Your plantation prom is not okay

Title:

Author:

Summary:

"Harriet Douglass lives with her historian father on an old plantation in Louisiana, which they’ve transformed into one of the South's few enslaved people’s museums. Together, while grieving the recent loss of Harriet’s mother, they run tours that help keep the memory of the past alive. Harriet's world is turned upside down by the arrival of mother and daughter Claudia and Layla Hartwell—who plan to turn the property next door into a wedding venue, and host the offensively antebellum-themed wedding of two Hollywood stars. Harriet’s fully prepared to hate Layla Hartwell, but it seems that Layla might not be so bad after all—unlike many people, this California influencer is actually interested in Harriet's point of view. Harriet's sure she can change the hearts of Layla and her mother, but she underestimates the scale of the challenge… and when her school announces that prom will be held on the plantation, Harriet’s just about had it with this whole racist timeline! Overwhelmed by grief and anger, it’s fair to say she snaps. Can Harriet use the power of social media to cancel the celebrity wedding and the plantation prom? Will she accept that she’s falling in love with her childhood best friend, who’s unexpectedly returned after years away? Can she deal with the frustrating reality that Americans seem to live in two completely different countries? And through it all, can she and Layla build a bridge between them?" -- Amazon.com.

Audience:

Ages 12 & up Little, Brown and Company.

Edition:

First edition.

Physical Description:

314 pages ; 22 cm.

Genre:

Social problem fiction.

Subject Term:

Plantations -- Fiction.

Racism -- Fiction.

Social media -- Fiction.

Museums -- Fiction.

Friendship -- Fiction.

Grief -- Fiction.

Mothers -- Death -- Fiction.

Geographic Term:

Louisiana -- Fiction.

Publisher:

Little, Brown and Company,

Publication Date:

2023

ISBN:

9780316449939

Publication Information:

New York : Little, Brown and Company, 2023.

Call Number:

YA MCWILLIAMS

Holds: Copies:

Available:*

Item Barcode	Collection	Call Number	Status	Item Holds
33607003607556	New Young Adult	MCWILLIAMS	Searching... Unknown	Searching... Unavailable

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Summary

This sharp-witted, timely novel explores cancel culture, anger, and grief, and challenges the romanticization of America's racist past with humor and heart--for readers of Dear Martin by Nic Stone and Grown by Tiffany D. Jackson.

Harriet Douglass lives with her historian father on an old plantation in Louisiana, which they've transformed into one of the South's few enslaved people's museums. Together, while grieving the recent loss of Harriet's mother, they run tours that help keep the memory of the past alive.

Harriet's world is turned upside down by the arrival of mother and daughter Claudia and Layla Hartwell--who plan to turn the property next door into a wedding venue, and host the offensively antebellum-themed wedding of two Hollywood stars.

Harriet's fully prepared to hate Layla Hartwell, but it seems that Layla might not be so bad after all--unlike many people, this California influencer is actually interested in Harriet's point of view. Harriet's sure she can change the hearts of Layla and her mother, but she underestimates the scale of the challenge...and when her school announces that prom will be held on the plantation, Harriet's just about had it with this whole racist timeline! Overwhelmed by grief and anger, it's fair to say she snaps.

Can Harriet use the power of social media to cancel the celebrity wedding and the plantation prom? Will she accept that she's falling in love with her childhood best friend, who's unexpectedly returned after years away? Can she deal with the frustrating reality that Americans seem to live in two completely different countries? And through it all, can she and Layla build a bridge between them?

Author Notes

Kelly McWilliams is a mixed-race writer. Ag nes at the End of the World was a finalist for the Golden Kite Award, and Mirror Girls is a Junior Library Guild Gold Standard Selection and Target Book Club Pick. She's written for Time , Bustle , and Publishers Weekly among other outlets. She lives in Seattle with her family.

Reviews (2)

School Library Journal Review

Gr 8 Up--A white soap opera star purchases a Louisiana planation with plans to turn it into an event venue, spurring a neighboring Black teen out of her grief shell and into righteous indignation and action. Harriet Douglass is heading into senior year and reeling from her mother's death from cancer. She lives with her depressed father, a historian, and busies herself working at her family's museum, which honors and centers the narratives of the enslaved. Though she's been working on grounding techniques and coping skills through talk therapy to help with her complex PTSD, Harriet's anger and sadness overwhelm her, sometimes giving her amnesiac events fueled by what she thinks of as her "rage monster." The plantation next door becoming a place to hold weddings and proms (where guests can enjoy the romanticized "antebellum aesthetic") is the last straw. Harriet teams up with Layla, an influencer and neighboring soap star Claudia's rather fickle daughter, for sabotage through social media activism. Layla and Harriet, with the allyship of classmates and childhood-friend-turned-maybe-boyfriend, Dawn, hope to get Claudia and her plantation canceled. As she works with her community, Harriet realizes she's not nearly as alone as she has felt. Though secondary characters are not nearly as richly developed as the impassioned Harriet, this is a well-written, insightful, and emotional look at healing, stewardship, action, shame, and traumatic grief. VERDICT A powerful, unflinching look at the hard truths of the legacy of slavery, mental health issues, and the connection between medical neglect and racism.--Amanda MacGregor

Publisher's Weekly Review

Plans to turn a plantation into a wedding venue force a Black teen to confront loss while fighting racism in this moving novel by McWilliams (Mirror Girls). Harriet Douglass is passionate about highlighting the legacy of Westwood, a museum in Louisiana focusing on enslaved people's history, which her mother curated up until her death from cancer. When Harriet discovers that the Belle Grove plantation next door has been bought by white soap opera star Claudia Hartwell to host celebrity nuptials, Harriet determines to prevent it from becoming a party venue. Claudia's daughter, Layla, a popular online influencer, shares in Harriet's disappointment about her mother's plans and--despite Harriet's original mistrust and Layla's initial microaggressions--the pair work together to "cancel Belle Grove," developing genuine friendship along the way. Meanwhile, Harriet's private struggles regulating strong emotions; managing romantic feelings for a childhood friend; and navigating her father's grief are exacerbated by her school's intention to host prom at Belle Grove. McWilliams pens a touching story about grief, compassion for one's ancestors, and one teen's pursuit of justice in this thoughtfully rendered telling, which interrogates the romanticization of Black pain and the pros and cons of social media activism. Ages 12--up. Agent: Michael Bourret, Dystel, Goderich & Bourret. (May)