Required Reading for the Disenfranchised Freshman by Kristen R. Lee is a debut novel for release in February of 2022. Savannah Howard has accomplished what most parents dream of for their child- a scholarship to one of the most prestigious universities in the country. And, at first, Savannah is just as eager as her mom is to get out of the run-down neighborhood she grew up in, and experience all that the illustrious Wooddale University has to offer her. However, right from the start Savannah is exposed to microaggressions and reminders that she is not as welcome as the glossy brochures purport Wooddale to be. In a series of racist attacks, Savannah must find the strength to stand up for herself and the other Black students at Wooddale. Is she willing to give up all that she and her mother worked so hard for? Is it worth it to stand out? What price will she pay for not just „accepting“ the way things are at Wooddale? Required Reading starts out with promise, and I liked where it was headed, but the turn from Savannah experiencing Wooddale to the vandalism of the Black university president‘s statue to uncovering a huge admissions scandal seemed to move at light speed. The tension between Savannah and her roommate, the relationship with the Black student union…it all moved too fast for me. I suppose that is the point- that Black students are exposed to microaggressions and outright racism from the get go. Experiences I‘ve never had to go through. So maybe I am not the target audience. (Part 1) part 2 I feel a bit conflicted with my rating as I did enjoy Lee‘s writing and there was much that could have been explored, but in the end, I don‘t think the reader was allowed to bond with any of the characters long enough to care that much about what was going on. Plus, I felt the ending tied everything up so nicely that it didn‘t feel true to what the message was. However, I would definitely add this to a classroom library as I do think it was enjoyable. The experiences of Savannah are not isolated, and it is valuable for all students to recognize this. Ultimately though, a mild recommendation from me. Thank you to @NetGalley for the ARC in return for an honest review.

*4.5

I really liked this book even though it was super heavy. It goes into great detail about Savannah's freshman year of college and all of the racism that she and her friends experience. It is something that is very real for a lot of students. The writing was really good and made you fully understand everything that Savannah was going through.

TW:Racism, Racial Slurs

I received an arc through netgalley.

First off I want to say that this was an awesome book! I just teach 7th grade, and I feel the college setting is a bit old for them. That being said it’s perfect for a high school classroom because it gives a realistic perspective of college life. I enjoyed the narrator’s voice, and I felt the entire story was fast paced, but still thorough. I think Savannah is a phenomenal young women and a great example for young girls to look up to. I think it’s an important story to be told, in a unique voice, that’s honestly refreshing.

I loved every second of this book. It was amazing. The topics the author chose to discuss were handled perfectly. I think this is mandatory reading!

“𝘽𝙚 𝙘𝙖𝙧𝙚𝙛𝙪𝙡. 𝘼 𝙗𝙡𝙖𝙘𝙠 𝙬𝙤𝙢𝙖𝙣 𝙨𝙥𝙚𝙖𝙠𝙞𝙣𝙜 𝙪𝙥 𝙛𝙤𝙧 𝙝𝙚𝙧𝙨𝙚𝙡𝙛 𝙖𝙡𝙬𝙖𝙮𝙨 𝙝𝙖𝙨 𝙖 𝙩𝙖𝙧𝙜𝙚𝙩 𝙤𝙣 𝙝𝙚𝙧 𝙗𝙖𝙘𝙠.”⁣
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This quote alone sold me on this book. I want it on a shirt. I want people to discuss this more. I wanna discuss it but y’all not ready for that 😂😅⁣
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Anyways I’ve been trying to write this review for the past hour and I still can’t come up with any words that can give justice to how this made me feel. ⁣
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Like how do you write a review about something that almost felt triggering bc events that were happening closely resembled things that you’ve went through. ⁣
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Here’s some random thoughts I had while reading:⁣
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• The way the author wrote about how specifically black girls/ women are treated so perfectly I could cry 🥺⁣
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• Our MC is a reader. Some of her favs are Toni Morrison, Gloria Naylor, and Ntozake Shang 📚⁣
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• I couldn’t put this down. Once the ball is rolling it’s ROLLING 😬⁣
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• The blatant racism was so triggering. I almost dnf’d because it felt to real.⁣
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• There’s good talk on how white men don’t understand the word NO.⁣
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I could keep going but I just really want to sit in this one for awhile. I may discuss it again more in depth but if not just know I HIGHLY recommend it.⁣
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Grab your copy 2/1

