Love, Hate and Other Filters Hardcover – January 16, 2018

Teen love and real world drama collide in this fantastic YA coming of age story.Maya is a high school senior with a passion for film-making, trying to convince her over protective parents to let her go to New York University for film rather than go to college closer to home. She's also trying to manage her crush on the popular football star, who gets brought into her life through a school project. Their friendship grows into something more, and it seems everything is going to work out great for her.Then a terrorist attack in their state brings harsh scrutiny to Muslims across the US, and to Maya's family in particular due to their being the only Brown people in the small town, and an unfortunate coincidence that links them to the suspect. Maya struggles with her parents' fears for her safety and the aftermath of the event making things weird with her crush. She must also face a classmate with a grudge against all Muslims who becomes radicalized by the attack...On a slightly spoiler-y note, I like how the attack is handled. [Spoiler: the Muslim American initially believed to have conducted the attack was actually an innocent victim and a white supremacist was the terrorist responsible.] This is much more in line with actual terrorist incidents in the US, and reminded me of the Oklahoma City bombing which was initially blamed on Muslim terrorists before white supremacist Timothy McVeigh was identified. The classmate who attacks Maya because his older brother became an amputee in Iraq was also on point. The book reflects an American experience where Brown, Muslim, immigrant and other minority groups are always suspect even when white supremacy is the true culprit.The heavy issues aren't as central as the coming of age and love story, however, and it all comes out so beautifully. I will be on the lookout for anything else Samira Ahmed publishes.

A must-read.Ahmed skillfully weaves the high school senior emotional experience--the family drama, the classmate drama, the big stuff, the little stuff, the romance, the friendships, the whole new future just a breath away--with the serious business of how a hate crime can ripple through lives, over and over again.I swooned, laughed, related, cried, hoped. She brought out the layers we are made of from the parts that influence our decisions to those we try to ignore. The shoulds vs the wants. The sacrifices we weigh, accept, regret. So much is captured in this beauty of a novel that I will recommend it to anyone who will listen.Did you already read THE HATE U GIVE and DEAR MARTIN? This should be your next pick.

This book moved me so much. The characters are deep and thoughtful and so real. I could gush all day, but I just loved this book. Maya's life — and her outlook on life — is so very different from mine, and it's so important to read about different perspectives. I've never experienced the racist hatred she and her family live with, and I greatly respect the care and detail Ahmed put into her novel.

I really enjoyed this book, it has a good story, easy to read and I liked the writing style. The characters were likeable and relatable, and the subject thought provoking. It felt like true story, something happening anywhere and everywhere in the world today. I also liked the way Maya sees the world as through a movie reel, capturing every memory as a film image.Read and review free copy.

Quick engaging read with a lot of heart. This book sucked me right in as I followed Maya's heartbreaking and inspiring struggle to claim her own identity as Muslim American. Full of pop culture references, beautiful descriptions and an authentic portrayal of an Indian American family, Ahmed captures the feelings that are universal about being a teenager while weaving a unique story.

I sort of wish this book had started at the last chapter and told that story going forward, weaving in the events of the rest of the book as backstory. It was good, but not quite as tight as it could have been.

First of all, I loved that Maya, a brown woman, was being pursued by two men, rather than simply pining after them. I loved that the most prominent white character, Violet, was a solid ally who knew how to use her privilege. I found the dialogue at times to be unrealistic in terms of how teens actually speak, but LOVED the vignettes in between chapters giving context to the attack. I wish more books like this existed when I was an actual young adult, but it’s still a good read as an older person.

I read through this book in two sittings! It’s an easy read but opens your eyes to the world around you and to the beliefs of different cultures.

I can never tell if I am going to like contemporary books or not so, rather unfairly, I always go in with really low expectations. I’d heard a lot about this book so also worried that the hype may play a factor. But I didn’t need to worry so much because this book is actually really good.The reader meets the protagonist, Maya, at a really turbulent point in her life: she’s trying to get through high school, applying to colleges and facing ever growing pressure from her parents to find the “perfect Indian boy.” From the outset her voice was so strong that it’s just impossible not to feel for some of the situations she finds herself in. Maya is really into films and takes her camera literally everywhere with her, describing it as her “shield” and this is an aspect of her character that I could personally relate to: she has a passion for something creative that some of her family don’t see as a feasible career and try to dissuade her from going ahead with it. But Maya has a strong mindset of what she wants to do and isn’t budging. I’ve faced something similar in my own life so seeing that play out in this book was all too much like reading my own story.I’m not normally one for love triangles but I actually didn’t mind it. Phil is a white boy that Maya has crushed on forever and Kareem is the ideal match in her parent’s eyes. Each relationship was based on something different and I really liked how both of the boys fuelled a different side of her and that Maya was able to open up to them about her life in different ways.We’re in a politically difficult time with the rise of terror attacks and Islamaphobia which is something that Ahmed addresses in the introduction of this book and why she feels representation is important. The latter half of this book focuses on the terrible racism Maya is subjected to after a terror attack happens and some of the scenes are really difficult and horrible to read. Even more so when we remember that this happening outside of a fictional setting.However, it just felt like there was too much of a disconnect between the love triangle aspect and the thread I just mentioned. Which could be argued as “that’s how life happens it’s not entirely focused on one thing” but it felt like the story took a sudden jump which was just a bit disorientating.Overall, Love, Hate & Other Filters is a book that will remind readers what it feels like to fall in love and the importance of standing up to injustice.

I was really excited to read an own voices book about an Indian Muslim teen in America, something I've never come across in YA.At first, I was a little wary of the love triangle that quickly emerged, with Maya having both Kareem and Phil interested in her, but it turned out to be the best written triangle I've ever come across, with a ton less angst and a much more realistic protagonist. I loved Maya's narrative as she felt like a very real character when dealing with love, family, and discrimination.I loved the culture in the book and reading about Maya's family and traditions, which was really refreshing in YA and I'm really excited for all the other own voices books I have left to read as they tend to feel a lot more real. I loved the ending of the story as it felt true to life rather than a lot of YA romances

I absolutely loved this young adult book! It is very current and up to date with the goings on in teenagers lives in 2018. However, it does bring up the important issue that racism and prejudice still very much exists despite how much society has developed in recent years. This is a great book for teenagers who want to escape everyday life as Maya is a fantastic character with a great personality. This also makes it relateable to young adults. I absolutely loved Phil and his character developed so much throughout. Maya's parents are hilarious and despite the differences between them and Maya, the relationship is lovely to read. Maya's aunt is my favourite character I think and is a great example of a modern day working woman!

A funny and heartwarming story, LOVE, HATE & OTHER FILTERS captures the life as a sharp-witted and amibitious Muslim American teen in a modern tale of family, romance and dealing with the consequences of things outside your control.Though this book delivers on its promises rather late into the story, LOVE is a great and eye-opening read for contemporary fans.

This book was not what I expected there was not a lot about her being Muslim besides her not liking it and wanting to fit in with everyone else. This is definitely a teenage rom com more so and not really identifiable as a Muslim teenager growing up who holds her beliefs strong to her but more a typical teenager who wants freedom