A Very Large Expanse of Sea by Tahereh Mafi

I'm going to be honest. I usually hate contemporary. There are maybe two or three contemporary books I genuinely love, and I would choose fantasy or sci-fi over any of those.

So I originally wasn't going to read A Very Large Expanse of Sea, because I thought I wouldn't enjoy it and, having been trash for her writing since I was in middle school, I didn't think I could bear to give one of Tahereh Mafi's books a low rating.

I loved it.

Like, I loved it so much that I haven't been able to stop thinking about it since I finished it in one sitting yesterday instead of doing homework.

Characteristic of Mafi's style, A Very Large Expanse of Sea is written in simple, lyrical language and is full of memorable and lovable characters. Unlike her Shatter Me series, which is set in a dystopian world (it's really good; if you haven't read it, you should soon), A Very Large Expanse of Sea is set in 2002, soon after 9/11, and focuses on Shirin, a Muslim high school girl.

Shirin is constantly harassed whenever she leaves the house. Even though she was born in the United States, she's constantly told to go back to where she came from, or assumed to not speak English. Her family also moves very frequently, so, as a sophomore, she has already been to three different high schools. As someone who lived in eight cities in eighteen years, I related a lot to how Shirin felt about moving every year or two.

Shirin has formed this abrasive exterior to prevent herself from being hurt. She is often rude, foulmouthed, and generally resistant to making friends or talking to anyone besides her brother, Navid, and his friends. And for good reason; Shirin has learned not to expect anything good from anyone. I loved Shirin as a character. Even though a lot of her personality was basically a defense mechanism, she was delightfully sarcastic and witty.

Then Shirin meets Ocean. Ocean is the first person who has been kind to her and the first person who wants to learn more about her, instead of avoiding or bullying her because of her race.

This book is just so, so amazing. The prose is gorgeous, and I loved all of the characters. Even though Shirin had a hard time connecting to others, I loved her relationship with her parents and her brother, as well as her relationship with Ocean.

I would recommend A Very Large Expanse of Sea to anyone, even if they don't typically like contemporary YA.