Harley in the Sky by Akemi Dawn Bowman - Book Review (Blog Tour) ⋆ Wonderfully Bookish

Harley Milano has dreamed of being a trapeze artist for as long as she can remember. With parents who run a famous circus in Las Vegas, she spends almost every night in the big top watching their lead aerialist perform, wishing with all her soul that she could be up there herself one day.

After a huge fight with her parents, who continue to insist she go to school instead, Harley leaves home, betrays her family and joins the rival traveling circus Maison du Mystère. There, she is thrust into a world that is both brutal and beautiful, where she learns the value of hard work, passion and collaboration. But at the same time, Harley must come to terms with the truth of her family and her past—and reckon with the sacrifices she made and the people she hurt in order to follow her dreams.

Title: Harley in the Sky
Author: Akemi Dawn Bowman
Publisher: Ink Road
Date: March 10th, 2020
Genre: YA Contemporary

Note: I was sent a copy of this book from the publisher in return for an honest review as part of the blog tour.

I have a small list of ‘auto-buy authors‘: people whose books I will always read, no matter what it is. Akemi Dawn Bowman is one of those authors.

I’ve been reading Akemi’s books since 2018, when my friend Sophie gave me a copy of Starfish for my birthday. Since then, I’ve read and loved her second book, Summer Bird Blue, met Akemi at a couple of different events, and interviewed her on my podcast.

I’m also a part of the street team for this latest book, Harley in the Sky, so I’ve been promoting it all over the place for the past few months – on Twitter, Instagram, YouTube, and on the blog sometimes too.

So it’s safe to say I’m a bit of a fan.

When I found out about the blog tour for Harley in the Sky, I leaped at the chance to get on board! I was sent a stunning paperback copy of the finished book and it looks beautiful next to my copies of Akemi’s other books. I couldn’t wait to add this one to the collection and shout about it on my blog, because it’s so good.

Harley in the Sky follows a teenager called Harley who has grown up surrounded by her parents’ circus and practicing the trapeze. It’s her dream to be a trapeze artist, but when her parents tell her she needs to go to college instead to get a traditional education, Harley decides to do something that could change her life: she runs away to join a rival circus.

As with all of Akemi’s books, Harley in the Sky features several diverse characters, including Harley who is Japanese/American, and Vas, a Russian/English boy who is a part of the circus Harley runs away to join. There are a whole host of other great characters too, including some wonderful friendships (if you know me, you’ll know that I adore a book with some good, strong friendships – they’re far more important than romantic relationships), but with some good chemistry between the characters thrown in too.

One thing I especially love about this book is the setting. I seem to have developed an interest in circus books over the past few months, with Caraval by Stephanie Garber, The Night Circus by Erin Morgenstern, and Flight of a Starling by Lisa Heathfield being among my favourites. So when I found out that Harley in the Sky also had a circus setting, I was hyped.

Not only do we read about Harley’s experience growing up in a circus owned by her family, but we also see the culture shock as she joins another circus that is run entirely differently to the one she calls home. The book explores Harley’s struggle to fit in, her worries that she has made all the wrong choices (something I think most teenagers go through when they start a brand new venture in their lives so it feels very relatable), and her efforts to try and make friends – while also potentially making some enemies in the process.

It’s important to note that Harley isn’t perfect. She’s a teenager. She cares a lot about her dreams to an extent that it’s sometimes the only thing that matters, and she often forgets to take other people’s feelings and desires into consideration. She often makes quick decisions that might not be very well thought out, and this leads her to some sticky situations.

That isn’t to saw that her flaws are a bad thing, though; not at all. After all, this is one thing Akemi always does well: she writes real characters with real flaws and human emotions, and they make decisions that real people make. Harley might not always be the nicest person to be around, and she might unintentionally screw up some of her relationships with both her friends and her parents, but to me, this is what makes her a real person. She’s not a cardboard YA heroine. She’s Harley, she’s unique, and she’s a real, human person who makes real, human mistakes.

I’m always going to gush about Akemi’s books, because I know I’m always going to love them. Harley in the Sky has a perfect blend of what makes it feel so down to earth and authentic: flawed humans, over-bearing parents, genuine portrayal of depression and mental illness, and an ambitious teenager who just wants to make her dreams come true.

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