This important work of young adult fiction complements titles such as “The Hate U Give” in an era of Black Lives Matter movements. Brandy Colbert shares “The Voting Booth,” a story of two young teenagers showing up to vote for the first time and encountering unexpected challenges. I sincerely appreciated the broad perspectives provided throughout the narrative and additional insight into the complex issues surrounding what should seemingly be basic voter rights, civic engagement, equity, access and inclusion in the political process. It is both an eye-opening and also uplifting work of juvenile fiction well suited to help provide context, inspiration and hope to future leaders in America. Also just a super sweet story and a great read!

This is a powerful novel about the importance of voting and using your voice, especially as a young citizen. At first, the character of Marva is a very intense character who comes off as judgmental and superior, but as the novel goes on, we really get to see why Marva is the way she is and how the circumstances she's constantly in feed into her sense of intensity and passion. Duke is dealing with grief and living up to the expectations and legacy of his dead older brother, and we see him begin to sift through his feelings and learn to use his voice in a bigger way. I enjoyed the friendship that blossoms between Duke and Marva, and I appreciate how the books tackles topics of privilege, voter suppression, and activism. I highly recommend this book.

I received both a digital and audiobook ARC from the publisher through NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.


The Voting Booth tells the story of two teens, Marva and Duke trying to make their voices heard on their firts voting day. The characters encounter various obstacles and setbacks throughout the day, but both learn a few important lessons along the way. In a way it reminded me a bit of a John Hughes' teen movie from the 80's. All the action packed craziness happens in a 16-hour period. I could have done without the missing cat side story.

I liked how the political lessons played out and that it was not endorsing one party over another. I think it will help teens relate to these important issues that occur in everyday life. It's magnificent to have a diverse book with middle class black and mixed race characters. Who are not portrayed as victims, but young adults who are empowered to help make change... if only they make their voice heard by voting!

Most of the book is fast paced to keep even reluctant readers turning the pages. I absolutely loved it and highly recommend it to teens and adults.

This book was precious and amazing and gave me so many feels!! I absolutely loved it. The characters, the writing, and the structure, just all of it. I've never read a story that takes place in one day, and I was nervous about how much I would like it but it was perfect!! The story flowed so well and there was never a dull moment.

The two main characters, Marva and Duke, are so well thought out and intricate characters. I felt I knew them from the first chapter, and yet they kept surprising me and I loved watching them grow. But don't let the cuteness fool you... while this book was super cute and fun, it also dealt with important topics. This book tackles social justice, white privilege, being Black in America, grief, and interracial relationships.

And within all this are two teenagers who are fighting for a better world and a better future.

So yes, while this book made me laugh and melt with its cuteness, it also inspired me to never stop fighting and reminded me that even though I am one person my voice, and what I do with it, matters.
Please pick this one up!! I recommend it to everyone!

First, thank you to the publishers for sending me an e-ARC. I was super excited.
As I always say, I am biased Brandy Colbert can do no wrong in my eyes and that remains true even after reading this book.
As a person who was just as eager to vote when I turned 18 as the main character, I absolutely loved this book. This wasn't forced romance or forced friendship even, instead this book was truly about civic duty what that looks like to be involved at a young age and that its possible to meet and possibly start to like someone for healthy reasons-- you both care about the community.
I think Colbert did an amazing job of tying into multiple stories that need to be told. I think this book really captures what we are seeing with Gen Z. The movements and activism they are unafraid to do.

The Voting Booth by Brandy Colbert is a bit of a love story built around an especially important issue. Marva and Duke are teens voting for the first time. Marva is excited to finally have this opportunity, while Duke is just in it as a responsibility before he moves onto the stuff he wants to do. Marva sees Duke turned away from his polling place, and she decides to help figure out what's going on, so he can vote. What was supposed to be a quick process turns into an all day ordeal. Along the way, they learn this is all way more complicated than it needs to be. However, they keep with it, and as they make their way through town, they also learn about each other while discussing identity, current events, and life in general. I dug that this was a YA romance that built in important topics throughout! Thanks to NetGalley for look at this recent July release!

