I saw Punching the Air on Twitter ages ago, and managed to forget about it. And then, it was one of my Libro.fm books for the month (from Balzer + Bray) and I had the opportunity to remember the amazing that is Ibi Zoboi and get excited about a novel from Yusef Salaam.

If you’re familiar with Walter Dean Myers’s novel, Monster, the beginning of Punching the Air will feel familiar to you. But really, the beginning is where the similarity ends. This is a novel in verse, and it is a book about a teenager who has been incarcerated, and I can’t tell you how much I punched the air in excitement after I finished this book (so much so that I haven’t been able to write this post for a few days).

Swipe left for my Sticky Note Review. Scroll all the way down to read the sticky note’s transcription.

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Catching up on my #StickyNoteReviews, this one from @librofm and @balzerandbray: Punching the Air by Ibi Zoboi and Dr. Yusuf Salaam. Swipe left for my review, and know that I don’t pull out that particular Bitmoji lightly. Sticky transcribed in the comments. #bookstagram #readersofinstagram #theexonerated5 #blackbookbloggers #blackbookstagram #novelinverse #youngadult #youngadultbooks #bookreview #review #stickynotereview #snrtbs

A post shared by eli oldham (@thebooksupplier) on Sep 27, 2020 at 3:46pm PDT

I was not ready for the amazing that is Punching the Air (shame on me). The imagery in this novel in verse is so vivid I forgot there weren’t more words on the page. Amal’s character comments on how sometimes people don’t bother to look past skin color. I can’t even tell you how much I loved this story. It’s worth giving a go, even if novels in verse aren’t your thing.

Sticky Note Reviews @ the (book) supplier