Group Discussion Announcement: When Dimple Met Rishi

Posted on 31 May, 2017 by Audrey

Hey, everyone! We’ve selected a new book for discussion next month: When Dimple Met Rishi by Sandhya Menon! It just came out yesterday, and we’re so excited to read it!

When Dimple Met Rishi by Sandhya Menon
Simon Pulse

A laugh-out-loud, heartfelt YA romantic comedy, told in alternating perspectives, about two Indian-American teens whose parents have arranged for them to be married.

Dimple Shah has it all figured out. With graduation behind her, she’s more than ready for a break from her family, from Mamma’s inexplicable obsession with her finding the “Ideal Indian Husband.” Ugh. Dimple knows they must respect her principles on some level, though. If they truly believed she needed a husband right now, they wouldn’t have paid for her to attend a summer program for aspiring web developers…right?

Rishi Patel is a hopeless romantic. So when his parents tell him that his future wife will be attending the same summer program as him—wherein he’ll have to woo her—he’s totally on board. Because as silly as it sounds to most people in his life, Rishi wants to be arranged, believes in the power of tradition, stability, and being a part of something much bigger than himself.

The Shahs and Patels didn’t mean to start turning the wheels on this “suggested arrangement” so early in their children’s lives, but when they noticed them both gravitate toward the same summer program, they figured, Why not?

Dimple and Rishi may think they have each other figured out. But when opposites clash, love works hard to prove itself in the most unexpected ways.

We’ll post our discussion on June 28th. Make sure you grab a copy of the book and are ready to join us then!

4th Anniversary Giveaway

Posted on 24 March, 2017 by Audrey

Today is our 4th Anniversary! I can’t believe it has been so long already, but I’m thrilled that we’re still around and still doing our best to read, review, and promote young adult books by and/or about people of color and people from First/Native Nations. We’re excited to celebrate by giving away fifteen different prizes, many of which you’ve probably already seen featured on our site.

We’re giving away copies of An Ember in the Ashes + A Torch Against the Night by Sabaa Tahir, Shame the Stars by Guadalupe Garcia McCall, The Education of Margot Sanchez by Lilliam Rivera, Because of the Sun by Jenny Torres, History Is All You Left Me by Adam Silvera, Enter Title Here by Rahul Kanakia, Pasadena by Sherri L. Smith, Perfect Liars by Kimberly Reid, Gotham Academy Vol. 3: Yearbook by Brenden Fletcher, James Tynion IV, and Rafael Albuquerque, Poison’s Kiss by Breeana Shields, The Hate U Give by by Angie Thomas, The Tankborn Trilogy by Karen Sandler, and Flying Lessons & Other Stories edited by Ellen Oh. We also have two Winner’s Choice prizes up for grabs, too!

This giveaway is only eligible to those with U.S. mailing addresses. The giveaway ends on March 31st at midnight Eastern time.

Thanks so much to all of you for supporting us here at Rich in Color. Have a wonderful week!

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Group discussion of THUG next week!

Posted on 8 March, 2017 by Audrey

Have you gotten your hands on a copy of The Hate U Give by Angie Thomas yet? If not, grab it ASAP, because we’ll be discussing the book here at Rich in Color on March 15th. I just finished it, and it is hands down one of the best books I’ve read in ages.

I hope to see you at our discussion next week!

The Hate U Give by Angie Thomas
Balzer + Bray/Harper Collins

Inspired by the Black Lives Matter movement, Angie Thomas’s searing debut about an ordinary girl in extraordinary circumstances addresses issues of racism and police violence with intelligence, heart, and unflinching honesty.Sixteen-year-old Starr Carter moves between two worlds: the poor neighborhood where she lives and the fancy suburban prep school she attends. The uneasy balance between these worlds is shattered when Starr witnesses the fatal shooting of her childhood best friend Khalil at the hands of a police officer. Khalil was unarmed.

Soon afterward, his death is a national headline. Some are calling him a thug, maybe even a drug dealer and a gangbanger. Protesters are taking to the streets in Khalil’s name. Some cops and the local drug lord try to intimidate Starr and her family. What everyone wants to know is: what really went down that night? And the only person alive who can answer that is Starr.

But what Starr does—or does not—say could upend her community. It could also endanger her life.

Diversity and Promotion

Posted on 27 January, 2016 by Audrey

Yesterday, Lee & Low revealed the results of their 2015 Diversity Baseline Survey, which took a look at the diversity in 8 review journals and 34 publishers along race, gender, orientation, and disability lines. The results weren’t exactly surprising, especially not when “the number of diverse books published each year over the past twenty years has been stuck in neutral, never exceeding, on average, 10 percent.”

Here at Rich in Color, our focus has been (and will continue to be) reading and reviewing young adult books by or about people of color. Aside from the occasional link roundup, interview, or book list, we haven’t been able to do much active promoting for books we don’t have the time or opportunity to review. As we approach our third anniversary, we decided it was time to have an official promotion policy that would allow qualifying authors (or their agents/editors) reach out to us for activities such as guests posts, interviews, previews, giveaways, etc. We are particularly interested in highlighting the upcoming works of authors of color—especially debut authors of color.

We hope that this policy will allow us to better connect with authors so that we can further the discussion—and celebration—of diversity in young adult books.

Two Wonderful Years

Posted on 25 March, 2015 by Crystal

Two years have already gone by since Rich in Color had its start. If you’re interested in finding out about the beginnings, Audrey, Jon and I did a podcast last year to provide a little history. Speaking for myself, being part of this blog has been a fantastic learning journey as we have sought out, read and promoted young adult lit by and about people of color. I’ve met amazing authors and readers who have inspired and challenged me.

In honor of our 2nd anniversary, we’re having another giveaway. We get ARCs from publishers or may even purchase books for review and we would like to share some of these books with our readers. We also have a few brand new books on offer. While we have your attention, please let us know about any great books that you’re looking forward to reading especially if they aren’t on our calendar yet. Thanks for visiting the blog and being a part of our journey.

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Join Us for a Group Discussion

Posted on 12 February, 2014 by Audrey

We’re going to start off the spring with a group discussion of When I Was the Greatest by Jason Reynolds. We hope you’ll join us!

In Bed Stuy, New York, a small misunderstanding can escalate into having a price on your head–even if you’re totally clean. This gritty, triumphant debut captures the heart and the hardship of life for an urban teen.

“A lot of the stuff that gives my neighborhood a bad name, I don’t really mess with. The guns and drugs and all that, not really my thing.” Nah, not his thing. Ali’s got enough going on, between school and boxing and helping out at home. His best friend Noodles, though. Now there’s a dude looking for trouble–and, somehow, it’s always Ali around to pick up the pieces. But, hey, a guy’s gotta look out for his boys, right? Besides, it’s all small potatoes; it’s not like anyone’s getting hurt.

And then there’s Needles. Needles is Noodles’s brother. He’s got a syndrome, and gets these ticks and blurts out the wildest, craziest things. It’s cool, though: everyone on their street knows he doesn’t mean anything by it.

Yeah, it’s cool…until Ali and Noodles and Needles find themselves somewhere they never expected to be…somewhere they never should’ve been–where the people aren’t so friendly, and even less forgiving. — Cover image and summary via IndieBound

The discussion will be posted at the end of April. Run to your local bookstore or library soon so you can pick up a copy of the book and have enough time to read it. We’re looking forward to hearing what you thought of it!

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