  | How it all blew up Author: Ahmadi, Arvin | |
| Price: $23.08 | ||
Summary:
Eighteen-year-old Amir Azadi always knew coming out to his Muslim family would be messy--he just didn't think it would end in an airport interrogation room. But when faced with a failed relationship, bullies, and blackmail, running away to Rome is his only option. Right?
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| Accelerated Reader Information: Interest Level: UG Reading Level: 4.90 Points: 8.0 Quiz: 512273 |
Reviews:
School Library Journal (+) (00/08/20)
Booklist (09/01/20)
Full Text Reviews:
School Library Journal - 08/01/2020 Gr 9 Up—"First let me get one thing straight: I'm not a terrorist. I'm gay." So begins this fast-paced coming out/coming-of-age/coming home story. Amir Azadi keeps a mental scorecard weighing the odds of rejection if his parents learn he's gay. He's decided to wait until college to start real life. Then the blackmail starts, and suddenly Amir has skipped graduation and hopped a plane to Rome. This isn't the full plot—it's barely the premise, and the whole story is told via monologue: The answers given by Amir and his family during questioning by Customs and Border Protection. Readers must accept that the airport interrogation is not where the drama lies either, but rather a clever frame, contrasting the unspoken and serious assumptions that put Amir's family in airport jail with the idiosyncratic, sometimes ridiculous, and always complex truths of who they really are. The interview transcripts cover Amir's arrival in Italy, his adoption by a group of gay men in their thirties, and the series of poor romantic decisions that immediately precede his return. Among these friends is Jahan, also of Iranian descent, who awards Amir points every time he learns about gay icons or queer culture. As Amir's Persian and gay identities start to feel like an asset, he's no longer willing to hide who he is. VERDICT A funny and propulsive read, nuanced and full of heart.—Miriam DesHarnais, Towson Univ., Baltimore - Copyright 2020 Publishers Weekly, Library Journal and/or School Library Journal used with permission.
