From the Bookshelf of Read the World With Me…

Beka Lamb

Zee Edgell

Start date: July 1, 2024

Finish date: July 31, 2024

Why we're reading this: We are traveling to Belize, we have another colonial inspired read of a girl transitioning into womanhood…more
[close] We are traveling to Belize, we have another colonial inspired read of a girl transitioning into womanhood and all that comes with the expectations of interning the adult society as a woman.

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Aug 04, 2024 Elise rated it really liked it

This was my choice for my Read the World challenge for Belize. The beginning of this book had me really lost as Edgell just drops you in the story and you have keep reading to get enough context to figure out what was going on. For most of this I was going to give it 3 stars but the last couple of chapters pushed it up to 4 stars.

Beka Lamb is our protagonist, she is 14 years old and constantly lies. She lives with her father, mother, grandmother, and 2 younger siblings. Belize is in political co This was my choice for my Read the World challenge for Belize. The beginning of this book had me really lost as Edgell just drops you in the story and you have keep reading to get enough context to figure out what was going on. For most of this I was going to give it 3 stars but the last couple of chapters pushed it up to 4 stars.

Beka Lamb is our protagonist, she is 14 years old and constantly lies. She lives with her father, mother, grandmother, and 2 younger siblings. Belize is in political conflict, and this is the undercurrent of the story. Beka's father supports the British backing while her grandmother goes to meetings for Independence. The back talks about this being a coming of age story, which is the main plot. Beka is 14 and has just failed her first year in a catholic private high school, she is not sure if she will be allowed to go back which maybe why she lies to her parents saying she has passed. A lie they quickly find out and punish her for lying.

In all coming of age stories there is an event that one can point to that has ended their childhood and required them to "grow up". Beka's best friend, Toycie, is that event. Toycie is older than Beka and is entering her last year of high school, but Toycie has a boyfriend that she often abandons Beka for. Her mother has left her, moving to the United States, to be raised by family members. Her family is poor but they are proud that Toycie is doing well in her education that is until she can no longer go to school. Beka is conflicted in trying to help her friend and to focus on her own education to make her family proud of her. It is the less that will change her.

I struggled with the character of Beka but she was always trying to do what was right but is a 14 year old girl who wants people to think the best of her even when she doesn't always do what is right. Did I cry when the neighbor comes in at the end to talk about her bougainvillea bush? Yes, I did. I also cried at the end when we find out who won the essay contest that Beka's teacher pushed her to write.

I ended up really liking this book. It is relatively short but took me longer to read than others because it was difficult sometimes to figure out what was actually going on. If you are struggling with this one, give it time and it will all come together eventually. ...more

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