"All My Rage" by Sabaa Tahir

All My Rage is hands down my favorite read of 2022. I hesitated to pick it up because it is targeted at a younger audience, but having read it, I now firmly believe this should be assigned reading in high schools, or at the very least included on summer reading lists. The book follows a dual timeline: in the present we follow Sal (Salahudin) and his closest friend Noor. Both teens have troubled family lives and are burdened with the types of problems, no child should be dealing with at this age. Sal is desperately trying to save the motel that his family owns as his mother’s health fails and his dad loses himself to drink. And Noor works at her uncle’s liquor store and secretly applies to colleges knowing that her uncle will be irate if he finds out about her college dreams.

The second timeline is about Sal’s parents arranged marriage in Pakistan and eventual immigration to the United States. This way, we get a bit of a background on what they’ve been through and how they found themselves in the desert town of Juniper, California thousands of miles away from Lahore. 

I must say, this is not an easy read. The characters in this book deal with a lot of trauma and heartbreak. It’s like the fates decided to get a concentrated dose of pain and lobbed it at the main characters just to see if they will be left standing. Trigger warnings for those who need them: death of close relative, child abuse, off page implied child molestation, alcohol and drug use/addiction, natural disasters.

The book at its core has the message of hope and redemption. It is also a great account of immigrant experience. Every immigrant experience is unique and every one includes a portion of heartbreak, insecurity, bitter disappointment, naiveté, and always hope and desire of a better life. For different people, the proportions are different and some immigrant stories include huge successes, others – spectacular failures, and most – relatively happy, stable, respectable lives. Those who have seen tremendous lows are more likely to be content with little. Sal and Noor without a doubt face major lows, but in the end, their story concludes on a very hopeful note. It was important for me to know this going in. I don’t think my heart could have taken a terrible ending to the story that was fraught with so much pain. 5 out of 5 stars. I definitely recommend this novel.