I loved this book! I didn't know political contemporary was a genre but I love it. This is such a topical and needed story, but its also really fun and cute. I loved Marva so much. She was loud and proud and passionate, and I really loved seeing a truly politically involved female character. Duke was sweet and chill and I liked the way his grief was explored in relation to the current situation. It may be just me because I am very interested in politics, but I found this to be a welcome addition to a regular contemporary. I also really enjoyed the discussion of race and wealth and what it means to be black and in politics. Such a cute story with such real issues, which is an impressive thing to do correctly. Definitely recommend!

The Voting Book was a great adventure and a pleasure to read. Important issues were discussed by each characters and no punches were held back. This story delved into real issues that affect Americans today, and everyday.
I loved how hard the importance of voting was stressed in every chapter of this book. Duke and Marva had a great dialogue that felt like a real conversation each time.

Perfect for those new and experienced in world issues and activism. I hope this story inspires those who need it. I know it will encourage people to use their voice, and stand up for what they believe in.

I had read other books by Brandy Colbert, and they were great, but never wowed me. This book was different. I read it in two sittings and I was enamored by Marva and Duke's story! Reading it now was also such a unique experience, because of everything else going on in the world. Loved this!

The Voting Booth by Brandy Colbert
4.5 ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️

“I voted”

Marva could not wait until the day she turned 18 and was able to vote in her first election. She has been helping get the word out for two years because she is passionate and wants her voice to be heard.

Duke also believes voting is important. His older brother was passionate and into activism and not voting would have broken his brother's heart.

Trouble occurs when Duke gets to the voting center and finds out he’s not on the list to vote. Enter Marva, who does everything she can to make sure Duke can cast his ballot.

I enjoyed this book because I believe voting is so important. I could not wait to register to vote and when I was able to vote for the president for the first time I was so excited to do my civic duty. So, I loved Marva’s passion and wished more people her age would get involved and care about the issues facing our country.

I also found the struggle Duke had to vote interesting and I learned some things. I’ve always voted in small towns so I’ve not faced some of the issues described in the book. However, with COVID this year we are seeing it become harder and harder to get out and vote. So voting is even more important now.

This book is not preachy about issues, even though some are mentioned. I will say it does lean to the left so I’m sure some people will have issues with that, but the author makes valid points at how it can be more difficult for people of color to vote with less access and voting centers being closed with no notice.

Thank you @netgalley and @disneybooks for an arc in an exchange for an honest review.

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I got 30% of the way through this, put it down and haven’t wanted to pick it back since. Nothing about the story is jumping at me to keep going. I think the topic of voter suppression and young adults figuring out voting for the first time is really interesting. And there’s romance. But there’s nothing that makes me want to keep at it. There’s no strong love of the characters or real interest in their relationship to keep me going.

What a fun and witty book! Voting Booth was so on point during this extraordinary time in our country. Marva Sheridan was a girl after my own heart. I wish I was as socially conscious at her age. Marva has just turned 18 and voting in the most important election of her young life. While voting, Marva meets six foot three Duke Crenshaw. They both are voting before school. Marva is able to vote but Duke is not. He's not listed on the voting log. Marva jumps into action.

Marva and Duke embark on a journey that spans the whole day and night. It includes a missing cat, a break-up, lost siblings and Duke's band. I totally loved these two characters and I was rooting for them the WHOLE way. YA books are my jam. I get the comparisons to The Sun is Also a Star because of the one day journey but that is where the comparison should end. This book stands on its own merit. This is a must-read for teens and adults. I could see this book as a novel study in a high school class. Brandy Colbert expertly wove a story that shines a light on voter suppression, discrimination, racial profiling, and social injustice in the most refreshing way. There are definitely some triggers but Ms. Colbert's writing style allowed me to feel what I was feeling but also left me with hope.

