I Run to Make My Heart Beat

Gr 9 Up–Translated from the French book Les Grandes et les Petites Choses, and now in graphic novel format, Khan shares a coming-of-age story about racism, microaggressions, identity, and love loosely based on her own life. In 1990s Paris, college student Nina Gary discovers she has a gift for running. Struggling with biased professors, she finds solace in being praised for her athletic abilities. Nina has an African father and Eastern European Jewish mother. There are no multiracial people in her life, and she is constantly navigating not-always-subtle racist and sexist remarks. Struggling to find her place, even as her running career shows promise, Nina finds herself smoking, drinking, and spiraling out of control after experiencing a sexual assault. This graphic novel doesn’t pull its punches, and it’s at times hard to see the protagonist sinking under pressure. The complex makeup of her family and her conversations about identity are refreshing and honest. Readers will root for Nina, despite some bad choices along the way.