It’s no secret I love PRIDE AND PREJUDICE. I believe I’ve made it pretty clear it’s my favorite book, between my post about the original book and posts about retellings (BOOKISH BOYFRIENDS, EPIC FAIL, The Lizzie Bennet Diaries). Well, it’s not going to stop because amazing authors keep writing new takes on it, and I have another one today. PRIDE by Ibi Zoboi takes the classic tale to Brooklyn, specifically Bushwick, and it’s masterfully done.

Zuri Benitez has pride. Brooklyn pride, family pride, and pride in her Afro-Latino roots. But pride might not be enough to save her rapidly gentrifying neighborhood from becoming unrecognizable.

When the wealthy Darcy family moves in across the street, Zuri wants nothing to do with their two teenage sons, even as her older sister, Janae, starts to fall for the charming Ainsley. She especially can’t stand the judgmental and arrogant Darius. Yet as Zuri and Darius are forced to find common ground, their initial dislike shifts into an unexpected understanding.

But with four wild sisters pulling her in different directions, cute boy Warren vying for her attention, and college applications hovering on the horizon, Zuri fights to find her place in Bushwick’s changing landscape, or lose it all.

Here are the five things I loved most:

1. The characters – Even though PRIDE AND PREJUDICE is my favorite book, I don’t go into a retelling expecting the characters to be exactly like Elizabeth and Darcy–more that they will capture the essence of them. I think Ibi Zoboi did this very well. Zuri is strong, with opinions that lead her to snap decisions about Darius, while Darius approaches her family with certain preconceptions and is protective of his brother–much like Darcy was protective of Bingley. But I loved the characterizations beyond these two. I felt entrenched in their world and learned much from them.

2. The poetry – Zuri’s poems throughout the book were gorgeous and moving. They took me deeper into her world and gave me a better understanding of how she felt about it.

3. The romance – Complicated and full of bumps along the way and yet just right in the end, the romance was lovely.

4. The setting – While I’ve read a number of books set in New York, I haven’t read many addressing the gentrification of a neighborhood like Bushwick. I felt Zuri’s hurt as her neighborhood changed, as well as her deep love for her home.

5. Zuri’s character arc – Zuri changed in so many ways during this book, which was important as change was something she feared at the beginning. The ending was bittersweet in some ways, and yet it felt necessary for her character growth. I really appreciated that.

Have you read PRIDE? What did you think?