Savannah thought college was going to be an enlightening experience, especially after she got a full ride to the elite school, but it has become enlightening for all the wrong reasons! She comes face to face with racism on every level of the spectrum and in every way. As she learns more about her privileged school and the students who go there she realizes that she has to speak up, but the signs aren’t good it will be well received. A great look at privilege and elitism at the college level and how diversity doesn’t actually mean creating a safe space for all students. A must read for seniors headed to college.

Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for the eARC of this novel. 3.5/5 stars.

I didn't really know what to expect when going into this, but it is very socially aware of racism and classism on campuses in the US -- especially private colleges. I wasn't sure where the plot was going originally, but it became an acknowledgement of white privilege and the paths Black folk walk to make it. I really enjoyed Savannah's journey and her acceptance of her identity -- especially as she went from hiding herself to fit in to becoming a strong, Black woman.

This book is definitely Black Girl Magic, and it discusses realities including slurs, controversial statues, white privilege, and speaking out for your beliefs and protesting. It felt wrapped up by the end, and I could see other stories coming as Savannah continues her path.

Some of the side characters didn't feel super developed, and it felt like the plot was a bit rushed or undeveloped at points. Also, sometimes I just really didn't enjoy reading the book, but I can also acknowledge that I am not the intended audience for this book.

Overall though, this was a good read. It did take me a while to get into, but it has its merits.

Required Reading for the Disenfranchised Freshman by Kristin R. Lee is a book that reflects issues that are very relevant today. It is written from the perspective of a Black girl who has been given a full scholarship to a prestigious university. She imagines a bright future that will make up for the sacrifices her mother made for her. She experiences, however, the racism that lies beneath the surface at the university.
At first I had a hard time believing in the character because of the language she uses when she speaks. It didn’t seem to be consistent with that used by a gifted student. As I read the book, I came to realize that she uses a different manner of speaking when she is in the classroom than she does with her peers.
Unfortunately the issues in the book do exist: the fraternities that tolerate racial bias while hiding paying lip service to inclusiveness, the bullying to control other students, and the privilege afforded more affluent students. They are relevant to today’s news and make reading this book important .
Kristin R. Lee does an excellent job of making the characters relatable. Savanna, the main character, is likable and could be a real freshman who starts out being naïve and later matures into a stronger self-sufficient young woman. I grew to like her as I read the book.
I highly recommend this book. It’s easy reading, though the subject matter might make some readers uncomfortable. Maybe that is why it should be read.

** I received this book in exchange of an honest review. All opinions are my own.

Savannah has a lot riding on her full ride scholarship. She fast tracked through high school with good grades but little social life in order to get into a top university. Savannah receives a full ride to Wooddale, a pristine ivy league school with a low number of minority students. However, instead of relishing what her hard work got her, Savannah is faced with microaggressions, racism, and white privilege. After a statue of Clive Wilmington is vandalized with blackface, Savannah comes face to face with Lucas Cunningham. Because he's from a prominent family, Savannah knows that going up against him will take guts and she'll have to stand up for what she knows is right.

Required Reading for the Disenfranchised Freshman is a searing debut novel about how even in elite institutions, many will turn a blind eye to the racism that they see if they're paid the right amount or given the proper nudge in the right direction. Our main character is driven and doesn't back down without a fight. The only issue I had with the book was how little actual classes and daily life as a college student was discussed. The secondary characters also did not have a lot of life to them and fell flat in some instances. However, I see the main point of the book is how socially divided our campuses can be when confronted with racism. We can read about how a small community of black students feels that they are always seen as "other." There are great talking points in the book about how we should begin to stand up for ourselves, but also how we can become allies in the fight.

I recommend this book for those interested in social justice and how we can stand up for what we believe in against all odds.

