Thank you to NetGalley, RB Media, Recorded Books, Macmillan Children's Publishing Group, Roaring Book Press, Jas Hammonds, and Tamika Katon-Donegal (audio narrator) for the opportunity to read and listen to We Deserve Monuments in exchange for an honest review.

A stunning debut with an excellent narrator for the audiobook that really brings the main character, Avery, to life. This novel explores the racism still exhibited in the south, biracial identity, and queer representation for Black girls. This novel also dives into the significance of family history and how events from one's past can shape who they are, even if they didn't know.

Avery loves her life in Washington D.C., and when she is forced to move with her mom to her grandmother's house in Georgia, she believes her senior year is absolutely ruined. There is immediate tension between her mother and grandmother, as they don't quite seem to see eye to eye. Mama Letty is old and ill, and with Avery's mom pushing to put Letty in a home, tensions grow higher. And poor Avery doesn't even know where the tensions are coming from, just that there are some secrets from the past that neither woman will share with her.

She does find some solace in Simone, her new next-door-neighbor, and Jade. These friendships help Avery navigate through her own identity and culture as a lesbian Black girl. When she starts to learn some of her family's secrets, her friendships may rupture, but it is family history that tends to shape a lot of who we are as people, and Avery seeks her own hisory and identity, but she won't let that stop her from being who she is and caring about who she cares for.

With commentary on racism in the south and what being biracial means for one's identity, this book packs a powerful punch. It is one for the classrooms and sure to be an instant cultural classic. This novel is a must-read for a young adult aduience.

This book was very heavy but reminded me of Angie Thomas books in that sense. I find these types of books hard to review because of that but I did really enjoy it.

I really liked Avery’s growth throughout. The book was about her finding herself and I loved seeing her and Mama Letty grow together.

Okay listen there’s books that hurt and books that heal. Some locked away part of my heart really needed this Black queer girl next door YA romance. The audiobook somehow made it even more romantic and the narrator was lovely. No notes. Chef’s kiss. If I could give it six stars I would.

Wow. Beautifully written story. A YA sapphic slow burn, multi-generational trauma, the direct impact of racial violence on a family, healthy friendship arc's, well-developed characters...so many things, all done in a way that felt poignant and effortless. This one will stick with you.

Avery is forced to leave the life she knew in DC to start her senior year at a small town in Georgia. The reason being her grandmother Lettie, a dying woman she only met once when she was five. Her mother and grandmother have a very tense relationship and have barely spoke in over a decade. As Avery gets to know Lettie she also learns more about her family's past that her mother kept hidden.
She also has to face the present racism and homophobia of being queer and biracial in the south. She bonds quickly with Simone, the daughter of a family friend, and Jade, a white girl with her own familial trauma who happens to live in an old plantation house. Simone and Avery have a slow-burn, angsty relationship and I loved it. Kind of wish there would be a sequel when they are both grown, just living life.

Thank you so much to NetGalley and MacMillan Audio for the ARC. The narrator was amazing and this would be great as a physical read as well.

Jas Hammonds has written a masterpiece! I believe this book should be mandatory reading in public schools since it covers so many important topics such as intergenerational trauma, racism, and homophobia. The audiobook was great since the narrator was so good at making each character authentically sound different. I would recommend both the physical copy of this book and the audio since both are impeccable.

I read the audiobook of this one and I thought the narrator did a great job bringing the characters to life, and I mean all of the characters not just the main character telling the story. This is a slow paced but beautiful and heartbreaking story. A story about family and trauma and love. This story shows how trauma haunts us through generations impacting far beyond. Avery’s parents have moved her back to her mother’s home town, a tiny place in Georgia, because her maternal grandmother is dying. Avery has a plan to go to school and get out without drama. But as she learns more about this grandmother she only ever met once before and makes friends she finds get out without making connections will be impossible. Avery learns a lot about her family’s history and as a biracial (black and white) she learns a lot that is hard to swollen about her southern roots. Reconciling what happened versus present day is difficult for her. This story was beautiful and poetic. It was heartbreaking and definitely made me shed a tear or two. Definitely worth a read.

https://www.goodreads.com/review/show/5063466311

"Life was short. Everything was urgent. And who had time to breathe in all that?"

We Deserve Monuments is a beautiful and breathtaking journey. It follows Avery Anderson as she moves back to her mother's hometown upon finding that her grandmother might not live long. Her original plan of "not getting involved" ("focus. forward") doesn't last very long, as she sees herself entangled in family drama, friendship and romance.

The story describes generational trauma, racism, fears of coming out (especially in a small town), how you can find a community when you weren't expecting it, how you can fall in love when you least expect it, and how everything isn't what it seems.

