Pride by Ibi Zoboi

genre: contemporary young adult

In a Brooklyn gentrifying before her eyes, Zuri knows her world is changing, and she does not appreciate it.  She loves her hood, the people that surround her, the cultures that make it feel rich and colorful, she even has a soft spot for all the nonsense.  But when those bougie Darcys move into the newly renovated mansion across the street, suddenly she's super defensive of what she's always loved.  With those good-looking new boys, most especially that Darius, looking down their noses at her Brooklyn pride, Zuri knows that no good will come of it.

This retelling of Pride and Prejudice, "remix" is the world used in the blurb, takes the English countryside and swaps it out for modern-day Bushwick, with the five Benitez sisters sharing an apartment with their beloved Afro-Latino parents.  I really appreciated the nuance of the setting, the changing of neighborhoods as they get more wealthy, the way that race plays such a huge part in our comfort and stability when it comes to where we live (not that it's a good thing, just that it most definitely IS).  Everything about the groundwork and framing of this story I liked.  I just never could completely fell in love with Zuri.  Her dialogue, both spoken and inner, was very repetitive.  I never understood WHY she fell for Darius, and although I still had the feelings when things happened as they do in Pride and Prejudice, I was left really wanting more.  And the storyline with Zuri's sister Janae started and then was dropped for nearly all the book until the very end without any of the resolution I felt was necessary based on how Zuri and Darius fought about it.

There were scenes and ideas here that really resonated with me (particularly a college visit, interactions between the sisters) but overall I felt unsatisfied.  Maybe my expectations were too high.

sensitivity warning: strong language, discussions of sex