Lena and Campbell are two high school students. They don't know each other. In fact, they have very little in common, other than the fact they are both young and come from the same city. One Friday night, a fight after a high school football game escalates into violence. What starts as an exchange of angry words at a concession stand grows into a dangerous violence in the crowd at the game and then area neighborhoods. The two girls find themselves having to work together to make it home safely.

This story is fast paced and the perspective alternates between the two girls. I had a hard time getting into the characters at first. I think it might have been because as I would just start getting into one girl's story, the chapter would end and it would switch to the other girl. But as the story ramped up, I found myself pulled in...and it didn't matter whose perspective it was....I wanted to know what was happening! Emergency situations can bring together people who would not normally mesh....and also uncover the true nature of people we thought were familiar.

I enjoyed the story and the points this YA book strives to bring home. At the end, I found myself wanting to know what happens next! The ending was realistic and leaves the reader to think...imagine...hope. I hope that the events depicted in the book would lead the characters to change their lives, their opinions and their judgments of others. I wish our world was more about love and respect instead of hate and judgment. In the end, I left the story hoping at least the two main characters formed a bond and learned life lessons they won't forget.

Very moving story. I enjoyed it. The fast pace glossed over a few things I wish had been more fully developed.....but, I understand why the action was fast. The situation the girls were in left no time for thinking about things....they had to pull together to get home. The writing style and development perfectly fit the plot.

I'd definitely be interested in reading more from these two writers!

**I voluntarily read an advanced readers copy of this book from Sourcebooks Fire via NetGalley. All opinions expressed are entirely my own.**

Really enjoyed this book! Engaging, thought provoking and an illuminating view of how differences can be overcome and connections can flourish even though the tough times. and its was so cute!!

Although this book was a bit rushed, I did enjoy the different views from both characters on the the same racial situation. I do wish it would have been a bit longer. Would I recommend it to friends? Probably not. I just think there are other books out there on this situation.

I have some mixed feelings about this book but honestly, it was a quick read and I ended up enjoying it.
I loved both the girls and their individual stories.
I kind of wish it was longer because I really was left wanting more but this was definitely a heavy but quick read that discusses racial issues within communities and with police.

I really wanted to like the book but it feels unpolished. I think the premise is great but the character developement was flat especially Campbell. Over all I think it offers an intersting look at the biases that we all can hold regardless of race.

Hello Bookies!

I have another book for you all brought to you by the lovely people of NetGalley! I was given the opportunity to read I'm Not Dying With You Tonight early, and I want to share my review with you all! I heard of this book when I was at BookCon 2019, and when I was given the opportunity to read it, I was super excited.

I'm Not Dying With You Tonight follows a couple of hours in the lives of Lena and Campbell, two girls who had never interacted with each other prior to the riot that ensued at their high school's football game. Racial tension has been a reoccurring theme in many novels these days, especially because of the Nation's state of being. But, Jones and Segal bring these themes into the novel easily and successfully. 

When I was reading I'm Not Dying With You Tonight, I found myself thinking about the butterfly effect. According to Google's dictionary, the butterfly effect is "the phenomenon whereby a minute localized change in a complex system can have large effects elsewhere." When one thing happens in one place, it holds a large effect on something elsewhere. I felt that played a large role in I'm Not Dying With You Tonight because tensions from previous events in the town's history followed the main characters to the concession stand, where a fight broke out over racist comments from a man from the rival team. Soon after, shots are fired, riots are breaking out, and chaos ensues. The flow of events just truly represent real life in many experiences in our recent history, and it made it seem like you were reading something that has actually happened in real life. 

The flow of the events compliment the growth of the characters excellently. Lena and Campbell go from static and flat characters that seem to fall into stereotypes of themselves to round characters that care about the surroundings around them and the people that are being affected by the conditions of the town. They grew into their situations and grew before the readers eyes.

I'm Not Dying With You Tonight is a piece of reality in fiction that I haven't experienced since I read All American Boys back in college. This is a definite must read for all Young Adults, a book that should be in schools to teach about growth and struggle. 