Well done and I give this book a resounding 5 stars. Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for this ARC in exchange for my honest review.

This should be on every high school reading list. The novel addresses many of today's social and political issues in an informative and engaging way for teens. The main character is passionate about her beliefs and making a change in the world - I love books that value the voices of young people.

Thank you to the publisher and netgalley for the review copy.

This is an incredibly poignant and timely read. I admire Marva for having the tenacity and perseverance in the voting system and politics as a whole at her age when I and many I knew did not. It’s admirable for younger individuals to take an interest in their futures through voting and canvassing. Even Duke’s initial reluctance saw a change in how he wanted to help his community by making sure senior citizens could reach their voting places. It can be a crazy system for voters, especially if they are in demographics disliked by one party or another. This is a good book to show teens and young adults who aren’t quite sure what to make of this year’s and future elections.

I loved Brandy Colbert's novel Little & Lion, and I knew I had to read her latest, The Voting Booth, which centers around teens fighting against voter suppression. It's a perfect time for this book's release and promoting discussions among teens (and everyone) about the importance of voting.

Marva is a driven 18-year old determined to end voter suppression and encourage those around her to take their time and vote. While at her polling place, she meets Duke, another teen in her neighborhood who's out to vote on election day. The bad news - Duke isn't able to vote. So Marva does everything in her power to make sure that Duke can vote. They spend the day together trying to ensure Duke's vote gets counted. And along the way, maybe they start falling for each other.

This book was just as incredible as Colbert's Little & Lion. I loved both Marva and Duke. They're wonderful characters with interesting background and development. I appreciated both of their stories and getting to know more about their families and experiences both in and out of school. Their families were also such an integral part of their stories, and I really loved that. It wasn't really one of those books were their families are so horrible, which seems to be a trend in plenty of books. So, the family piece was so lovely.

I honestly just love Colbert's writing and her style of story-telling. She knows how to write relatable characters that are so impossible to not fall in love with. I also found that the plot was so cute and should be a more common theme. The polling place issues, the missing cat side-story, the community-based storyline, the conversations about race impacting things that should seem mundane - it was all so perfectly constructed.

"These issues affect me and a lot of people I know and love. I don't have the luxury of just not voting, and you shouldn't take advantage of the fact that you do!" - The Voting Booth, Brandy Colbert

Colbert created such a wonderful story with beautiful story-telling, the most adorable meet-cute, and all surrounded by such a politically-aware theme. The characters were well-written and well-developed. I loved this story.

The Voting Booth by Brandy Colbert
Overview: Marva is an activist. She's spent the last 2 years leading up to the 2020 election canvasing, registering people to vote, and being as involved as possible. She's been waiting to vote for the last 4 years. Duke's brother was an activist and community organizer, but he got shot two years ago. Duke doesn't feel his passion, but he definitely knows the importance of showing up to vote. After meeting in line at the polls, Marva becomes tied to Duke as they go through a million different hoops so he can finally cast his ballot. Voting in the US is unnecessarily hard by design. If you've never encountered that, this book makes it abundantly clear. Overall: 4

Characters: 3 I liked Duke and Marva, I just don't feel like they got particularly well developed. We know things about them. There's about five major pieces of both of them that we hear about but don't get too deep into actually exploring. It's understandable because the book is plot heavy and takes place over a single day, but there was a lot of telling as far as the characters go. Marva was a bit more dimensional, I think because we got more glimpses into her truly unfiltered thoughts.
Honestly, the characters I loved most were probably Duke's siblings, his older brother Julian and his younger sister, Ida. Julian died in a drive by shooting two years ago, but before that, he and Duke were super close. We see glimpses of the way that Julian has influenced Duke, and we get a couple anecdotes about who he was. I think Julian, and Ida too, shine so much in a short period of time because they have so much passion- Marva too. Duke, Alec, and other minor character just aren't given enough time to breath on the page to genuinely show who they are.
I wish there had been a bit more time on the character development end, but it wasn't a dealbreaker for the book.

