'Come Home Safe' reads almost like a textbook for what Black/Brown teens should do when faced with police officers. Olive and Reed both face different brushes with the law, and each apply the lessons from their lawyer father to navigate conversations with cops, managers of stores, and 911 operators. It's more informative than entertainment, but the information is very important for BIPOC teens.

I will admit I found this book very dry to read, and I struggle to think for how it could be engaging outside of a Book Club or classroom. The writing is reminiscent of a Dhar Mann short. The topic, however, is super important, so I'd like to see author Brian Buckmire condense the legalspeak into a pamphlet like Alok Vaid-Menon's 'Beyond the Gender Binary,' for example.

Regardless, giving it 5 stars for subject matter.

3.5 stars

This book is so important for all children to read. It discusses the realities that children and people of color go through on a daily basis. It’s very important that white children know and understand this. The book is also important for black and brown children to read as it discusses what to do when situations arise.

Being black in America will always be a threat to others. It’s so unfortunate and crazy that we have to have books, even in the fictional space, that clearly articulate what we go through and how it truly feels to be wrongly accused of something. This book helped me explain things to my daughter with what we face everyday with racial discrimination. Kids of any age need to understand the importance of how to control themselves in situations their skin is unfortunately not liked. Thank you for a wonderfully written book!

Reed is a teenage boy who has to collect his younger sister Olive from school. On their way home, he is racially profiled and mistreated by the police. A few months later Olive is involved in an incident where the police immediately give the benefit of the doubt to a white woman over her. This is an extremely cleverly written book, it is an interesting narrative but it is also giving legal information to teenagers. It gives advice on what their rights are when stopped by police and the importance of documenting everything. A very important book.

This is a spoiler free review! ʕ•ᴥ•ʔ

"One minute I was just hanging out, watching videos on the train…and the next I was handcuffed and thrown against the wall! Why me? What did I do wrong?"

°❀⋆.ೃ࿔*:･･:*.ೃ࿔⋆❀°

☆ Synopsis
Fourteen-year-old Reed and his twelve-year-old sister Olivia, are on their way home from school when they find themselves questioned, searched, and thrown to the ground by police looking for a suspect. They must battle with what it means to be Black in a society that demonises anyone who looks “different”, and find a way to prove their innocence and come home safe.

☆ My thoughts

I would’ve given this two stars for reading like a textbook at times, however the author’s note implied that was intentional so I bumped it up to three stars. The characters Reed and Olivia I found endearing and I would’ve liked the know more about them but they just were not fully developed in the story. The situations that occurred were horrible but sadly a reality for many people of colour and while I appreciate what this book is trying to do, it felt a little heavy handed. I’m not the target audience for this book so maybe it would be more impactful for younger readers but I can say from my own experience I would’ve found this book a bit boring even when I did fit the target audience. I feel this has the potential to be something really interesting and insightful but it’s just not explored enough to become something I’d recommend to others. Overall, a fairly decent read that tackles difficult subject matters, just let down a bit by how short the book was as it prevented it from really delving into the topic.

Thank you to Netgalley for allowing me to read this ARC in exchange for an honest review.

So sad that this has me our reality, but so glad this important issue is being brought to more people’s attention and reaching a lot of minds young and old. I cannot wait to share more thoughts on this and I making this a ya book club pick.