One of the best YA books I’ve read in a very long time. A layered, multi-perspective narrative that will break your heart and give you hope.

All My Rage follow Salahudin and Noor, two Pakistani-American teens living in small town Juniper, CA where not everyone is exactly accepting of people who don't look like them. When Salahudin's mother Misbah passes away, everything begins to crumble for both of them. Attempting to keep the family's motel afloat, Salahudin turns to questionable actions in order to pay off the bill collectors. All Noor wants is to get into one of the seven colleges she applied to in order to finally get out of the small town that just keeps crushing her. We also follow Misbah in the past as she meets her husband bringing us to the present from her perspective.

Sabaa Tahir's lyrical writing was so beautiful and painful. This story of two broken teens figuring out how to not only survive but thrive in their lives was hard to read at times but overall so wonderful to have had a chance to read. These characters will hold a place in my mind for some time I think. I just want them to be happy after enduring such hard times.

Content Warnings:
-physical abuse & violence
-childhood sexual trauma (off page)
-death of a parent
-terminal illness
-alcoholism
-drug abuse and OD
-teen motherhood (passive character)
-racism and racist comments towards Pakistani & Muslim people

This was such a beautiful and personal story from Sabaa Tahir. I loved it from start to finish and hope everyone buys it and she makes buckets of cash from the sales because she deserves that and so much more for her talent.

Thank you so much to Penguin Teen and Net Galley for giving me an ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review!

All My Rage was so beautiful and heartbreaking and hopeful and real. A little ways into the story, I could already tell that this is one of those books that everyone should read. Sal and Noor and the people around them create so much empathy in the reader, even though they make mistakes or end up in terrible situations, and learning to understand the very real struggles that people face is one of the most beneficial aspects of reading. I know Sabaa Tahir (whose books I've loved ever since I read An Ember in the Ashes several years ago) wrote this book from her soul and from her own experience, and it is so clear in the writing and storytelling. I wish so much that all Americans would read and take to heart this book because it demonstrates so well the difficulties that immigrant families to this country face.

I loved that this book was realistic, even though it hurt sometimes. Toward the end, when a lot of things go awry for the characters, they're left with some happy endings and some hard consequences, and I think that was beautiful. That's how real life goes -- there's a constant mix of good and bad things. I just wanted to wrap Sal and Noor in a big hug even though they both acted like idiots occasionally.

I can't speak from personal experience so I won't make a judgement on the Pakistani and Muslim representation in All My Rage. However, knowing that Sabaa Tahir so lovingly wrote this book with her childhood experiences as a Pakistani-American growing up in her family's motel in the Mojave Desert in mind, I can tell that a lot of care was taken to write characters and events that honor the experience of immigrants to America, specifically from Pakistan.

Do yourself a huge favor and read this book. It was heartbreaking at times, yes, but it left me feeling so hopeful.

This was devastatingly beautiful.

I’ve been a fan of Sabaa Tahir since I read An Ember in the Ashes and so I knew I had to read this too. It did not disappoint. Equal parts infuriating, heartbreaking, yet hopeful.

This is perfect for fans of Such a Fun Age and Against the Loveless World.

This is the heartbreaking and beautiful story of two teens trying to make it out of their small desert town in one piece. Surviving addiction, death in the family, abuse, Salahudin and Noor manage to rise above all the ugliness and shine. Just like Ama told them they would. May we all be blessed with an Ama in our lives… This is a beautiful and heartbreaking book. Just try and read it without crying.

As always Tahir gives us a masterpiece. I loved this book. I cried so many times I lost count. The relatable events in this book were powerful. I loved the flow of the story and the characters. The novel was definitely character driven, their weaknesses and dreams were the main element of the story.

I absolutely loved this book! The characters were amazing and their stories touched my heart. I have shared reviews on Instagram and goodreads.

This book will break your heart, put it back together and break it again and the cycle continues. There is so much in this heart-wrenching beautifully written contemporary novel that will have you flipping pages so fast.

TWO WORDS: GRIPPING and POWERFUL! That's all I have to say. Read it now if you haven't already. Truly, Sabaa writes the best stuff!

3.5/5 Stars

Misbah and her husband leave Pakistan and move to America in the hopes of creating a better future for themselves. They purchase a motel in California and begin to raise their son, Salahudin. When Noor was young, she lost both her parents and was brought to America by her uncle. Sal and Noor have been bestfriends since they were young, but then they get in a fight that changes everything. Now, in their senior year, Sal is taking care of his sick mother and alcoholic father while Noor dreams of leaving Juniper to go to college.

This took place during alternating timelines including flashbacks to the past and the present, which I really enjoyed. I think the flashbacks allowed for a mystery element to the story, because you could tell that something happened, but we weren't let in on the "secret" until much later on in the story. We also get three POVs as well, Noor, Sal and Mishbar. which I thought helped interweave these three characters even more, and helped you feel more connected in their stories. It definitely covers some very deep topics including addiction, drug use, assault both physically and sexually, as well as racial slurs. This book was an emotional roller coaster for sure... I really liked Sal and Noor and the tension that you felt in their friendship. I liked how they had to learn to navigate one another again after their fight and what that meant to each of them. I listened to this on audio and really loved the narration of these characters.