Plot: 4 It's crazy that the way our voting works is so messed up that it easily creates the plot of a scavenger hunt like novel. Every obstacle that Marva and Duke face are ones that voters, especially in areas with high minority populations, encounter every November 3. And it's only getting harder.
Beyond the problems at the polls, there are also subplots about a break up, a missing cat, and getting to a gig they have to play at. None of these really added to the story for me. I think because none of them were built up enough to get me to care about them honestly. The stakes of being able to vote are weighty and easy to get invested in, but none of the other ones captured me. They felt like they were there to take up time between moving through the voting process.

Writing: 4 This book is a fast read. It's the first book I read in one day in a very long time. It passed so quickly, I was shocked that I read as much as I had. There's a levity in the writing and a straightforward path through the day that makes it easy to work through quickly, but there are still tons of important conversations that feel particularly relevant to the moment. I always find it amazing when books perfectly speak to the current moment, but these have also been problems for generations. Hopefully, we can finally address some of these major issues and start making progress.
I'm glad that so many different conversations were addressed in the book because I feel like teens are often only starting to realize important issues as they start reading YA because until 13 or so a lot of what you know is dictated by the adults in your life. It's so important for teens to start developing their own beliefs and widening their worldview.
I thought that the running conversation about the importance of voting was of paramount importance. So many people talk about not voting because they don't like either candidate, but not voting is both a privilege and still a vote. You cannot remove yourself from the equation. Marva also drives home the point that not having politics directly effect your life is an immense privilege. Most people don't have that luxury, so it's extra insulting and frustrating that you don't use your privilege to help those who have less power than you.
For all the holes I mentioned in plot and characters, there were so many scenes that stuck with me. Small conversations hold a lot of weight, and those moments made the book worth reading. If you like cute rom-com type stories with a topical twist, you'll enjoy this book. It's also great as a light, quick read to get out of a reading slump.

Election Day dawns and Marva Sheridan feels like she can conquer the world now that she has turned 18 and can actually vote in a presidential election. Unlike other teens, Marva has joined a political party, works for causes, and has a passion for making sure everyone’s voice is heard at the polls.

Duke Crenshaw just wants to vote, take his calculus test, and finish preparing for his band’s first paying gig. But when he shows up at the polls, he discovers he can’t vote. Not voting doesn’t feel like an option, because it would dishonor everything his brother Julian stood for.

When a pretty girl offers to help him figure out his voting mess, he agrees—even if it means they’ll both have to miss some school. Surely, he’ll get to vote before his band goes on tonight. Or will he?

Marva and Duke’s lives become inextricably intertwined in their quest to exercise their rights to vote.

You’d think casting one’s ballot wouldn’t take much effort, but Brandy Colbert proves differently. Along the way, she manages to shed light on other issues that haunt young Black people through no fault of their own—systematic racism, misunderstandings about interracial relationships, Black on Black violence, and white ignorance.

Why The Voting Booth is Important

The Voting Booth has enough plot twists and turns to keep the reader on their toes and it acts as a primer in voting for all readers. I even learned something I never knew before—some states allow same-day voter registration.

The book also serves an important role in educating white readers about the facts of life for Black citizens in the United States. Hint—without ever mentioning the words ‘white privilege’ the reader will understand exactly how it works by the end of the book.

While intended for an audience of ’12 and up,’ I would caution parents, teachers, and librarians from recommending the book to younger students. As Marva and Duke begin their friendship, they swear a lot (the f-bomb and s**t). Do the characters swear to establish street cred with each other? Or do they swear to signal the angst of adolescence? Most of the salty language occurs in the first third of the book as Marva and Duke get to know each other. At times, it felt gratuitous.

