June Reading Challenge Check-In

This might be a little late because of QSR stuff.

So the mini-challenge theme this month was Gender and Sexual Identity, and I chose something I heard about last year, I think, that I'd be interested in checking out.

Under Threat by Robin Stevenson

Published: January 1st, 2016 by Orca Book Publishers
Genre: Contemporary YA
Binding: Paperback
Page Count: 129 plus the about the author and whatnot.
Part of a series? Nope.
Got via: The library.
Amazon / Book Depository / Indiebound

Summary (from goodreads): Franny is close to her parents, adores her horse and is head over heels in love with her girlfriend, Leah. But Franny's parents are abortion providers at the local hospital, and an anonymous stranger is prepared to do whatever it takes to stop them. A stranger who phones at all hours. Who knows where they live. Who knows Franny's name.

When Leah's older brother, Jake, refers to her parents as baby killers, Franny starts to wonder if perhaps the threats aren t coming from a stranger at all. If she tells the police about her suspicions, she could lose her girlfriend. But if she doesn't--and if she s right--she could lose her parents.

The part where I talk: I really liked this. More to come on it at a future date.

Bingo book:

Habibi by Naomi Shihab Nye

Published: First published in 1997, this edition was released June 1st, 1999 by Simon Pulse
Genre: Contemporary YA
Binding: Paperback
Page Count: 272
Part of a series? No
Got via: The library.
Amazon / Book Depository / Indiebound

Summary (from goodreads): The day after Liyana got her first real kiss, her life changed forever. Not because of the kiss, but because it was the day her father announced that the family was moving from St. Louis all the way to Palestine. Though her father grew up there, Liyana knows very little about her family's Arab heritage. Her grandmother and the rest of her relatives who live in the West Bank are strangers, and speak a language she can't understand. It isn't until she meets Omer that her homesickness fades. But Omer is Jewish, and their friendship is silently forbidden in this land. How can they make their families understand? And how can Liyana ever learn to call this place home?

The part where I talk: This was interesting! I'll talk about it in a blog post soon, but I guess here I'll say why I chose this for the "Arab MC" square when I was originally going to read "It Ain't So Awful, Falafel". The Isreal-Palestine situation is not something I really understand, and I'll admit that readily. So I'm not going to be like "this is how it is", but Cindy in Falafel does not identify as Arab, and it talks about that a bit in the book, wheras Liyana does. So... I might be phrasing this weirdly, but this is what I went with that seemed like the best idea for me.

Yeah, this totally wouldn't fit in the review.

Um, yeah. That was all I did this month. I was planning QSR stuff a whole lot, and I read like six other non-bingo books. My bingo card still looks okay though. And I had some holds come in, so I'll be able to read those for next month.

What did you guys read this month?

Peace and cookies,
Laina