Scarborough by Catherine Hernandez beautifully pens the gritty and untidy complexities of marginalized lives. Through individual narratives, it explores and exposes the hardships and struggles of one of the poorest neighborhoods and communities of Toronto. At its core, it follows the innocence of three children, Bing, Laura, and Sylvie, as they navigate the systemic barriers put in place due to their race and socio-economic backgrounds. In a world that fails them, Hernandez gives their experiences a home in unique chapters that tell the tales of being born and raised amidst struggles with identity, mental health, race, immigration, poverty, and homelessness. Nonetheless, there are also bittersweet moments which bring joy and laughter into Bing, Sylvie, and Laura’s small lives. When the stories wind through a meeting point and the plots and characters merge, we experience pure friendship and support amongst the children and the other members of the community.

Scarborough takes you on a journey that is difficult and beautiful and painful all at the same time. I recommend it so very emphatically. And if you’ve read it or once you read it, I would love to hear your take on it.

Scarborough has something for everyone, younger readers will appreciate the relatability of the characters no matter their own background and older readers can better understand the nuances of being part of a system that fails the characters. The novel is broken into short chapters that focus on an individual character and narrative making it easy to follow and a great option for read alouds.