and informative as we got to look at living in American through the eyes of a Latinx main character who is trying to navigate living in two different worlds. Liliana Cruz is attending a poor school in Boston when she gets into a ritzy mostly white school through a program called Metropolitan Council for Educational Opportunity (METCO), a desegregation program meant to give non-white students from Boston's under-performing school districts more educational opportunities. Meanwhile, she is struggling to emotionally support her mother and younger twin brothers when her dad disappears (again), but this time for far longer than he has before. The title ends up being her six-word autobiography and it really resonated with me, as I used to get the question, "Where are you from-from?" all the time when I was growing up. I could feel a lot of her anger, frustration, fear, and sadness as she navigated her personal/familiar struggles and the racism and other challenging situations that occurred in her school. I would absolutely recommend this book to my students, both to those of color who struggle with similar issues and to those who don't to offer them up a different perspective and perhaps open up a dialog.

Special thanks #JenniferDeLeon, #Atheneum/CaitlynDlouhyBooks, #SimonandSchusterChildrensPublishing, and #NetGalley for this ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Thank you to NetGalley for the ARC!

This contemporary story features a LatinX character which is what initially drew me to it #latinxrep.

The story follows Liliana Cruz, a young teen growing up in a diverse urban neighborhood. She's accepted to attend a prestigious, though highly less diverse school, across town. Although she doesn't want to attend, she knows that her MIA dad would want her to and, plus, her mother says she has no choice.

Liliana has to learn how to navigate her new world. Everything from feeling like an outcast amongst the group of kids who should ACTUALLY accept her to questioning how she's feeling about someone of a different race.

On top of all that, her mom is acting strange and clearly hiding some news related to Lili's father.

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So, I gave this book five stars because I couldn't put it down. It's just SO REAL. The problems that Liliana faces are similar to real-world problems that inner-city, low-income and immigrant kids and families face regularly.

At times, Lili wonders about food and money and what's going to happen with their living situation. Lili's mom is a strong woman who is trying to keep her daughters from worrying but it's not easy.

The language that De Leon uses is poetic at times. I just, overall, appreciate how realistic and relevant this book is for 2020. I can't wait to read more from De León!!

Fantastic title that explores identity and the way we present ourselves to the world. YA readers will strongly connect to the voice and Latinx readers especially will see accurate and relatable representation on the page. Highly recommend.

This book is so relevant in today’s climate and regarding the issues so many families face. It’s about a Latinix teen, whose parents are undocumented immigrants from Central America, who receives a scholarship to go to a more affluent high school outside of her Boston neighborhood. It deals with issues of race/ethnicity and identity as well as the fears of deportation and family separation. I recommend looking out for this book when it hits the shelves May 5th.

Thank you to Netgalley for an advanced copy in exchange for an honest review.

Liliana is a girl from Boston who gets the opportunity to attend a highly ranked school in the suburbs. Her parents signed her up for METCO and she finally gets in, but they are the ones who want this - not her. When she gets there, she sticks out like a sore thumb and not even the other METCO students want to include her.

The new school is just one more thing for Lili to deal with. Her father is gone - has been for weeks - and her mother is in a deep depression that keeps her in her room and disconnected from the family. When Lili discovers that her father has been deported and both her parents are undocumented, so many things become clearer to her.

Then someone in the school starts posting racist memes on the internet and it's time for a reckoning.

This was a good book that deals with a lot of current topics, including immigration, mental health, and racial tension. It may have been a little too rosy, but that's what kept it upbeat even with the difficult topics.

My thanks to the publisher and NetGalley for an advanced reader's copy in exchange for an honest review.

Truthful and realistic, this well written book is one that will resonate with many students. Realistic, believable characters with heart. I enjoyed the writing style and I will be looking for more by this author! Thank you netgalley for this arc in exchange for my honest opinion.

Liliana Cruz is a Latinx teen thrust into a program that sends her from her local public high school into a program called METCO at a higher rated and mostly white suburban high school. As she slowly acclimates to the new school and new friends, her family falls apart around her. Her father disappears and her mother descends into depression, causing more responsibilities for caring for her younger brothers and the household to fall to Liliana, too. Everything is only exacerbated when Lili discovers that both her parents are undocumented and her father has been deported back to Guatemala and the racism at school gets worse and worse.

Lili's story is not uncommon, I'm sure, and it came off as realistic. I appreciated that everything wasn't tied up in a pretty little bow at the end. Racism, even subtle subconscious racism, still exists, but the book was hopeful overall. Lili was brave and stepped up to combat the racism she encountered and people listened. Not everyone, there's no magic cure or wand to waive, but inroads are made and the reader is left feeling hopeful.

This is a fantastic book to make you think and question your own views/biases. I cannot speak for the Latinx community, but I found the book believable and eye opening and hopeful and I definitely recommend it and will be purchasing it for my library.


Disclaimer: I received a free electronic copy of this book from the publisher through Netgalley.com in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own.

Liliana Cruz has been accepted into a new high school, thanks to the METCO program, that gives opportunities to inner city kids in Boston that they might not to be able to afford. As she navigates the new “white” school, while struggling to maintain her friendships from her previous life, and dealing with the news that her father has been deported. As a Latin girl in a new world, she struggles to find her voice, both in and out of class, and her relationships are tested throughout the novel. As she grows and learns to find her voice, and overcomes the real-life struggles of a young Latinx girl who needs to figure things out on her own.

This is exactly the type of story this world needs. I will be recommending this to teachers and students alike. Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher!

Thanks to NetGalley for this ARC!
I loved this. Liliana is a great teen character, and I loved the focus on her and her family, and how it humanized the issue of her parents being undocumented and what it is like for a family to be separated like this. It would be pretty hard to read this and NOT be rooting for her father to make his way back to them. I also liked the portrayal of the racism in the suburban school, and how the minority students tried to combat it, but how they didn't "fix" everything and have a happy ending where everyone realizes they were wrong and it's all ok now. I mean, I think the ending was hopeful, but it wasn't like all the problems were solved. Great story.

Lilianna lives in Boston with her parents and twin brothers, except her father has been deported back to Guatemala. Life is stressful at home with only one parent. When she is offered a place in METCO at a high school an hour away, Lilianna doesn’t want to take it but mom makes her.
It’s hard to fit in at a school where most faces are white. The ones that aren’t are skeptical about her. (Will she last or will she quit?). Gradually, Lili makes friends and even gets a boyfriend. She now is busy juggling her two lives, school life and home life. When racial slurs start popping up on social media, Lili gets mad and takes action.
This was a great book! The situations and feelings that Lili goes through are similar to what many teens face today. This book openly addresses racism, even subtle racism, and challenges you to do something instead of being a bystander.
I love that this story is relatable for many kids. Even if they have never faced racism, they’ve faced prejudice for some reason or another. Lili ends up being a hero who fights to change people’s beliefs. I’ll be recommending that my students read it and my library purchase it.