Chlorine Sky is a gorgeously written verse novel about friendship and love. It’s about growing into space. About being the person we have been afraid to be, in spite of what people say, and laughing freely. I flew through Chlorine Sky. It was emotional and vulnerable all at once. Keep reading this book review to find out my full thoughts!
Summary
She looks me hard in my eyes
& my knees lock into tree trunks
My eyes don’t dance like my heartbeat racing
They stare straight back hot daggers.
I remember things will never be the same.
I remember things.
With gritty and heartbreaking honesty, Mahogany L. Browne delivers a novel-in-verse about broken promises, fast rumors, and when growing up means growing apart from your best friend
Review
(Disclaimer: I received this book from Netgalley. This has not impacted my review which is unbiased and honest.)
Novels in verse have been some of my ultimate favorite ones in 2020. Almost all of the ones I have read have been five star reads and Chlorine Sky is no exception. It’s a story about growing up. When our best friend starts to change before our very eyes. The moments they begin to laugh at us, instead of with us. Chlorine Sky is tender and lyrical. While it’s a story about friendship, and the cracks forming on the surface, it’s also about our own agency. The strength to step away from the shadows and to accept who we are.
With dreams of the WNBA, the main character intimidates boys on the court. The ways girls are not allowed to step outside of the mold is demonstrated by their comments. Chlorine Sky details the wounds that hurt us which seem like nothing to others, but we never forget. Full of beautiful imagery about the escape and refuge of water, Chlorine Sky features imagery of water. Of the summer parties, the bathing suits that expose us and mark us as others.
Chlorine Sky has absolutely stunning writing. The poems feel resolved, while the string of the story pulls us along. It’s a novel in verse that celebrates the need to not diminish ourselves. To let ourselves take up space, noise, and praise. Find Chlorine Sky on Goodreads, Amazon, Indiebound, Bookshop.org & The Book Depository.