Overall, this was a great read, but make sure you're mentally prepared for the topics that it will cover!

Absolutely excellent. Sabaa Tahir can do no wrong. This was heartbreaking and amazing and awesome.

I believe that Sabaa Tahir is one of the best YA writers of our generation. I am partially at a loss for words here: this is contemporary perfection and everyone and their mother should read it.

Book Review⁣
Title: All My Rage⁣
Author: Sabaa Tahir⁣
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🅢🅨🅝🅞🅟🅢🅘🅢:⁣
⁣
Lahore, Pakistan. Then.⁣
Misbah is a dreamer and storyteller, newly married to Toufiq in an arranged match. After their young life is shaken by tragedy, they come to the United States and open the Clouds’ Rest Inn Motel, hoping for a new start.⁣
⁣
Juniper, California. Now.⁣
Salahudin and Noor are more than best friends; they are family. Growing up as outcasts in the small desert town of Juniper, California, they understand each other the way no one else does. Until The Fight, which destroys their bond with the swift fury of a star exploding. ⁣
⁣
Now, Sal scrambles to run the family motel as his mother Misbah’s health fails and his grieving father loses himself to alcoholism. Noor, meanwhile, walks a harrowing tightrope: working at her wrathful uncle’s liquor store while hiding the fact that she’s applying to college so she can escape him—and Juniper—forever.⁣
⁣
When Sal’s attempts to save the motel spiral out of control, he and Noor must ask themselves what friendship is worth—and what it takes to defeat the monsters in their pasts and the ones in their midst. ⁣
⁣
🅡🅔🅥🅘🅔🅦: ⁣
This is hands down, the best book I’ve read this year. It is my first Sabaa Tahir book, and it won’t be my last. The writing was beautiful. I felt a connection to the three main characters, which for me is rare. I’m not sure how else to describe my feelings during and after reading the book other than it was heartbreaking and hopeful all at the same time. I highly suggest you have a box of tissues nearby while reading.⁣
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Thank you to⁣ Penguin Teen for the advanced reader copy

Premise:
All My Rage is a depth-defying, heart-breaking, and visceral coming-of-age novel that details the struggles of two Pakistani teenagers and families as they try to follow the American Dream.

Writing & Plot:
This book is difficult but not for the reasons you may think. Five stars I don't think quantifies my love for this book. At some points, it doesn't even feel like a book, but like a diary. You can feel Sabaa Tahir through the story as her heart bleeds onto the page. This story feels alive like Sabaa Tahir ripped off a piece of her soul and formed it into words for us to read. All My Rage is deeply personal, heartbreaking, and hopeful, almost as if you’re reading something you shouldn't have access to.

This book is technically young adult, but I would argue that it’s only because the characters are in high school. All My Rage deals with an onslaught of different emotional and traumatic topics that I think ride the cusp of YA/Adult. Regardless of its placement, All My Rage can be enjoyed by people of all ages (maybe 16+).

First of all I cannot get over how beautiful Sabaa Tahir writes. Sometimes books don’t need beautiful words, I can enjoy them for the plot alone. However. I can tell when an author is great at evoking feelings and images because I want to highlight every other sentence in the book.

The story switches between the perspective of Sal, Noor, and Sal’s mother: Misbah. Each bring their own unique perspective and their feelings flood their respective chapters. Although I haven’t experienced many of the things these three have, they each bring emotions or thoughts that are so relatable. ​

There are many trigger warnings that Sabaa Tahir mentions at the start of the novel, so please check that out before starting the novel! Otherwise, I would say this is a beautifully written, slightly tragic, romance that illustrates some of the harder emotions that life can bring. ​So, if you’re ready for a beautifully written, heart wrenching story, this is for you!

So much depth to these interweaving narratives, so much complexity to the characters, so much feeling and heartbreak in such a readable and rather quick read. This is my favorite kind of YA novel. Absolutely add ALL MY RAGE to your TBR. ⁣
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“Pakistan isn’t home anymore. Juniper never was. ⁣
But Salahudin—Saluhudin feels like home. ⁣
So I stay.”⁣
⁣
I did something with book that I don’t usually do. I alternated between listening to the audio and reading the physical book, whichever was more achievable in the moment. I will say that the audio was a little hard for me at the beginning, just hard to keep the names that were foreign to my ears straight at first. But the audio was great once I got the hang of everyone. I’m very glad I have the physical copy however.

4.5 I read this super fast because it was so good. I mostly did the audio which isn’t the best out there but I still loved it. Lots of feelings reading this one including dread for what may happen to these characters. Definitely one of the better YA books I’ve read recently. I’m always a fan of alternating POV and timelines.

I don’t think I’ll be the same person that I was before I read this book. Sabaa Tahir is a force to be reckoned with. Filled with heartbreak and the lowest lows of someone’s life, Tahir pulls at every ounce of hope you have while you root for her characters. Truly amazing book.

Sabaa Tahir does it again! This book was everything, and broke me in the best possible way. If you were a fan of An Ember in the Ashes for the characters and plot development, this book delivers in the best way as well. I'm always hesitant going into contemporary novels because they are not my usual forte, but this one was so fantastic. Sabaa Tahir has been an autobuy author for fantasy but that's definitely shifting to contemporary too. Full review to come on bookstagram soon!