Fantastically compelling . Pink balances an exploration of institutional racism with a more primary focus on the brokenness in a family, the destructive influence of grief, and the impact of being a public figure on an entire family. Each moment of the plot is poised to either mend their relationship or tear them entirely apart. It's beautifully rendered and perfectly balanced emotionally.

This book was one of my favorites this year. I loved Ruth and loved seeing her get her voice back and stand up for herself and her family. It was an incredible story. Highly recommend. Thanks to NetGalley and Macmillan Audio for the opportunity to review this book.

*received for free from netgalley for honest review* Loved, loved, loved this book! Would buy and reread for sure! really great book all the way around tbh lol

I'm not an own voices review here so I am going to say very little. First off go look for own voices reviews first because those reviews are the ones that really matter. Now what I want to say is that this book is so important and I want this book to be out there where everyone can read it and learn. This book is so important.

"We are the Scribes" tackles racism and slavery, grief and loss, a family learning how to love on the other side of trauma, silence and finding one's voice. There's so much heaviness, but also so much love and hope winding through the pages. Randi Pink is a trustworthy guide and it was hard to stop listening when I had other things to do. I didn't want to leave Ruth's family; I trusted their strengths would carry them through.

This story definitely works beautifully in audiobook format. I'll be reading whatever else Randi Pink writes, for sure.

Many thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for a free e-copy for review.

Ruth is stuck in her grief over the loss of her sister and the seeming abandonment of her mother who is running for VP of the country. Ruth begins to receive scrolls from a scribe of the past. The scrolls are from a woman who was born into slavery and she refers to herself as Ruth’s fore scribe. Through the scrolls Ruth is guided on her journey of self discovery and finding her own voice. The narrator is fantastic and was one of the many reasons why I didn’t want to put this book down!

From my blog post: This was a book that sold me by its beautiful cover but the story definitely affirmed what I felt would be a great one. It combines the past with the present along with grief and joy beautifully; it also made political commentary digestible (it’s not a huge amount but it is apart of the narrative due to the MC’s parent’s professions & pasts). There is also a different take on paranormal influence in how the spirit reaches out to the main character, which I liked (you have to read in order to find out how that is). The narrator did a great job with this story and giving the characters varying voices. I did wish that they had another narrator for the secondary voice in the story so it really denotes that characters age and the levity of what they are saying as well as differentiates them. Other than that, this would be a great book to add to a social studies unit along side books like Black Was The Ink by Michelle Coles, whether the class listens to it together on audiobook or reads the physical/e-book.

This compelling young adult novel is a unique spin on finding your voice. Randi Pink has crafted complex characters you can't help but root for, even if they make poor decisions sometimes. Our main character is reluctantly thrown into the limelight but finds inspiration and motivation from a creative and unusual source, a formerly enslaved woman. This book would be perfect for a classroom or young adult reading challenge.

This was such an incredibly well-written and powerful YA story about Ruth, a young Black girl whose mother is running for Vice President of the United States while the rest of her family is still grieving the death of her older sister.

Added to all the timely BLM content, political activism, racism and misogyny was an extra layer of historical fiction/magical realism, in which Ruth is gifted scribes from the past written by Harriet Jacobs, a real African American slave and author.

This was excellent on audio narrated by Imani Jade Powers and perfect for fans of books like One of the good ones by Maika Moulite or The conductors by Nicole Glover. I loved seeing Ruth's journey to find her voice and her family's path to healing.

Much thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for an early audio copy in exchange for my honest review!

Thank you Netgalley for the audiobook!

I loved this one!

The characters were so compelling, seeing Ruth navigate her unique family dynamic was so interesting.

The best part of this audiobook though was the narrator. They did a fantastic job bringing the story to life. I honestly think I would of rated this lower if it wasn’t for them.