Teachers will have to weigh the pros and cons of incorporating this important own-voices book into their classroom curriculum. It holds a treasure-trove of discussion starters about race, relationships, stereotypes, privilege, voter responsibility, and community involvement. The language makes it more difficult to use in a classroom setting if one teaches in a conservative district or in a Christian private school.

In response to the Black Lives Matter protests, President Barack Obama wrote, "So the bottom line is this: if we want to bring about real change, then the choice isn’t between protest and politics. We have to do both."

As a follow up to the BLM protests, hand The Voting Booth to your woke teen. Brandy Colbert's new YA novel educates young readers about the importance of voting, the obstacles facing first-time voters, and the racist policies and attitudes that undermine American democracy.

Colbert sweetens the lesson in civic responsibility with a cute romance. Straight-A Marva has been waiting her whole life for her first Election Day. She volunteered to register voters and arrived early to the polls before school. To honor his activist brother, Duke had also arrived early to vote, but the polling station doesn't have a record of his registration and his band is playing its first paid gig after school.

When Marva sees Duke turned away from the polls, she offers to help him make sure his vote gets counted. There are many obstacles: a runaway cat, driving while black, ballot shortages, a jealous boyfriend (Alex), truancy calls to parents. Marva and Duke team up to beat the odds and to find her Instagram-famous cat.

At times this topical novel reads a bit like a textbook:
Marva: "Well, it's June nineteenth. Enslaved people in Texas didn't find out until two and a half years after the Emancipation Proclamation that they were free. Not until 1865. So black people celebrate it every year, and it's recognized by almost every state in the country, even though a lot of people don't know about it."

Unlike a textbook, the white boyfriend's insensitive response shows why this lesson is important:
Alex: "Yeah, but what's the point of two separate holidays? I don't care if you're black, white, blue, or green - we're all American, right?"

When Marva flags his color-blind world view as ignorant and Alex argues with her instead of apologizing, his grandmother demonstrate how to be a good ally: "It would do you some good to listen instead of getting defensive next time."

Seeing political lessons played out in everyday life will help teens relate to these important issues. Most of the book is fast paced to keep even reluctant readers turning the pages. It's marvelous to have a diverse book with middle class black and biracial characters, who are not victims but empowered agents of change. If they make the effort to vote!

The Voting Booth is exactly the book voting aged teens need to read this year. Marva and Duke meet at their polling location, when Duke is not on the registered voter list. Marva helps Duke out, which turns into a full day of adventures and mishaps. Touching on voter suppression, activism, and racism, this book is timely and important. That doesn’t mean the tone is heavy throughout, It’s also fun to read and had me turning the pages quickly. Marva and Duke will leave you feeling like your voice at the voting booth matters. I would definitely recommend this one!

It's finally here. The day Marva has been waiting for. Election day! She's so excited that she's first on line. On her way out of the building to head to school, she notices a boy her age being turned away. Marva is prepared for this - she knows all the ways in politics they try to stop people from having their voices heard - and she steps in to help him. Little does she know that that one decision will take her much further away from school and, possibly, much closer to where she should be.

"I know voting doesn't solve everything, and people may think one vote isn't all that important, but I really believe it makes a difference."

How is it possible that this was my first Brandy Colbert novel?! This is exactly everything I want in YA. As an educator, I feel it is so important to let my students know that their voices matter, that their voices should be heard. Like Marva, I believe that teenagers can, and should, change the world. I absolutely loved the focus on the importance of voting among young people in this novel. These are the types of things we should be teaching our youth, and it's a shame that it doesn't always happen in schools today. Not only focusing on politics, this book tackles so many important topics, like interracial relationships, white privilege, grief, and so much more, all while making the reader laugh and fall in love. I'm not much of a squee type of person (y'all know what I'm talking about, right? Like this emoji 🤗 makes me think squee), but that is legit the only word that fits the feelings I had as I read certain parts of the book. Not your average YA, but I wish that books like this were the norm.