This was an interesting read. It's been a while since I've been in college but the author did a great job of bringing all of the emotions and learning of a new environment to the forefront. It's never easy to fit into a new place but it's especially hard when there is racism and microaggressions going on that no one wants to face and give name to.
I liked how the characters develop and grow and are relatable. It made the story more personable. You wanted to keep reading to see how things turned out.

Getting into a top-tier Ivy League school is what Savannah Howard has strived her entire life for. Never mind that she wanted to join an HBCU instead; she’s going to Wooddale, an elite private school. As soon as she arrives, Savannah is left reeling by the microaggressions from her roommates and classmates. And then a Black man’s statue is defaced with blackface. When Savannah protests, her dormroom door with defaced with a racist slur. Savannah should be cowed. She should tuck her head, stay low and get her degree. But she can’t let these injustices fly.

“We live in a world where we are inundated with other people’s lives. You go two steps up and then you see someone on social media who’s gone twenty steps further,” Daphne says.

I was not quite expecting what I read.

This is not a book about required reading or reading really at all. Instead, the title is saying that this is the book that is the required reading. In case you need that broken down, because I certainly did.

Anywho, this is heavily based upon the author’s experiences at a mostly whyte elite college, and so many of the events ring with the sharp and depressing bite of authenticity.

There are a lot of microaggressions and outright racism, and while that is challenged, not a whole lot happens to the perpetrators (is there lasting change? Maybe, but mostly not). Savannah is faced with threats that range from physical violence to destruction of property to false accusations, while also dealing with the erasure of the issues of what she is facing.

What I really liked was how well this book looked at various experiences of being Black: of being poor and attending college, of being wealthy and attending the same college, and the varying levels of privilege associating with walking through varying layers of whyteness (and how, when push comes to shove, whyteness sticks together), and vertical integration within the system.

It was also a look at how heavy and hard it is to be the one pushing back against injustices and prejudice so ingrained into the system that no one else seems to care to change, or just shrug off because what can you do? Being that squeaky wheel, when you don’t conform to the polite, quiet disagreement (tone policing is huge here) expected of you, is heavy and a painful burden to bear, particularly when Savannah never wanted that burden in the beginning.

Anywho, this is a long review, and it’s definitely a book that had me thinking. I did have some issues with the pacing, the ehhhhh romance and the ending that just…ended, but overall the book highlighted what it meant to highlight and was a good read overall, with a protagonist who was not perfect, but who tried her damnedest.

Mama sighs, and rebuts. “Baby, I been trying to tell you…the entire world is a racist institution.”

Savannah is a great main character. She’s brave, resourceful, thinks through situations, and is wicked smart. A great model for anyone to look up to. She sees exactly what’s going on with a clear view.

I stopped at 20% but should it continue the way it is, definitely would be a popular story among high schoolers. I didn’t find the cover particularly eye catching.

Excellent. Love the writing. Love how this is a fictional portrayal of what happens in real life at PWIs. Love the imperfect characters. Love breaking the mold of all Black people thinking the same. The class critique. Amazing amazing book. Definitely triggers for racism, racial slurs, police, and drug abuse..

**Thank you to NetGalley and Random House Children's/Crown Books for Young Readers for the eARC in exchange for an honest review. This in no way changed my rating**

I'm starting January really conflicted. This is my third 3.5 in a row and I just want a book to rave about. This book was engaging and has a lot of important things to say, but I think the incidents that are happening in this book are really overt in my experience and would've definitely caught some attention prior to the conclusion of the book. I know that this is based partially on the author's experiences, but I can only bring mine to this reading and for me, it felt like the antagonist was almost cartoonishly racist whereas the racism I experienced throughout high school and college was more on the micro-aggressions level and VERY rarely as overt as Lucas' actions.

The book is about Savannah, an incoming freshman at Wooddale, an Ivy League college. She is a Black student, there on a full scholarship with a near perfect SAT score but is initially paired with a roommate who immediately shortens and gentrifies her name, who refers to her as "Affirmative Action" on many occasions, and who says a lot of ignorant things on the regular. Her roommate is dating Lucas, who is the student body president and the head of a frat house on campus, as well as the son of a very wealthy donor to the college.

