A review by charmel
Summer Bird Blue by Akemi Dawn Bowman

challenging emotional hopeful reflective sad slow-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Character
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

I am now convinced that I should read all of Akemi Dawn Bowman's books or else I would regret life. 

Once again, Akemi had made me cry. đź‘Ź 

“You can’t rush creativity. It’s like the rain. You wait and wait and wait, and when it finally comes, it soaks the earth and revives all the plants.”

Summer Bird Blue is very close to my heart. It's about a girl, grieving her sister in Hawaii after her mom sent her away to her aunt. There she met her neighbors, an old grouchy man and a too care free teenage boy. 


There are so many things I love in this book:

 âś§ First, the writing. It's beautiful. It's poignant. It's lyrical. It's one of the purest writing styles I've ever read. 


 âś§ The anger and grief Rumi's experiencing hits so hard. It isn't overwritten, it's true and raw. Some people experience grief like that, some people can't move on easily. And just like Rumi's journey, they had to hold on for a while and wait until they start to accept and start to move on. 


“Grief is a monster - not everyone gets out alive, and those who do might only survive in pieces. But it's a monster that can be conquered, with time.”


 âś§ The unique aro-ace representation! Self-discovery and accepting her sexuality is also an important part of Rumi's journey. Before she felt like it wasn't normal, she felt weird and strange about it. But over time, she feels valid, accepted, and normal.


“An’ you know what I t’ink? I’s okay fo’ be confused, an’ i’s okay fo’ not be confused. One isn’t mo’ bettah dan da uddah, yeah? Dey both normal. Dey both okay.”
I smile. It’s okay to be confused. It’s normal.
I’m normal.


 âś§ This book is also diverse. Rumi is a Half-Japanese and Half-Hawaiian and she has also part Filipino, Korean, and Samoan friends. 


 âś§ Lastly, I loved the new friendship that Rumi found. No romance, just meaningful, loving friends. And I think that's important. Just like Rumi said, "someone can be beautiful and I don’t want to have a romantic relationship with them. There are other kinds of relationships I find more important. Family. Friendships. Music, " but in my case it's; family, friendships, and books. :)


“Time isn’t replaceable, and you never know how much of it you have left.” 

Expand filter menu Content Warnings