With the Fire On High

"With the Fire on High" by Elizabeth Acevedo is a YA novel about a young girl who dreams of becoming a chef. Born and raised in Philly Emoni's life has never been easy. After her mother's death at her birth Emoni is raised by her aging abuela as her father disappears to Puerto Rico, returning only for brief spontaneous visits. At fourteen as a freshman in high school Emoni finds herself pregnant and chooses to keep and raise her daughter Emma. Emoni finds solace in her cooking, a passion that 'Buela has always encouraged and supported. As Emoni begins her senior year she is presented with the opportunity to take cooking classes and even potentially travel to Spain. We follow her journey as she struggles with the option of allowing herself this joy vs giving more time to the responsibilities in her life and her constant juggle through her senior year. 

I found this beautiful book on my Mother's Day jaunt to Barnes and Noble. I am so grateful to whatever employee decided that this book needed to be turned face out on display. As I've mentioned previously, multiple times now, the cover is what draws me into a book the most. Often the spine can do the same, but if the cover doesn't intrigue me it will take a lot to even get me to read the description. Yes, I know, I shouldn't be judging books by the cover...I have been this way my entire life, I try, but when I don't feel drawn to the cover, I can't read it. 

Anyway I saw the cover and instantly grabbed it off the shelf. Yes, hard yes, I wanted to read this novel. Novels about food or books are my happy place. 

Emoni's character is so strong. Obviously she would have to be strong to spend all of high school raising a baby while simultaneously attempting to help support 'Buela. How hard she works, the passion she throws into her cooking and her absolute refusal to put up with any of Tyrone's bull shit is refreshing. There's no flailing, there's no questioning in those things. Work is a part of life, cooking is happiness to her, and as for being strong on no baby daddy bs...Emoni has it locked down. 

What I especially loved about this novel is that it's not a typical teenage mom story. Through glimpses of memories we see that 'Buela supported her. That 'Buela did not make Emoni feel bad for having her daughter or for keeping her. 'Buela supported, she helped but she let Emoni figure out how to be a parent, without removing the support system that all mother's need, especially one so young. Emoni isn't caught up in boys, baby daddy or otherwise or lamenting that her life is what it is. She loves her daughter, she couldn't imagine not having her daughter, and that always factors into her plans. She stays grounded, she stays mature and when thinking of her dreams she doesn't throw a fit about how her life is, about the responsibilities she has, she acts like the mother that she is, putting her baby first and always prioritizing her care. 

I found this really refreshing, I feel like a lot of the "teen mom" stories we see, they're made into a stereotype. I'm not saying Emoni never felt upset with her circumstances, but seeing her strength and tenacity portrayed rather than her teenage angst was nice. 

Honestly, I just, I love 'Buela. She is so loving and incredibly supportive. You don't hear her complain that Emoni was essentially dumped with her. All you see from 'Buela is an extraordinary woman providing an abandoned child with all the love and support she possibly can. She's probably the reason why at 17 Emoni is such a good mother to Baby Girl. I loved watching her blossom and thrive as a character. Seeing her open up to the possibilities in the world. Finding a way to make the reality that she wanted happen while still kicking ass as Baby Girl's mom. I loved it, it lifted my spirits and made me happy.