The main conflict starts when a student defaces a statue of one of the Black founders of the college, painting it in Blackface and putting an afro wig on it. Savannah is (rightfully) upset that this statue has been defaced and that her fellow students don't seem to be concerned. They mostly laugh it off as "just a joke". Throughout a series of events, Savannah continues to experience harassment, different treatment from her peers and professors alike than the treatment of the white students, and many, many overt forms of racism. Many of them stem from white students insisting on using the "n-word" for...reasons (cause they're ignorant, if not racist). This did happen at my college (which was also predominantly white), but not to the same degree that I found in this book. Savannah eventually learns to use her voice to stand up for what's right, but I feel like the incidents that were happening throughout the novel would have definitely made some kind of news earlier than the conclusion of the book. They have a social media hashtag called #WooddaleConfessions. There would have to be some kind of TikTok or Twitter equivalent that would allow them to amplify the situations that keep happening LONG before the end of the book. Especially at an Ivy League school, which probably has more scrutiny in the media than your average college in my experience.

I really enjoyed Savannah as a character. I love that she has strong female friendships in both B'onca and Tasha. The relationships Savannah has with other Black women in this story is really where the story shines and where I enjoyed Lee's writing the most. I think Lee obviously has many important things to say about the BIPOC/Black experience in colleges, but I also think she shows great representation of female friendships within this community and I appreciated that. There's also some discussion about generational trauma and how the dreams of your parents can be thrust upon you in relation to Savannah's relationship with her mother, Freda, who is a single mother who works long hours and/or multiple jobs throughout her childhood to get Savannah a shot at Ivy League.

Overall, while I can't say it's representative of my experience in terms of how I experienced racism in college, I do think this book has important things to say and that the writing is worth giving it a chance. My only change would be to show more subtle instances of these events instead of mostly large, attention-grabbing things. I feel like the actions Lucas goes through are going to be so overt that some of the people who need to look at his behavior and examine themselves will write it off because it's SO in your face. There are shades, unfortunately, and I just think that maybe the book will end up with some people who need to read it and absorb it using as a way to excuse their behavior because it's not "as bad" as Lucas' mess.

3.5/5 stars (rounded up to 4 for Goodreads)

PUB DATE: 1 Feb 2022

Thank you to @netgalley for the free ARC in exchange for my honest review.

I just finished Required Reading for the Disenfranchised Freshman by Kristin Lee. This book was PHENOMENAL. I can’t believe it’s Lee’s debut novel! I’m not even sure I can put all of my thoughts and feelings into words, but I’ll try.

Savannah Howard sacrificed the fun high school experience her peers took advantage of to study. Her mom pushed her to make sure she’d get out of their neighborhood, go to an Ivy League Institution, and make a better life for both herself and her mom. Savannah wanted to go to a HBCU in lieu of Wooddale University, where she received a full scholastic scholarship, but it was her mom’s dream for her to go to Wooddale and she didn’t want to disappoint her. On campus, Savannah was one of the only black people around. There were less than 100 black students. When she witnessed racism in the form of a disgusting caricature spray painted on the statue of Clive Washington, she quickly finds herself where she never thought she’d be: an activist fighting for what’s right.

People think that just because black people use AAVE, or Ebonics as ignorant, backwards, and racist people prefer, we’re unintelligent. Savannah is a straight A student who got a scholarship to a prestigious college. Told in first person, we experience Savannah’s code switch. In her head, she speaks the way she speaks around her black friends and family but when speaking to the white and entitled students she goes to school with and that she encounters in real life, she speaks in the only grammar they can comprehend - “proper” American English.

This book was so real that I honestly forgot I was even reading a book. It felt like I personally was experiencing the micro aggressions, the racism, and the hatred that Savannah and her friends received from a popular fraternity, and soon the whole school.

This was an emotional book and that’s putting it lightly. It is very exhausting to be black and to constantly deal with the ingrained racism that people display towards us. The worst ones are those who don’t even know they’re being racist and hateful. It’s so ingrained in them that it’s normal.

