Pamela N. Harris Interviews Naomi Henry and Kylie Brooks from This Town is on Fire
Pamela N. Harris Interviews Naomi Henry and Kylie Brooks from This Town is on Fire
Sharply written, this YA drama tells the story of what happens when the latest internet “Karen” happens to be your best friend. A lot is up in the air in Naomi Henry’s life: her spot as a varsity cheer flier, her classmates’ reaction to the debut of her natural hair and her crush on the guy who’s always been like a brother to her. With so much uncertainty, she feels lucky to have a best friend like Kylie to keep her grounded. After all, they’re practically sisters — Naomi’s mom took care of Kylie and her twin brother for years.
But then a video of Kylie calling the cops on two Black teens in a shopping store parking lot goes viral. Naomi is shaken, and her town is reeling from the publicity. While Naomi tries to reckon with Kylie, the other Black students in their high school are questioning their friendship, and her former friends are wondering where this new “woke” Naomi came from. Although Naomi wants to stand by her best friend, she now can’t help but see everything in a different light.
As tensions in her town escalate, Naomi finds herself engaging in protests that are on the cusp of being illegal. And then a bomb explodes, and someone is found dead. Will Naomi be caught in the center of the blast?
Golden Kite Award winner Harris has crafted a taut novel that delves into big issues, and is the perfect next read for fans of “I’m Not Dying with You Tonight” and “The Black Kids.”
PH: Thanks so much for sitting down with me, ladies.
NH: No problem.
KB: (snorts) Okay.
PH: What’s so funny?
KB: Nothing. You just sound like a school counselor. Good work, ladies. See you next week, sweeties.
NH: Be nice, Ky.
PH: That’s okay. I actually was a school counselor in my former life and loved every minute of it. But enough about me. I’d love to talk to you both about your friendship. When did you meet?
KB: Like a thousand years ago.
NH: Kindergarten, to be exact. My mom became their nanny and I tagged along.
PH: Their?
NH: Oh…um, Ky and Connor’s.
KB: (rolls stop) Ugh, stop.
NH: Shut up, Ky.
PH: What’s wrong? Who’s Connor.
KB: My twin brother…and Ny’s boo thing.
NH: Again, shut up, Ky. Connor is just…we’re friends.
PH: Oh, okay. Well, how do you both balance romantic relationships while maintaining your friendship? Is it hard to make time for both?
KB: Please—there’s nothing romantic going on with any high school boy. But yeah, I date. And every guy knows that if he’s with me, he better have room in the backseat for Ny.
PH: So, Naomi, does that mean you don’t go on dates? You just hang out with Kylie and her boyfriends?
NH: No. I mean, yes. I don’t know. It’s not that I can’t date. I just don’t have time between college applications and cheer practice. Plus, my mom is opening a new daycare, and I help her out from time to time.
KB: Mama Nina is the best. Those kids at her daycare are going to get so spoiled.
PH: Lucky kids. I want to pivot and talk about a recent event that may have put a strain on your friendship. Kylie, you were caught on camera threatening to call the police on two Black young men.
KB: I thought we said we weren’t going to talk about that.
PH: I don’t remember agreeing to that. Besides, I think it’s good for our readers to hear about how friendship can overcome adversity. It must’ve been a shock for both of you to see the fallout from that incident. A lot of people were angry.
KB: A lot of people were dramatic. It wasn’t even that big of a deal. I felt threatened, and it was in my right to call the police.
PH: I think the anger stems from the fact that there’s been a trend of calling the cops on Black people for situations that could easily be mediated. Unfortunately, some of those calls end tragically.
KB: And I’m aware of that. But it wasn’t like I called the cops on them for being too loud at a backyard barbecue. They wouldn’t let me get in my car to leave the parking lot. It was like false imprisonment. Again, I had the right to ask for help.
PH: Naomi, you’ve been pretty quiet.
KB: Because she knows these questions are stupid.
PH: I’d love to hear from Naomi, if that’s okay.
NH: Sorry, did you ask me a question?
PH: How do you feel about the viral video and claims that Kylie is a Karen or Becky or whatever name they’re using now?
NH: (shrugs) Ky’s basically my sister. I know her heart.
KB: And there’s no way I can be racist. (points to Naomi) Hello?
NH: Kylie.
KB: What?
NH: I told you not to say stuff like that. Just because you have a Black friend doesn’t make racism not exist. When you talk like that, people might think you’re engaging in tokenism.
KC: Token what? Ny, you’ve been talking so weird ever since you’ve started hanging with Faith and her friends. It’s like you’re proving to them that you’re Black.
NH: I am Black, Kylie.
KC: I know that, Naomi.
PH: Would you two like a minute?
NH & KC: We’re fine.
PH: I think I have enough here. Thanks for your time!
KC: Wait—do we get some kind of extra credit for this interview? Can you use mine for chem? Mrs. Ward doesn’t like me. She’s such a—
NH: Kylie!
—
“When You Look Like Us,” an Odyssey Award winner for Excellence in Audiobook Production for Young Adults, as well as a finalist for SCBWI’s Golden Kite Award for Young Adult Fiction, an NAACP Image Award nominee (2022) for Outstanding Literary Work: Youth/Teens, and a 2022 Edgar Award nominee for Best Young Adult novel, is Harris’ debut novel. Harris’ second young adult novel, “This Town is on Fire,” is out now. She lives in Williamsburg, Virginia. Find out more about her at pamharriswrites.com.
Category: Interviews, On Writing
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