Truth Is

When considering how her unplanned pregnancy with her ex-boyfriend will affect her future, 17-year-old Truth Bangura knows only that she longs for “more options than the ones I’ve been given.” While Truth doesn’t know exactly what she plans to do post-graduation, she knows that she doesn’t want to become a teen mom like her own mother, who decided to raise Truth rather than pursue law school. Disregarding her underestimating teachers’ and her mother’s advice, Truth earns a spot on Philadelphia’s citywide slam poetry team and secretly applies to college. Though Truth’s decision to have an abortion leads to missed slam practices and strains her relationships, she finds solace in writing and performing poems that speak her personal truth—until her secrets become public knowledge in a viral video clip. As she reevaluates existing dynamics, new bonds—with a love interest and her estranged father—embolden Truth to have faith in her writing and herself. Sawyerr (All the Fighting Parts) combines fast-paced, unwavering verse poems with text messages, social media transcripts, and more in this stunning portrait of a teen in transition that earns all the snaps. Truth’s mother is Sierra Leonean. Writing prompts conclude. Ages 14–up. Agent: Samantha Fabien, Root Literary. (Sept.)