Like Home does not offer easy answers. It’s a story about friendship, being resistant to change, and gentrification. At its core, Like Home is a story driven by the characters, especially Nelo as she has to confront her own beliefs and relationships. Keep reading this book review to see what I thought about Onomé’s debut!
Summary
Chinelo, or Nelo as her best friend Kate calls her, is all about her neighborhood Ginger East. She loves its chill vibe, ride-or-die sense of community, and her memories of growing up there. Ginger East isn’t what it used to be, though. After a deadly incident at the local arcade, all her closest friends moved away, except for Kate. But as long as they have each other, Nelo’s good.
Only, Kate’s parents’ corner store is vandalized, leaving Nelo shaken to her core. The police and the media are quick to point fingers, and soon more of the outside world descends on Ginger East with promises to “fix” it. Suddenly, Nelo finds herself in the middle of a drama unfolding on a national scale.
Worse yet, Kate is acting strange. She’s pushing Nelo away at the exact moment they need each other most. Nelo’s entire world is morphing into something she hates, and she must figure out how to get things back on track or risk losing everything—and everyone—she loves.
Review
(Disclaimer: I received this book from Netgalley. This has not impacted my review which is unbiased and honest.)
Like Home is very much a story about change. Whether it be the changing relationships with our best friends or the gentrification of our neighborhood. Sometimes we can become too preoccupied with what we know, that we don’t seem to accept the changes in front of us. Nelo is an endearing main character. She feels the ache of the people who leave us behind. The hurt that remains. At the same time, Nelo sometimes sees things only in terms of right and wrong, and all in her own eyes.
And that felt incredibly relatable to me. The ways we can become too immersed in our perspectives, we fail to see the ones of those we love. That they too can change. Onomé shows readers the complexity. The elitism, the privilege, and racism. No one can escape change. The question becomes how to make change happen, to influence it, to shape our future. Like Home is a fast read that focuses on the complex nature of change.
Find Like Home on Goodreads, Amazon, Indiebound, Bookshop.org & The Book Depository.