4.5/5

I'm Not Dying With You Tonight comes out August 6th, 2019 via SOURCEBOOK Fire. Definitely check it out when it comes out!

I'm Not Dying with You Tonight was one of my most-anticipated releases of the year, and unfortunately it ended up falling slightly short for me. I think the subject matter is important and that this story fills a much-needed void in the YA canon, but some aspects of the storytelling pulled me out of the book and made it feel a bit disjointed.

I’m Not Dying With You Tonight by Gilly Segal and Kimberly Jones, 272 pages.
Sourcebooks Fire (Sourcebooks, Inc.), 2019. $13.
Language: R (93 swears, 3 “f”); Mature Content: PG13; Violence: PG13
BUYING ADVISORY: HS - OPTIONAL
AUDIENCE APPEAL: HIGH
Neither Lena nor Campbell want to be at the football game, but Lena is using it as a cover to see her man and Campbell got guilted into volunteering at the concession stand. When things go south at the big rival game, Lena and Campbell have no one to help them escape the chaos except each other. They might not have chosen one another as friends, but this night of terrifying situations is not one Lena or Campbell want to spend alone.
Segal and Jones beautifully crafted a glimpse into the lives of the two main characters, Lena and Campbell. Readers only get to experience this one night with them, and, while I like how they wrapped the story up, I wish that I got to spend more time with these characters and see the further impact this night had on their lives. I love the contrast between Lena’s and Campbell’s voices in their alternating chapters and the different perspectives they share with each other throughout their time together. While the entire narrative takes place in one night, the lessons that can be taken away by readers are numerous. The mature content rating is for drug use, and the violence rating is for shooting and rioting.
Reviewer: Carolina Herdegen

Lena and Campbell go to the same large Georgia high school, but they don’t really know each other. Lena has an established life with a social circle of her own and big dreams to boot, while Campbell is the new girl struggling to acclimate thanks to her absentee parents.

Both attend the Friday night high school football game for reasons other than school spirit– Lena is watching a friend perform at halftime and Campbell is stuck volunteering at the concession stand. As a racial slur turns into a fight and a fight turns into a mob, Lena and Campbell end up stuck in the concession stand (more of a shack, really) together. The two girls aren’t friends by any means, but it soon becomes clear that they’ll need each other to get through the riot that’s consuming their city.

The story takes place in a few settings, but the main two are the football field, where the massive fight begins, and the city’s main street, where a peaceful protest against the growing bigotry in the community turns into a full-scale riot. While trying to find safety and loved ones, Lena and Campbell find themselves in both locations. In the midst of it all, authors Kimberly Jones and Gilly Segal do a great job showing how quickly a situation can escalate when fueled by rage and violence. This is particularly true in the latter section of the book, in which a peaceful protest grows into something destructive thanks to a small population of agitators, including white supremacists and opportunists, who seep in around the people with a message. It also explores the role that police officers play when they attempt to control a situation by damning everyone caught in the fold, including those who don’t want to be there. The authors mention in the acknowledgements that they spoke to real-life riot survivors and it shows in the authenticity you feel on the page.

The conversation around race in I’m Not Dying With You Tonight is central to the plot. First off, the events that Lena and Campbell are caught up in are a direct result of growing racial tensions following other community and political incidents. But in a more up-close sense, Lena is black and Campbell is white. As their journey unfolds through alternating POV chapters, you see their assumptions and biases, the ways they stereotype and misconstrue one another. Still, it’s not as much of a focal point between the two as you might imagine. They do have a brief argument over an ignorant assumption made by Campbell at one point, but they’re quickly distracted by another conundrum. Perhaps the authors were trying to show that race doesn’t really matter when we ban together to face trauma, but I actually found myself wishing these characters would call each other out more, even on non-race-related topics like Lena’s selfish boyfriend or Campbell’s self-pity. Still, the novel kept the balance between the two leads on point and showed how victories and defeats over the course of the night for one affected the other, ultimately building a unique connection between them.

To call this novel “intense” would be an understatement. Thanks to everything that’s happening to and around these characters, it’s pretty much unputdownable. Even in pockets where the girls are not necessarily threatened, there are emotions to unpack. Jones and Segal really make you care about what happens to these characters and the people they interact with other the course of the night, but ultimately, that also leads to my one major qualm with the book.