Racism plays a part since the very beginning - from Avery's relationship to her grandparents - and shows how it can ruin families, change the trajectory of so many lives. It also shows how even the family can try to cover up racism - and even though she did it, you still sympathize with her.

This book also deals plenty with grief - how do you live with someone who you know has a very limited time? What do you do? For Avery, the answer is trying to fix her (non-existent) relationship with her grandmother, which comes with a lot of revelations and stories, most of which she's not ready for. But, by telling them, Mama Letty's story and memory lives on.

Oh, it also describes perfectly how it is to be young today - nothing is certain, it feels like you have do everything now and right now or else you never will, you have to keep running and running because if you stop the finish line vanishes. And that's a thought that I think occurs to Avery a lot... and then starts to ease up as she meets some incredible people and makes new friends.

Many moments of this book brought me to tears and most of those were between Mama Letty and Avery. It's hard to let go of someone in a permanent way, and for most of the book I lived in denial and hoped it wouldn't come... but that's not really how it goes in real life, you don't get to close a chapter and not read it, and it's not what happens in this book.

It's also a book full of joy and laughter - so many moments between Mama Letty and Avery are fun too (most of them are of Mama Letty remarks) and so many are between Avery and Simone, and between them and Jade.

There was an underlying "mystery" throughout the book, that never really got truly solved, and I thought I'd be more upset about it at the end. I'm not. I don't think the author needs to tell us what happens - a murderer is still a murderer.

Overall, this book is really good. It brings you through the high and lows, keeps you guessing, keeps you hoping, and then closes it all up nicely. And they do deserve monuments, so many of them.

Trigger warnings: death of a family member, cancer, racism, mention of murder.

We Deserve Monuments is a queer, family-oriented - with a touch of mystery - young adult novel. This book follows a 17 year old girl, Avery, who moves to a small, historically racist town in Georgia (U.S.A) with her parents to stay with her sick grandmother, Mama Letty.
Mama Letty is a tough woman who holds a lot of secrets which cause a lot of friction between her and her daughter. While in Georgia, Avery becomes close friends with Simone and Jade and eventually a romance blossoms between Avery and Simone.

What drew me to this book were the title and the description. Everything about this book was beautiful. It was beautifully written, the characters felt so real to me and I could feel their emotions. The friendship between the three girls was very realistic and Mama Letty often made me crack up. This book also made me cry, which honestly doesn't happen often. I will say that a few times I got a bit confused because the in the book the author chose to go back in time but didn't clearly specify this - which lead to me not quite understanding what was happening.

The narrator (Tamika Katon-Donegal) was also fantastic and I would love to read more from this author and listen to other books Tamika Katon Donegal has and will narrate.

I recommend this book to people of any age category if they want to learn more about systemic racism within the United States, read about two teenage girls falling in love and a small piece of mystery woven within.

If I could give this book 4.5 stars, I would.

My Instagram review will be up on 11.11.2022 and my TikTok review will be up on 14.11.2022.
Thank you to NetGalley and RB Media for giving me this ARC in exchange for an honest review.
I just reviewed We Deserve Monuments by Jas Hammonds. #WeDeserveMonuments #NetGalley

I loved this book. The only thing I really didn't like was the constant mentions of covid. I don't like when any book mentions it, but I especially don't like when it's mentioned multiple times and as if it's a thing of the past and not something that is still currently a problem.

I listened to the audio version of We Deserve Monuments (Thanks to NetGalley & RB Media for an advanced copy). I was mesmerized by the narrator's voice--smooth, calming, expressive as the main character, Avery, a biracial teen entering her senior year at a new high school due to moving to her mother's hometown so her family can assist her grandmother, Mama Letty, during her cancer journey. The author's descriptive language places the reader directly into the Georgia heat and humidity, into the midst of Mama Letty's deteriorating neighborhood, the contrasting Spa and Mansions/Plantations, the special places in nature--the rivers and trees, as Avery becomes best friends with Jade (white and from a wealthy, prominent family) and Simone (black and the girl next door). The narrator voices all of the characters expertly, giving each their own unique voice, especially Mama Letty whose soft and salty southern drawl oozes sarcasm and her crusty emotional exterior protects a broken heart that Avery is determined to try to mend. The book explores first loves, as Avery realizes she is falling for the girl next door, and explores heavy topics such as racism, police brutality, the power of friendship, generational trauma and grief, yet there moments of lightness, love, humor and glittery magic that contrast with the tragedy as the story unfolds.
The ending gives a satisfactory glimpse into the three teens' lives in the near future as they make their way in the world, but it left me wondering... did they remain close friends and how did they deal with the tragedies they discovered? A beautiful book that I couldn't put down until the end! Highly recommend!