Lee also makes a statement about white performative activists that I think was extremely important. They’re okay cheering us on from the sidelines hiding behind they’re friends, and they’re okay supporting us in private, but that’s it. Going the distance.

“White folks don't ever get that we are the ones at risk. We got the most to lose.”

I’ve already pre-ordered this book and I’m so excited for a physical copy. This book was absolutely everything I didn’t know I needed and it’s a REALLY important book for teenagers, especially black teenagers, to read. I have a feeling that this book will be considered a classic in the future.

I really love reading books where teens find their voice and stand up against injustices.

This book takes place in college and I hope we see more of that in YA. Savannah grew up in a poor area of Memphis with her single mom. She worked her butt off and got a full scholarship to a college out of state. It's a top school, but Savannah worries that it's mostly white. She'd much rather go to a school with kids that look like her. But her mom is proud and wants her to get the job offers she would get with this degree. Right away, Savannah sees that her roommates mom says things that are racist. Small things, but still. Walking around, she sees mostly white kids, but does meet two other black students, Benji and Tasha. They become close. But Benji is really rich and friends with an asshole, Lucas. He said they aren't friends anymore, but they grew up really close. When there is racist graffiti, Savannah knows that it has to be Lucas. When Savannah goes to people at the school, she quickly learns that Ivy league schools protect the rich. Things continue to get worse and Savannah wants to leave. But she also wants Lucas to pay for what he's done and she starts going public about the things she knows.

I wanted to share a few quotes that I really liked in this book. The writing was great, especially for a debut.

"Black culture...loved by folks of every color unless that culture comes from actual Black folk. Then we called hood. Ghetto. Trashy."

"Uppity, but Black nevertheless. Do they still know that? Or does their vision become cloudy after they reach a certain tax bracket."

"It's headaches, heartaches, depression, anxiety, and stress all rolled up into a shiny fifty-thousand-a-year package."

I gave this book 4 1/2 stars rounded up to 5 on Goodreads.

Thank you to the publisher and Netgalley for my earc.

Warnings for racism, drinking, harassment, teen pregnancy, privilege.

Thank you to NetGalley for providing me with a copy of this book. I LOVED it. As a first generation Black inner city kid who went to a PWI this book really resonated with me with how racism is prominent around campuses when you are PoC. Like many of us, the main character realized in the end that she didn’t need to be the activist and could just be Black which I loved. It is everyone’s responsibility to speak up against oppression.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for the eARC!

I enjoyed reading this and finished the book in one sitting. While I can't speak to the specific experiences of low-income and/or Black students at elite institutions, I found many aspects of this story relatable as a POC student at a PWI. The novel tackles white privilege and structural racism, especially at elite institutions, in a frustrating and upsetting way that is clearly still incredibly realistic.

I only have two major criticisms for this story:
-- It seemed to jump straight from one "bad event" to another, which didn't leave quite as much space for individual character development (especially in terms of the side characters).
-- If I remember correctly, all of the characters were either Black or white, and there were no other POC characters. While this doesn't hurt the story overall, I think that having other POC voices would strengthen and highlight the intersectionality of its major themes (especially since non-Black POC students do also attend elite institutions and do face structural racism, albeit in a different way).

If you are comfortable with the content in this book (microaggressions, use of racial slurs, etc.), I definitely recommend. This book should be required reading not just for disenfranchised freshmen, but for anyone who will attend, is currently attending, or once attended a PWI.

Well done! I devoured this book in one night; while marketed as YA, I think it’s important reading for everyone. As an educator, it definitely helped me understand more about what Black students experience in schools that are mostly populated by white students. The main character’s tenacity in seeking justice was admirable. I really liked the ending as well. Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for the ARC.

Thank you to netgalley for providing an e-galley for review. Required Reading for Disenfranchised Freshman is a fictional account of the author's time at a prestigious ivy league college and the micro and macro aggressions she encountered there. The story itself is extremely important but other than Savannah, the characters were pretty one-dimensional and very flat. I wish the characterizations of the secondary characters was better fleshed out.