Plainly put, I’m Not Dying With You Tonight ends pretty abruptly. There’s a big dramatic moment, an end to that moment, and a few pages later, the story is done. We see the trauma as things happen to Lena, Campbell, and the people they know, but we don’t see any aftermath. An epilogue that looked at the fallout in Lena and Campbell’s lives would have been really welcomed. I suppose readers can fill in a lot of blanks through coverage of real riots in the media, but I would have liked to see a close-up look at the characters and how they were changed, if at all.

A stark contemporary that deals in hard-hitting issues and realistic drama, I’m Not Dying With You Tonight takes you on an emotional rollercoaster through the eyes of two narrators with different but equally worthy perspectives. We definitely recommend this novel to anyone who loves The Hate U Give, Dear Martin, or Long Way Down.

Wow. This book grabbed me at the outset and did not let go until the last page. I literally burned dinner because I could not put it down and was so intent on reading I didn't hear the timer going off. The characters are fierce young women, each fighting battles internally and against their circumstances. The story progresses in alternating voices, twisting along to the end at a pace that leaves you breathless.

This young adult novel takes place over the course of just one day, but it is a day that will forever change how tenth graders Lena and Campbell see themselves, each other, and the world they live in.

Both girls attend their high school's football game; Campbell to work the concession stand (in a vague attempt to make friends at her new school), and Lena to see her friends rock the half-time show. But before the game is over, a fight breaks out, forcing Lena and Campbell together. As the violence spreads and a race riot breaks out in their city, the two must rely on each other to make it safely through the night.

I loved the alternating first person perspectives, the fact that the book takes place all in one night, and how the authors took a very real, complex issue and presented it in a way that will get young adults thinking and talking about it.

I'm Not Dying With You Tonight comes out on August 6th. Thanks to NetGalley for providing me with the ARC in exchange for an honest review!

I’m Not Dying With You Tonight by Gilly Segal and Kimberly Jones is a book that I’ll gladly add to my shelf right next to The Hate U Give and I’m Not Your Typical Mexican Daughter. It’s a good addition to YA books that address race relations and the struggle of fitting in. I enjoyed being able to read this story from two completely different perspectives, a black girl and a white girl, and seeing how differently they reacted to the same situation. The book does seem a little rushed but I also think that adds to the stress of the situation so I don’t have any issues with that. I’m not entirely convinced that this book does any favors to teenage girls though because both of them seem to lack a healthy dose of common sense in a very dangerous situation. Overall, I do think this is an interesting book with many possible discussion points with your teenagers.

I read this one all in one sitting, and I'm glad I did. It was a very quick read, less than 300 pages, although I wonder if the background and setting would have benefited from more development throughout. This book was all plot, all action, with a relentless pace that had the alternating POV chapters picking up exactly where the last one left off. I personally had some trouble picturing the events and catching all the details, but I don't know if that was just me reading too fast. What I do know, though, is that those few hours of reading will stick with me for a long time. This book thoughtfully addresses issues of racial tension and racism from the individual all the way to the systemic level, and any minor details and plot questions are far less important than the overall impact of the story.

Thanks to Netgalley and Sourcebooks Fire for a digital galley in exchange for an honest review.

A YA novel that follows two high school students- Lena and Campbell, over the course of one night where a high school football game sets off chaos all over their community. It reminded me of The Hate U Give in terms of characterization and discussion of relevant topics, but its ending lacked a bit of finality. I felt more of an interest in Lena's story, but struggled for the first little bit to get into the groove with Campbell. Lots of action and the chapters are short and storyline fast paced, and I enjoyed two authors tackling diverse topics. I do believe that this is going to catch the attention of my students.


Goodreads Review 24/07/19
Expected Publication 06/08/19

This story was tough to digest because it lacked believability in so many areas.

While I understand how easily a race-infused confrontation can escalate into riotous violence, the very origin of the chaos was not only avoidable but controllable. Everything seemed--and I say "seemed" because the events it set off felt outside the range of plausible given its idiocy--to hinge on a tense exchange between two teenage boys.