We Deserve Monuments by Jas Hammonds was fabulous. Thank you so much to Roaring Brook Press and Macmillan for my advance reader's copy and to Recorded Books for my ALC. Hammonds has created a compelling story that weaves together a swoony romance, an unsolved mystery, and a whole host of family secrets. She also deftly navigates complex themes like racism, homophobia, and the effects of generational trauma. Additionally, the narrator, Tamika Katon-Donegal, delivers a beautiful performance.

Avery and her parents move from Washington, D.C. to Bardell, Georgia to care for her estranged, dying grandmother. This small Georgia town has not let go of its racist roots; it's just disguised and adapted them to make them less obvious, but the Black residents are under no delusions. The rich white families run this town, and they can get away with murder. Avery tries to settle in to her senior year at a new school and eventually befriends Simone and Jade, which makes her situation more palatable. While she's out and unashamed of her queer identity, the town isn't quite ready to fly the pride flag. So when she and Simone fall for each other, they knew it was only a matter of time before things got ugly.

Alongside all of that, Avery is struggling to get to know her grandmother, Mama Letty, before it's too late. In the process, family secrets come to light, and Avery begins to wonder if her mom and grandmother will be able to reconcile in time.

This book kept me engaged from the very beginning. It taps into the current zeitgeist--questioning which people deserve monuments, which people deserve to be remembered, and how can we shift the unfair balance of power in a society so fully entrenched in racism and white supremacy? The effects of those systems of oppression are far-reaching, and We Deserve Monuments dives into the trauma and grief those effects can have on not just Black families but on entire communities. This book will be a wonderful addition to both classroom libraries and personal bookshelves, just as important for adults as for teens to read.

Bravo! I loved it. Even though it broke my heart.

This is such a poignant and gripping coming of age story. This story is a slow burn character driven novel where the reader navigates the complexities of familial trauma, anti-blackness and homophobia in the south. Top that with small-town secrets and multi generational family secrets, this was a book that was very difficult to put down.

Queer, small town, black biracial lead just what we all need to have in our lives. This coming-of-age debut is amazing. Listening to the past and what was happening int he present was perfect. There is so much emotions, joy and heartache. The mystery was random and probably was not needed to be honest. But i did highly like this.

This book was so powerful and for it to be YA! It said so much and i found it to be absolutely beautiful. The story of a black family overcoming coming out to a family and small town that would not accept it. Racism and corrupt police. And finally the healing of a family and grief. Whew this was powerful. Thank you netgalley and the publishers for accepting me.

I read the book but the audiobook was way more powerful. Jas Hammonds has done something truly amazing. I def think this is a book that young adults will love, esp those struggling with identity and queerness, especially in the deep south. So many secrets and intruge.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for a copy of this audiobook in exchange for an honest review.

This book was beautiful and moving! The characters were so vibrant and I loved all of them and how they loved through all of their inner feelings. This is a story that needs to be read by young people as it can be so helpful in showing how to move through grief and generational family trauma. This was an amazing read!

Wonderful audiobook and also this was such a good debut novel by a new voice and I'm wishing to see more books from this author in the future. And also I liked the narrator for this too.

This book got real really fast. At first I thought it was going to be light hearted but really tough situations started happening, and seen the characters grow, overcoming and accepting the situations that were being hard on them was simply beautiful. The narrator was amazing and it make the characters even more real. I was really not expecting this book to be so deep, but I am super thankful that I got the chance to experience this wonderful story.

Avery and her parents move from Washington DC to Georgia. They’re going back to her mom‘s hometown to take care of her grandma who has cancer. Between her grandma‘s neighbor Carol Cole and her grandma letty they don’t get the warmest of reception when they arrive but Avery being a positive girl puts the best spin on things. Her grandma calls her fish in a taunting way but when she meets the neighbors daughter Simone she feels like it’s love at first sight. There’s attention between her mom and grandma Laddy that no one will speak of but the more she’s there the more she learns about the history of the town and her family‘s history she will come to not only love her grandma letty but I understand her her visit to this little town in Georgia will not only change Avery but will change those who’s lives she touches. Some for good and some she just tells it like it is. I thought this was a great book and I loved it way more than I thought I would. I kept reading great reviews about it but when reading the summary it didn’t sound like something I would like and I did it I loved it! What a great book I thought the narrator did a great job doing all the different voices and different races I just have nothing negative to say about this audiobook what a great listen. I love the mom and the dad Avery even or grandma it really is a great book with great characters and I highly highly recommend it. I received this book from NetGalley and the publisher but I am leaving this review voluntarily please forgive any mistakes as I am blind and dictate most of my review.

An incredible version of an incredible book. I’ve read We Deserve Monuments quite a few times—each reading better than the last—and yet, still, the audiobook has had me in uncontrollable tears more than once.
Tamika really nails the voices. Read this book and then listen to it, or the other way around. It’s perfect.