Tiffany D. Jackson's Monday's Not Coming is one of those books I feel guilty for not having picked up sooner. It has been out since May, but I am just now getting to it. But hey, I guess better late than never. And also, there are still so many books from 2018, especially YA books, that I still want to read. It is impossible to get them all in before the end of the year, but I will certainly have fun trying. The Situation: To say that Claudia and Monday are best friends would be an understatement. Claudia and Monday are best friends in the way that they have their own secret language. And while they do sometimes dress alike, they can look like twins even when they are wearing different clothes. Attending the same school in DC, Claudia and Monday stick together and endure the same torture from the same bullies. But since they have each other, they remain okay. Claudia sees what they have as a sort of protective bubble with the two of them inside. There are things beyond school bullies that threaten to pop it though, such as the difference in their socioeconomic status, with Claudia being closer to middle class, and Monday living in Ed Borough, an area known for crime and poverty. Also, while Claudia is an only child living with her mother and father, Monday is the second of four children, living only with her mother, who does little to hide her dislike for Claudia's mother. Still, the girls make it work, until Monday goes missing.
The Problem: Every summer, Claudia visits her grandmother down south, while Monday stays in DC. This past summer, the girls were supposed to write letters to each other the entire time Claudia was gone, but all of Claudia's letters went unanswered. And then, Monday does not show up for the first day of school, or the second, or the third, or the first week, second week, and on it goes. Claudia knows something has to be seriously wrong for her best friend to not only stop communicating with her, but also not show up to school. But what is even more frustrating than having her best friend seemingly drop off of the face of the earth is being the only one who seems to be looking for her. With the exception of one teacher, school officials brush off Claudia's concerns, Monday's family will not give her straight answers, the police will not take her seriously, and even Claudia's parents do not want her digging too deep. Without Monday, Claudia feels more alone than she has ever felt, and while she refuses to move on without her best friend, she would not know where to start even if she wanted to.
Genre, Themes, History: This is a young adult novel narrated by Claudia, a teenage girl living in the DC area who is looking for her best friend, Monday. The story begins with Claudia's return from her annual summer trip to her grandmother's house, and as usual, the first thing she wants to do is contact Monday. At first, Claudia experiences only a mild panic when she cannot get in touch with her best friend before the first day of school. But this panic grows the longer Monday is missing. And while Monday being missing is certainly an issue, it is only part of the reason for Claudia's panic, as it is revealed that not only is Monday her best friend, but also her only friend. Plus, it seems that Monday was essential to Claudia getting through school in more ways than one. The two kept each others' secrets, protected each other, supported one another, and never turned their backs on each other. This is why Claudia refuses to give up on finding her friend. Told through chapters with titles such as 'The Before,' 'The After,' 'One Year Before The Before,' and even 'Two Years Before The Before,' the story touches on various themes concerning life for black families in DC (the 80s drug crisis and gentrification, just to name a couple), as well as what it means to never give up on a friend.
My Verdict: I thought this book was going to be tougher to get through than it was. Even so, I picked it up anyway and was glad I did. It is so much more than a story about a missing girl whose best friend refuses to give up looking for her. It is also about what family is supposed to be, the role of educators in today's school, what happens when property and land are suddenly desirable, and the always important difference between being friends with someone, and also being completely socially dependent on them, while not really knowing them. Something readers often talk about with YA is the authentic teenage voice, and this book certainly has that. There were parts that did make me slightly uncomfortable only because they reminded me of what is was like to line up by grade in middle school, of line up in the cafeteria in high school, or struggle through homework assignments you would really rather not do. There are parts that were hard, and other parts that were simply heartbreaking, but more than that, Claudia's determination almost becomes the reader's determination, and ultimately, we would all want someone like her in our lives who would refuse to give up on us.
Favorite Moment: Claudia may have been warned against fighting by her parents, but I do admit to enjoying any moment when she stands up for herself and refuses to be pushed around.
Favorite Character: Claudia's parents remind me of my own. The girl cannot get away with much, and it is certainly for the best.
Recommended Reading: A List of Cages by Robin Roe is a YA novel about a boy refusing to give up on an unlikely friend.
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