"One of the Good Ones" by Malika Moulite and Maritza Moulite centers around the story of Kezi Smith's arrest and presumed, which occurs during a protest for Black lives. Kezi, a high-achieving student who is supposed to be attending a top college in the fall, is deemed "One of the Good Ones," but, through the characters in the book, the authors express the importance of protecting and standing up for all Black lives. Kezi's sister, girlfriend, and best friend honor Kezi's life by taking a journey guided by "The Negro Motorist Green Book." I really like the way the authors date the chapters in the book in relation to Kezi's death and how you learn about their family's history. The ending was definitely a surprise that I was not expecting. This is a really good YA read.

📚 review: One of the Good Ones by Maika Moulite (@maikamoulite) & Maritza Moulite (@maritzamoulite)

Thank you NetGalley for the chance to read this ARC that debuts in 2021.

“Being HUMAN is more than enough to deserve life and love” so why do we prove time and time again that we, as a nation, fail to live by that powerful truth? That is what the Moulite sisters explore in this novel that demonstrates how our past doesn’t always stay in the past, our present can be drastically altered depending on the lens we’re looking through, and we all need our family, but more importantly our own truth, in the end.

Happi and Kezi might’ve only been a year apart in age but they were decades apart in time and space. I say were because Kezi is dead after attending her first peaceful protest on her 18th birthday. Now, Happi must decide if she wants to go down the road her sister would’ve gone had she still been alive, and if she’s willing to open up her heart to those she left behind when she decided she wasn’t willing to live in their shadows.

This beautifully written novel crosses both time and perspective, from 80+ years before Kezi’s death in a ‘shadowtown’ in the south, to mere months after her death exploring along Route 66. We see through the lenses of Happi, Kezi, Shaqueria, and Evelyn — and despite their differences, they are bound together by more than what meets the eye.

Tragedy, false narratives, hate, and healing all come together to leave readers hopeful but heartbroken — and oh, it would not be a Moulite & Moulite novel without a few twists along the way.

This is a heavy hitter and a must read.

5⭐️s

ONE OF THR GOOD ONES is a one of the most powerful novels I’ve read in 2020! What can I say? The mystery. Intrigue. The way the authors incorporate prejudice into the story was so well done. I was blown away. Left speechless at how the characters grew over the course of the novel. The plot points were so so well done. The prose kept me glued to the story. I couldn’t put the story down! Five stars isn’t enough for this story.

“The Moulite sisters have written a powerful narrative. One of loss, grief, acceptance, and obsession this remarkable novel is an unstoppable force. The interwoven time-lines, the unforgettable characters, both past and present, the harrowing journey seamlessly brought together, pitching readers head first into the depths of racism where the meaning of One of the Good Ones becomes more and more clear.” Cecelia Beckman, Sheaf & Ink Book Blog


I need a moment to recover.

As I raced towards the end of One of the Good Ones, my mind seemed to have forgotten the tagline “The Hate U Give meets Get Out in an honest and powerful exploration of prejudice in this stunning novel from sister-writer duo Maika Moulite and Maritza Moulite, authors of Dear Haiti, Love Alaine.”

Maika and Maritza Moulite perfectly entrap me in Kezi’s story that I literally forgot about the Get Out reference. Make no mistake, even with the plot twist I did not see coming, I could not put One of the Good Ones down.

There are so many layers to this story. Beautiful and frightening. Painful and hopeful. Exploring identity, bigotry, history and family all of these threads in the tapestry of this novel was one that radiated. It implored the reader to truly see the image of what it means to be a Black woman in America.

One of the Good Ones will have you feeling a myriad of emotions all within a sentence, a paragraph, the entire novel. I found myself at times flushed with anger over the blatant racism. It made my stomach hurt, the visceral feeling as the pages blurred, the anger becoming more apparent. How I wanted to reach into those moments and scream at the deeply rooted racism paraded around as standard.

And there were those moments that pulled you into despair. Where you begin to ask how do you make up for a lifetime of hurt and misunderstanding? How can sisters continue when a part of them is now missing in the puzzle that makes them whole?

Happi’s feelings throughout are ones that are most brilliant. They are a rainbow of colors we as readers can all relate too: confusion, uncertainty, moments of clarity, understanding, and hope.

In a word One of the Good Ones is exceptional.

Maika and Maritza Moulite are adept authors, narrating stories that add to the beauty, joy, and history of the Black community.

A book to read over and over and to be shared with book lovers across the globe.

Read this book.



Happy Reading ̴ Cece

Nuanced, witty, and thoughtful, One of the Good Ones is a portrait of how our culture only equates people, particularly black people, as being worthy of humanity and empathy if they have proven their worth by either their grades, their accomplishments, or squeaky clean records. But it shouldn't be this way.

One of the Good Ones incorporates many aspects of American culture and its racism that are relevant but may not be obvious to everyone, and it does a good job of pointing out these unethical details in the system. I appreciated the historical references the book supplies as it underlines that the issues from the "past" aren't as long ago as some may think. Moreover, the story is about family, specifically sisters, and how young women often taken the largest burden when it comes to putting the pieces back together. The novel is perceptive in its depictions of grief (and being a teenager). Happi is a character I particularly loved in this book.

The novel's third act has a sudden thriller aspect added to it that doesn't quite feel organic and doesn't exactly match the tone of the rest of the narrative. While I can see the merit of the thriller being used in a metaphorical sense, the third act feels too fast-paced and not as well woven together as the first 2/3rds of the novel. Still, One of the Good Ones is a novel worth picking up.