To use her own words, Randi Pink is a master scribe, and We Are the Scribe has quickly become one of my favorite books. This is the story of Ruth Fitz the daughter of an American senator and an African American history professor whose life is completely changed by a family tragedy and her mother’s new political opportunity. Ruth has lost her voice and her writing through tragedy and as she’s trying to figure out what to do, she starts receiving letters from Harriet Jacobs, the author of Incidents in the Life of a Slave Girl stating that Ruth is a scribe and Harriet is her fore-scribe. Throughout the story, Ruth must refine her voice and her writing.
If you’re going to write a story about the art of writing and show writing that’s beautiful, then your own writing must be great. Pink does this incredibly well. She shifts between the voices of Ruth and Harriet Jacobs with ease changing her writing style into two voices which are beautiful. Her character development of every character is also great. The best part of this story was following Ruth as she finds her voice and learns how to use it. Pink is also able to write a story showing the experience of so many Black families as they figure out how to exist in a world made for whiteness. I found myself relating to Ruth particularly. From the relatability of the characters to the realness with which Pink writes situations, it is hard not to be affected by her writing. I found myself crying at points during the book. Overall, the writing of this book was incredible.
I’ll end by writing that if you’re attempting to decide what format to write this book in, I would highly recommend checking out the audiobook. The narrator is wonderful and has an accent which fits with character of Ruth. Listening to this story is a wonderful experience which I would highly recommend. Ultimately, We Are the Scribes is a wonderful book I would highly recommend.

This was really great. I loved Ruth and loved seeing her get her voice back and stand up for herself and her family. An incredible tale of grief, the power of words and family. It was lovely to see every member of the family grow through the campaign trail. With a hint of Harriet Jacobs? What’s not to love!

I absolutely loved We Are the Scribes and the way it explored loss and grief along with hope and growth all while bringing focus to lesser known Black historical figures and stories.

This book follows Ruth, a brilliant young writer who struggled with her voice after the loss of her sister. She receives guidance from Harriet Jacobs, author of Incidents in the Life of a Slave Girl, through letters that begin to magically appear in her life. Through this, Ruth begins to find her voice and uses it to unite her family that is struggling both with their loss and Ruth's mother's political campaign.

I highly recommend this story and expect to hear more and more people talking about this book very soon!

After loving the YA Historical Fiction, Angels of Greenwood by Randi Pink, I decided to check out her newest book We Are the Scribes.

This one is less Historical fiction (although there are ties to history) and more the story of family coping in their own ways after a tragic loss with a touch of magical realism.

Ruth Fitz is a teenage girl reeling from the loss of her big sister, Virginia. Her sisters parting words to her were to keep writing as she is a scribe. Now her family is struggling to find their way forward. Her senator mother announces on live TV she's running for vice president (before consulting her family). Her father has lost his spark. Ruth herself has started counting her words and become a selective mute.

When she starts finding scrolls from Harriet Jacob's, the author of the 1861 book, Incidents in the Life of a Slave Girl with messages personalized to her she is confused. She takes in what Harriet is saying and starts to use her pen to make positive changes for her family and friends through her writing.

I enjoyed this one for the YA fiction it was. At times I wish it had been adult fiction because I wanted more depth, but thats not the audience it was written for so that's on me not the author.

I will continue to pick up Randi Pink's works and would like to explore her backlist as well because she always seems to be tackling something big with her writing while also keeping it accessible.

Thank you to @macmillan.audio @netgalley for the opportunity to listen to this one. I definitely recommend the audio as the narration was well done.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publishers for this free advanced audiobook in exchange for an honest review.
We Are the Scribes is the first Randi Pink book I've read and I really enjoyed it. This story was powerful. It addressed so many important issues with a calm elegance that I truly admire. The prose is somewhat simple but I think that helped give the novel more impact. It didn't take fancy words to get the message across. The book was heartbreaking and awe inspiring. I can't even imagine the pain of losing my sister so I have the utmost respect for the main character and her family. I hung on every word of the ghost scrolls from Harriet Jacobs. I think the only thing I would have wanted was for the ghostly aspect of this story to be explained and finalized. I understand why Harriet sent scrolls to Ruth but I don't think the story defined how enough.
That being said, this was a wonderful story with good morals, unique characters, and a wonderful narrator for the audiobook.

Well Randi Pink does it again! I absolutely loved ANGEL OF GREENWOOD so I was excited to see their next book come across on NetGalley and this does not disappoint. WE ARE THE SCRIBES gives readers the other side of politics by showing how teenage Ruth Fitz and her family are impacted by her mother's political run... especially when they find out that she has been nominated as the Vice-Presidential candidate. While readers see how each member of the Fitz family struggles to handle all the pressures of DC and American politics, we also see them try to cope with the sudden death of Ruth's older sister.

