REQUIRED READING FOR THE DISENFRANCHISED FRESHMAN

Savannah Howard leaves home in Tennessee to attend prestigious Ivy League Wooddale University on a full scholarship.

With her Mama’s mantra—“I’ve worked hard. I deserve to be here”—in her heart, hardworking Black 18-year-old Savannah has the common sense to know that predominantly White Wooddale will be a world apart from life in the Memphis projects where she grew up. However, nothing can prepare her for the hurtful microaggressions she faces on Day 1 from her privileged roommate, Elaina, and Elaina’s mother or the defacing of the statue commemorating the first Black president of Wooddale. When she suspects that student-body president Lucas and his frat brothers are responsible for the incident, Savannah’s quest for justice begins alongside her new friends, Black sophomores Tasha and Benji. Online, she uses the #WoodaleConfessions hashtag to draw attention to the cause. Savannah’s voice is clear, and through her, Lee’s debut presents readers with a highly relatable, strong female lead. Savannah wants to make her mother proud and stay solid for her brilliant BFF, B’onca, who has been dealt a different hand. She vacillates between keeping her head down and working toward her degree and being an activist. What transpires will leave readers in awe of her integrity and grit. This novel will speak to anyone who has struggled with knowing whether the right thing to do was the right thing for them.

A moving and authentic exploration of one young woman’s moral compass.