Review
Ebony LaDelle's Love Radio is an absorbing and romantic YA debut. High school senior Dani Ford doesn't have time for love; more importantly, she's not interested in it--at least, not the way it's portrayed in the old Black romcoms her mother adores. Dani is focused on applying for early admission to MFA programs, writing an "amazing" essay and moving to New York City where she'll become "the next Maya or Audre." But she is suffering in silence after a recent painful experience, the trauma giving her writer's block and threatening to unravel all her plans.
Seventeen-year-old Prince Jones (aka DJ LoveJones) is a local Detroit celebrity: he's the only teen DJ on Love Radio, where he gives relationship advice to callers. Prince, who is the main caretaker for his mother (who has multiple sclerosis) and his seven-year-old brother, Mook (who's been diagnosed with ADHD), believes his dreams of becoming a DJ and one day falling in love don't seem particularly achievable. Despite this mindset, Prince gathers the courage to talk to his longtime crush, Dani, who is aggressively disinterested. In a last-ditch effort, Prince convinces Dani that if she goes on just three dates with him, she'll fall in love.
Love Radio is a beautifully written novel that gives readers intimate first-person perspectives of both protagonists. LaDelle covers big topics like love, disability, parental abandonment, depression and sexual assault delicately and with empathy. Dani and Prince's love story shows teen readers that taking a leap or stepping outside your boundaries can lead to new experiences and growth.
Seventeen-year-old Prince Jones (aka DJ LoveJones) is a local Detroit celebrity: he's the only teen DJ on Love Radio, where he gives relationship advice to callers. Prince, who is the main caretaker for his mother (who has multiple sclerosis) and his seven-year-old brother, Mook (who's been diagnosed with ADHD), believes his dreams of becoming a DJ and one day falling in love don't seem particularly achievable. Despite this mindset, Prince gathers the courage to talk to his longtime crush, Dani, who is aggressively disinterested. In a last-ditch effort, Prince convinces Dani that if she goes on just three dates with him, she'll fall in love.
Love Radio is a beautifully written novel that gives readers intimate first-person perspectives of both protagonists. LaDelle covers big topics like love, disability, parental abandonment, depression and sexual assault delicately and with empathy. Dani and Prince's love story shows teen readers that taking a leap or stepping outside your boundaries can lead to new experiences and growth.