Said exchange happens in view of both Lena and Campbell--which is how they come together--with, apparently, no reasonable adults, or even school security, present.

By the time the school resource officers do arrive, there's a riot...then sirens ...then a gunshot ...then all hell breaks loose?

Everywhere.

In what universe does this happen without additional context?

Even if I could get beyond all of that nonsense, I could not get beyond the idiocy of Lena or the cluelessness of Campbell.

Lena continually tossed common sense and safety to the side in favor of hooking up with a boy. It didn't appear to matter that said boy was fine ditching, dismissing, and dissing her at every turn. She continued to have faith he would come through ...and I just ...no. I couldn't handle such willful stupidity in a girl who obviously had more than a little common sense.

Then there's Campbell.

Lena's desire to chase behind a boyfriend who, seemingly, didn't care about her, or her safety, for the better part of the story, was annoying; time and again she opted to call him instead of using any one of the options she had available to get out of a dangerous situation.

Then there was Campbell.

I know she's supposed to come across unversed in the ways of Black/white relations--and that's fine--but you'd have thought the girl never stepped out her front door, turned on a television, or read a news headline. She was always confused, or scared, or timid.

The one time she shows any backbone was during a situation where her safety was definitely at-risk and sitting the heck down/shutting the heck up would've not only been prudent but wise.

And yet ...whew.

It's not a stretch to say Lena and Campbell would've avoided this situation altogether had either been smart enough to dial a responsible adult or reliable emergency contact.

It had potential but the whole situation was too far-fetched to take seriously.

Thank you to Edelweiss+ and Sourcebooks Fire for the Advanced eGalley of this work. Opinion is my own and was not influenced by its receipt.

Many thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for providing me with an eARC of this title for review. All opinions are my own.

I came to know about I'm Not Dying with You Tonight after reading a blurb from Angie Thomas about the book. When I realized that it told a story from two different points of view (one white, one Black), I wanted to know more. Overall, this is a great book and a strong addition to the building canon of contemporary literature dealing with race relations and tensions within our society. My one critique: there was no real sense of resolution at the end of the novel. Due to the natures of the storyline (the entire book covers the events of one evening starting at a local football game where a fight breaks out and traveling downtown across streets embroiled in a peaceful protest and the following riot) there CAN'T be a complete resolution. There is no sense of a "happily ever after." There is no sense that the reader can even accurately predict what will happen in the days after the plot's storyline has ended. BUT, that still feels authentic and real. Like I said, this is a strong addition and one that I would consider a first purchase for large collections and a second purchase for collections that are smaller.

Lena and Campbell are not friends. They barely even know each other. But when the fight breaks out at the local high school football game they are thrown together for an evening where things quickly spin out of control and danger is around every corner. Told in alternating viewpoints, the reader follows these girls as they struggle to get home in the midst of turmoil. It is truly these alternating voices that allows this book to shine.

***Thanks to NetGalley for providing me a complimentary copy of I’M NOT DYING WITH YOU TONIGHT by Kimberly Jones and Gilly Segal in exchange for my honest review.***

Co-authors Jones and Segal explore race relations through the alternating points of view of Campbell, a white teen and Lena, her African-American classmate. Although Campbell and Lena don't know each other, they must learn to depend on one another for survival as racial tensions at their high school football game soon escalate to riots. The pacing of the novel help readers experience their fear, and readers get to see how much these young women actually have in common. Each character's voice is unique, serving not only to define them but also to allow readers to experience the fears and experiences of someone from another race. This was an interesting read that I found difficult to put down. It would be great for literature circles or book clubs.

This would probably be the next major YA book, really out there to catch up on those great The Hate U Give and On the Come Up books. The book is great!

I received an advanced readers copy in exchange for an honest review

I’m so high and to let this one settle in. There’s a lot going on, and it’s pretty heavy and I like it ended up being this relatively undefined. I do hope at some point the author writes another book so we can find out what happens to the girls and the outcome of their situations, But I’m really impressed that it ended where and how it did. Solid four

this was the book that made me think i might be over YA, because I think me of a few years ago would have LOVED this book