Fall 2019 Kids Indie Next List
“With its charming mixed media epistolary style and compelling story, Dear Haiti, Love Alaine is a novel that demands to be read. Once you’ve met Alaine, you’ll need to see how her tale ends up. At once endearing and poignant, this illuminative book is important and I am so happy it exists. I can’t wait to see what the Moulite sisters write next!”
— Cristina Russell, Books & Books, Coral Gables, FL
Description
"I couldn't put
Dear Haiti, Love Alaine down " --
New York Times bestselling author Jasmine Guillory
"An enchanting and engrossing novel full of wit and laughter." --Edwidge Danticat, author of
Breath, Eyes, Memory "Remarkable, funny, and whip-smart." --Ibi Zoboi, author of
American Street, National Book Award finalist
"Maika and Maritza Moulite have created quite the masterpiece." --
NPR.org "Alaine's sarcastic quips...are worth the price of admission alone." --
HYPEBAE "A beautiful story from start to finish." --
Buzzfeed Alaine Beauparlant has heard about Haiti all her life... But the stories were always passed down from her dad--and her mom, when she wasn't too busy with her high-profile newscaster gig. But when Alaine's life goes a bit sideways, it's time to finally visit Haiti herself.
What she learns about Haiti's proud history as the world's first black republic (with its even prouder people) is one thing, but what she learns about her own family is another. Suddenly, the secrets Alaine's mom has been keeping, including a family curse that has spanned generations, can no longer be avoided.
It's a lot to handle, without even mentioning that Alaine is also working for her aunt's nonprofit, which sends underprivileged kids to school and boasts one
annoyingly charming intern.
But if anyone can do it all...it's Alaine.
"Delightful." --
Essence magazine
"Alaine Beauparlant is YA's new favorite heroine." --Author Nina Moreno for
Bustle "Seamlessly blending story lines and allusions to Haiti's history and culture, the authors create an indelible, believable character in Alaine--naive, dynamic, and brutally honest--who stretches and grows as her remarkable, affectingly rendered family relationships do." --
Publishers Weekly (starred review)
"Sisters Maika and Maritza Moulite deliver a phenomenal coming-of-age story with this stunning novel." --
Booklist (starred review)
"Enchanting." --
Kirkus Reviews