Monday's Not Coming by Tiffany D. Jackson
Grade: B
Release date: May 22, 2018
An e-galley was provided by HarperCollins via Edelweiss in exchange for an honest review.
Summary: Monday Charles is missing, and only Claudia seems to notice. Claudia and Monday have always been inseparable—more sisters than friends. So when Monday doesn’t turn up for the first day of school, Claudia’s worried. When she doesn’t show for the second day, or second week, Claudia knows that something is wrong. Monday wouldn’t just leave her to endure tests and bullies alone. Not after last year’s rumors and not with her grades on the line. Now Claudia needs her best—and only—friend more than ever. But Monday’s mother refuses to give Claudia a straight answer, and Monday’s sister April is even less help.
As Claudia digs deeper into her friend’s disappearance, she discovers that no one seems to remember the last time they saw Monday. How can a teenage girl just vanish without anyone noticing that she’s gone?
The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly: It's been a week since I finished Monday's Not Coming, and I'm still trying to process it and my feelings. It's such a complicated story, and I'm worried it will slip under the radar or be dismissed too quickly. The way it is told will definitely turn off a lot of readers, and I struggled with the narration, but I knew the plot was going to be worth it. One of the minor plot threads is about Claudia's dyslexia, and I thought that worked pretty well. I did want more of her dance plotline because that really developed her character.
MNC is a story about friendship, the truth, and domestic abuse. Claudia is persistent and loyal; she cares about Monday above all else. Also, thanks to Claudia being the narrator, there's still an element of innocence despite the topic - missing black teenage girls - being so tragic. I did feel her voice read awfully young; in the "After" chapters I felt she was probably fourteen or so, but she read closer to eleven or twelve for most of the book.
The timeline of the story did confuse me quite a bit, but I think Monday's Not Coming would make a good reread. Knowing what happens won't lessen one's enjoyment at all, in my opinion.
Content warnings: Foul language, sexual content, underage drinking, bullying (verbal and physical), violence, and death.
The Verdict: It made me feel a lot of emotions.
Will I be adding this book to my library?: I don't think so...? We'll see.
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