Book Review For Me by Yuaziiqann

I currently finished reading Me by Yuaziiqann. This author offered me a copy of his novel for an honest review. No monetary funds were taken for this review.

I gave this book 4 stars.

This novel starts off with the main character, Aaron getting shot. As he waits for the bullet to find him, he takes the reader back to the beginning of his life and recounts his journey from living in Ghana with his abusive father to his journey to New York with his mother.

The narrative follows Aaron as a child up til his dismal end living as a psuedo-homeless man on the streets of New York. The pacing of the story in the beginning is good and Aaron's story seems promising. Yet, by the middle of the novel, the story takes a dip and the character starts to wax poetic about his existence in the universe as an individual and God's overall existence. While Aaron's fascination with this topic is understandable since his mother dies, the character becomes increasingly unlikeable from this point on.

Nevertheless, the novel is not boring by any account. The author's usage of secondary characters is interesting and helps give the novel more depth. Chris and Zach who are Aaron's best friends provide humor and comic relief in parts of the novel that may have otherwise become tedious.  However, the sexual relationship that forms between these two strikes me as odd. From my vantage point as the reader, it seemed as if the character's actions aren't warranted due to Zach being pegged by the author as totally in love with his girlfriend, Annie and Chris being a complete womanizer. Therefore, the characters' actions come off feeling contrived to me. Another character that was interesting was the character of Princess, a homeless drug addict who Aaron befriends and ends up committing a triple murder with. Princess's role within the novel is thoroughly believable and well thought out. Her character solidifies Aaron's lost of innocence and helps bring sincerity to the main character's lifestyle as a homeless wanderer.

While this book is completely well written and at parts thought-provoking, it wasn't necessarily my personal cup of tea. However, I would recommend that readers who enjoy urban fiction or coming of age stories that are more geared toward adult readers give this book a try.