We Are All We Have by Marina Budhos

Description from NetGalley:

When a teenage girl’s single mom is taken by ICE, everything changes—all of her hopes and dreams for the future have turned into survival.

Seventeen-year-old Rania is shaken awake in her family's apartment in Brooklyn. ICE is at the door, taking her mother away. But Ammi has done everything right, hasn’t she? Their asylum case is fine. This was supposed to be Rania’s greatest summer: hanging out with her best friend, Fatima, and getting ready for college in the fall. But it’s 2019, and nothing is certain. Now, along with her younger brother, Kamal, and a new friend, Carlos, Rania must figure out how to survive. A road trip leads to searching for answers to questions she didn’t even think to ask. In this vivid exploration of what happens when the country you have put your hopes into is fast shutting down, award-winning author Marina Budhos shows us how one girl bursting with dreams navigates secrets, love, and the lure of the open road.

---

My Review:

I received this book from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. I have been trying my best to read more diverse stories beyond myself and I thought this was the perfect read to learn more about what people have gone and are currently going through with ICE. I get that this is only one story and fiction and I am doing more self-learning outside of this but I fully believe we can still learn from fiction.

I really liked this book to the point where I thought it was too short. I think adding multiple points of view would have enhanced the story such as Rania's Mom's point of view would have been really interesting, but it really good as is. I loved Rania and seeing her feel and process all the different emotions she was feeling. The author really brought this character to life. I really liked Carlos as well. Not gonna lie I wasn't a fan of him at first but he grew on me as he did to Rania. I will say I wasn't the biggest fan of their romance. I can understand why it happened and how it could also be a growing moment for Rania but it fell flat for me and I just couldn't get into it. I loved reading about them being on the road and their journey in hiding out until it was safe to go to their respective destinations.

Overall, I think this book is a really good story that should be told widely. I wish I had something like this in school instead of reading Shakespeare (love it but not the most helpful). People could learn more about this and how not everything is black and white right or wrong. I definitely recommend this book if you're looking to expand your horizons.