Interwoven with the Fitz storyline is that of Harriet Jacobs (an African-American writer born into slavery that wrote LIFE OF A SLAVE GIRL published in 1861) writing letters to Ruth to help her rediscover her voice and power as a writer (a scribe). I now need to read more about Harriet because she sounds like a truly remarkable woman.

Pink's prose is as beautiful as it is powerful and there were many times where I got emotional while reading this book. I was cheering the Fitz family on in the moments that they eloquently fought back and I appreciate how Pink chose to end this novel... even if I needed the story to go on for longer (mostly because I wasn't ready to let go of Ruth or Harriet just yet).

I loved listening to Imani Jade Powers' audiobook performance, their tone fit perfectly with Pink's writing and WE ARE THE SCRIBES lends very well to being listened to.

Advanced Reader’s Copy provided by NetGalley, Macmillan Audio, and Macmillan Young Listeners in exchange for an honest review.

Thank you to the publishers, author and NetGalley for the free copy of this audio book.

Wow. This was so powerful, and addresses a lot of huge issues. I was drawn in right from the start and didn't want to put it down. I will be re-reading in the near future, and I don't say that often! The narrator was perfect as well.

I listened to this book and the narrator, Imani Jade Powers, is amazing.

As the main character, Ruth, and her family deal with the emotional trauma of her sister’s death Ruth gives up her writing passion and stops speaking. As her family deals with their grief in their own ways, Ruth begins to get mysterious letters from a Harriet Jacobs. The letters begin to encourage Ruth and remind her of the power of her words.

I think that the select muteness that Ruth suffers gives depth to her despair and is an excellent physical manifestation of her grief. It’s a beautiful addition by the author. The entire story was authentic look at trauma, grief, racism and the truth of a history we often shy away from.

Thanks to MacMillan and Netgalley for the audiobook ARC!

【 Ｑｕｏｔｅｓ】
⭐︎ “A mother is the most powerful thing in the universe.”

Thank you NetGalley and the publisher for providing me an advance copy for review.

Words cannot describe how much I loved this book and how impactful it is.

Ruth's family all consider themselves activists, which is why her politician mother announces she will be running for vice president. This comes soon after Ruth's sister. Virginia, is killed at a protest. This story is of a grieving family, all coping in their own ways to the detriment of each other. Ruth, an avid writer, stops writing and keeps even her spoken words to a minimum. That is, until, she is contacted via notes and scrolls by Harriet Jacobs, reminding her of her power and the power of her words.

I am going to be thinking about this book for a long time. It does an amazing job at tackling grief, racism, and misogyny in a YA context, as well as including such a remarkable historical figure as Harriet Jacobs to guide Ruth through these things. We Are the Scribes would make a great addition to history curriculum as well.

4.5 stars

WOW.

Harriet Jacobs is an incredible figure and writer, and I have loved sharing her indelible work with students in my college-level Early American Literature courses for years. I also love filling my YA catalog with impactful books that are as representative as possible. What could be better than a Harriet Jacobs/modern YA mashup? Only a longer version of this novel.

Ruth, the m.c., is going through way too much. She's recently experienced an unspeakable loss, and her family is dealing with their grief through different kinds of avoidance. The way this is described is so seamless and believable, and it's a feature that many readers will find surprising and relatable here. Ruth's passion is writing, and when she's devastated, she just...can't. It's so powerful that this is when Harriet Jacobs's letters start magically appearing in her life. As a formerly enslaved individual, Jacobs not only experienced her own unimaginable trauma, but she also fought (see her introduction to her famous work) to be listened to and required a proxy to help her find an audience. This added set of connections to Ruth and her current experiences really got me (perhaps the most out of any aspect of this powerful work).

There are endless opportunities for great pedagogical choices here, so anyone with curricular access to teaching both Jacobs and this work will bring students an unforgettable pairing. Readers who are interested in just this novel on its own will win from a tightly constructed work (though still appreciate any incoming knowledge of Jacobs).

My lone wish is that this had been a bit more developed. There's just so much going on with the various characters, historical tie-ins, magical elements, and plotlines, and I'd have loved to spend more time with just Ruth, who's a compelling individual on her own.

I can't wait to get back to my Early American students in a couple of days to strongly recommend this one!