There’s all sorts of fun bells and whistles to explore on the new site (and y’all know I love me some bells and whistles, although I don’t think I’ve ever typed that phrase before so maybe I’m a liar), but some updates carry more significance than, say, a new layout or color scheme. And the one we’re most excited about is the addition of “Voices” as a category in our book reviews.
“Voices” is meant to capture the perspective of the main character(s), highlighting race, sexuality, gender, and religion when applicable. If something isn’t explicitly stated by the author, we won’t fill in the gaps; we simply want to focus on the aspects that drive the protagonists and inform their identity.
The goal of this category is twofold. One, we hope it will help readers more easily find books that they connect with and stories that may broaden their viewpoints. And two, we intend for this to keep us accountable as reviewers, striving to be more inclusive in the books we amplify on the site.
This is a work in progress, and while we’ll never be able to review every single YA book out there (I wish!), we do intend to increase the representation of diverse voices in our review archives. Which is a reminder that we’re always open to recommendations for stories we’ve missed!
So, next time you read a review, and you want to find more novels featuring that perspective, simply click on the category and check out our list. You can also just browse through our entire archive of book reviews, organized by race, sexuality, gender, and religion.
As we welcome you to our new home, we hope this is a welcome change!
