Truth Is
by Hannah V. Sawyerr
High School    Amulet/Abrams    480 pp.
9/25    9781419776830    $21.99
e-book ed.  9798887074016    $19.79

This verse novel’s protagonist, high school senior Truth Bangura, does not make the grades her moralizing best friend does, but she still has goals beyond what her overbearing mother and her guidance counselor believe she’s entitled to. An early application to Penn State provides some hope, but a positive pregnancy test inspires panic. Truth ultimately makes the difficult decision to end her pregnancy. She finds solace in her slam poetry team, a pursuit that helps her put her pain into words. When she makes those words public in a competition, her performance goes viral, but the reactions from those closest to her are far from supportive. Truth’s story is told through various mediums in addition to verse, including poetry prompts, checklists, report cards, and quizzes. This unconventional narrative style not only reflects Truth’s poetic voice but also mirrors the fragmented emotional reality of her teenage experience, making her inner world feel intimate and immediate. Her complicated relationship with her mother is particularly well drawn, illustrating the generational and cultural clashes (a young mother herself, Truth’s mother is originally from Sierra Leone) that shape Truth’s identity and decisions. Former Baltimore youth poet laureate Sawyerr offers a realistic glimpse into issues surrounding abortion access, choice, and determination in a lyrical way. A timely read for teens navigating identity, autonomy, and self-expression. Several poetry prompts are appended.

From the November/December 2025 issue of The Horn Book Magazine.