Common Sense Media Review
By Barbara Saunders
,
based on child development research. How do we rate?
Charming story of teen trying on new identities.
Parents Need to Know
Why Age 13+?
Any Positive Content?
Where to Read
What's the Story?
When LOVE IS A REVOLUTION begins, 17-year-old Nala and her cousin and best friend Imani are headed out for one of the first parties of the summer. Nala lives with Imani and her parents after a falling out with Nala's mother. Lately, Imani and Nala have drifted apart. Imani has a boyfriend, and she's deeply involved with her circle of friends from Inspire Harlem, a youth group Nala has no interest in joining. Nala's goal for the summer is to find love, and she finds it with Tye. To impress him she lies about being involved in community service work and even pretends to be a vegetarian. Over the course of the summer, Nala's relationships evolve -- with her cousin, her boyfriend, her family, and most important, herself.
Is It Any Good?
This charming book is a good match for teens whose interests straddle the YA and middle grade worlds. Renée Watson's Love Is a Revolution places a girl with a young teen mentality into an older teen setting (activism, parties). Though the main character gets the boyfriend she wants, she's mostly preoccupied with her changing relationship with the cousin whose family she lives with, her difficult relationship with her mother after she left home, and absorbing the wisdom of her 80-something grandma.
Talk to Your Kids About ...
Families can talk about the theme of being yourself in Love Is a Revolution. Have you ever pretended to be something you're not to win someone's love or approval?
Do you work for any causes? What are they?
Is there a family member you have an especially close relationship with? How do you connect?
Book Details
- Author :
- Genre : Family Life
- Topics : Activism , Friendship , School ( High School ) , History
- Book type : Fiction
- Publisher : Bloomsbury YA
- Publication date : February 2, 2021
- Publisher's recommended age(s) : 12 - 18
- Number of pages : 302
- Available on : Paperback, Nook, Audiobook (unabridged), Hardback, Apple Books, Kindle
- Last updated : September 29, 2025
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