Publishers Weekly
07/17/2023
Estranged British Nigerian cousins Iyanu and Kitan are two of the few Black students attending Wodebury Hall, an English countryside boarding school. While day student Iyanu, a budding photographer, prefers to fade into the background, affluent boarder Kitan has situated herself at the top of the social food chain alongside her white besties. But Iyanu is thrust into the spotlight when photos she took of her classmates at the recent winter fair vanish from the school’s darkroom and begin appearing around campus with cruel rumors and comments written on them. Resolving to clear her name, Iyanu—accompanied by her crush—set out to uncover the culprit. Among the possible perpetrators is Kitan’s best friend Heather, the most popular girl in school, who “always ensures that her white skin is just bronzed enough for her to appear ‘exotic Black.’ ” Recalling Mean Girls, Omotoni’s compulsively entertaining debut adeptly addresses topics surrounding bullying, classism, homophobia, identity, and racism via Iyanu and Kitan’s alternating chapters, which piece together their fraught relationship history amid the school’s current fallout in biting prose. Ages 13–up. Agent: Chloe Seager, Madeleine Milburn Literary. (Sept.)
From the Publisher
"Omotoni’s debut is equal parts intriguing and exciting. She does more than create a space for the necessary commentary on racism, sexism, and homophobia. She also takes us on an emotional roller coaster that has us rooting for both Iyanu and Kitan. Readers will relish the ending and both character transformations." — ALA Booklist
“Recalling Mean Girls, Omotoni’s compulsively entertaining debut adeptly addresses topics surrounding bullying, classism, homophobia, identity, and racism via Iyanu and Kitan’s alternating chapters, which piece together their fraught relationship history amid the school’s current fallout in biting prose.” — Publishers Weekly
“A thought-provoking novel about the high cost of fitting in.” — Kirkus Reviews
"Brimming with high-stakes drama and a witty cast of both noble and nefarious characters, Everyone's Thinking It is a big-hearted, clever page-turner." — Ibi Zoboi, New York Times Bestselling Author
"A Gossip Girl for the new age that’s impossible to put down. Omotoni spins an intricate web of relationships among imensional characters, all tangled in relevant questions of identity, oppression, and community. This is an absolute knockout debut, and once reading, everyone will be thinking it.” — Racquel Marie, author of Ophelia After All
“With its compelling mystery, insightful social commentary, and charming romance, Everyone’s Thinking It is a richly layered and remarkable debut.” — Elise Bryant, author of Happily Ever Afters
MARCH 2024 - AudioFile
Nneka Okoye masterfully portrays estranged cousins Kitan and Iyanu. The pair are trying to get to the bottom of who leaked the secrets of Wodebury Hall's most popular students. It's a tough nut to crack because the cousins' Nigerian heritage makes them outsiders at their elite British school. Okoye provides a soft, delicate voice for Kitan, whose wealth and silence in the face of racial microaggressions have allowed her to fit in--until now. Iyanu, her complete opposite, is content being an outsider until she's framed for spilling the secrets. Okoye gives her a bolder no-nonsense voice. Okoye also provides distinct voices for the cousins' classmates, who are all suspects in this tense whodunit. J.E.C. © AudioFile 2024, Portland, Maine
Kirkus Reviews
2023-06-21
Nigerian cousins reckon in very different ways with life at their predominantly white English private school.
Iyanu Da Silva is a budding photographer and day student at Wodebury Hall. While her cousin Kitan Ladipo is a boarder there, the two Black girls occupy different social strata. Kitan is best friends with two popular white girls, but this acceptance comes at a personal price. Iyanu recently traveled to London for the Black Girls Winter Fair, where she met her favorite writer, and she hopes to write about the experience in her application for a photojournalist position at an online magazine founded by queer women of color. Despite her outsider status, Iyanu is chosen to photograph a school matchmaking event. But her photos and negatives from the winter fair and the evening social disappear from the school darkroom—and reappear with nasty rumors and comments attached that disrupt the social order at Wodebury and land Iyanu in the hot seat. Now Iyanu and Quincy, her longtime friend and crush, are trying to discover who is behind the theft and sabotage. Through chapters alternating between the cousins’ first-person perspectives, the book insightfully explores Blackfishing, racism and microaggressions, and biases Black girls face in beauty standards and dating. The central relationship arcs are handled well and will resonate with readers. Teens of many different backgrounds will find elements of their lives reflected in this narrative.
A thought-provoking novel about the high cost of fitting in. (author’s note with content warning) (Fiction. 14-18)
