Actually Super by Adi Alsaid

Actually Super by Adi Alsaid. Alfred A. Knopf, 2023. 9780593375808






Rating: 1-5 (5 is an excellent or a Starred review) 4



Format : Hardcover



Genre :  Realism, with a touch of fantasy



What did you like about the book? Isabel is going to travel the world in a hunt for superheroes. Not the ones in the comic books or movies, but the real heroes of the world – normal people with a power or two. She wants to see if these people exist, and if they are actually doing good. On the brink of graduating high school and seeing all the awfulness in the world, Isabel has very little faith in humanity left, doubting if the world is even worth living in. But if she can find one, just one , extraordinary hero who proves her wrong, then it will be worth it. So, at eighteen, she jumps on a plane and travels the world to find the person who will give hope for the future. 



Actually Super is a thoughtful story of a girl who is desperate for one thing: hope. Hope in humanity, hope in the future, and hope that the world can be a better place if enough good people are in it. It’s a timely novel, especially for teens who feel apathetic or overwhelmed by the many crises in the world and toward their own adulthood. The perspective switches between Isabel and her friends Sam & Chio, whom she left behind to start her journey. Pick up Actually Super for a calmer, more thoughtful approach to “super” heroes, and, if you ever feel despair about the state of the world, this book can help to lift that weight off your shoulders. 



Anything you didn’t like about it? It is written in the present tense, and can be clunky/odd-sounding at times. 



To whom would you recommend this book? Teens who like the concept of everyday superheroes and who also wonder if there are genuinely good people doing good things out there. 



Who should buy this book? High schools and public libraries



Where would you shelve it? YA Fiction 



Should we (librarians/readers) put this on the top of our “to read” piles? No



Reviewer’s Name, Library (or school), City and State: Laila Carter, Cheltenham Township Library System, PA, Glenside



Date of review: December 11, 2023