Needy Little Things
Channelle Desamours
Wednesday Books
Published February 4, 2025
Amazon | Bookshop | Goodreads
About Needy Little Things
In this debut speculative YA mystery, a Black teen with premonition-like powers must solve her friend’s disappearance before she finds herself in the same danger.
Sariyah Lee Bryant can hear what people need—tangible things, like a pencil, a hair tie, a phone charger—an ability only her family and her best friend, Malcolm, know the truth about. But when she fulfills a need for her friend Deja who vanishes shortly after, Sariyah is left wondering if her ability is more curse than gift. This isn’t the first time one of her friends has landed on the missing persons list, and she’s determined not to let her become yet another forgotten Black girl.
Not trusting the police and media to do enough on their own, Sariyah and her friends work together to figure out what led to Deja’s disappearance. But when Sariyah’s mother loses her job and her little brother faces complications with his sickle cell disease, managing her time, money, and emotions seems impossible. Desperate, Sariyah decides to hustle her need-sensing ability for cash—a choice that may not only lead her to Deja, but put her in the same danger Deja found herself in.
My Review
Sariyah’s younger brother has sickle cell anemia. I think this is the first time I’ve seen that represented on the page. Her mom is also depressed, and Sariyah has ADHD, so there’s quite a bit of representation for those conditions.
The novel’s pace didn’t match what I expected, which isn’t to say that it was bad. Based on the back cover copy, I made assumptions about the story that turned out to be wrong. For example, I thought that Sariyah’s decision to use her gift for money would have been a bigger or longer part of the story.
Sariyah’s ability to hear people’s needs reminded me of the main character in Parable of the Sower by Octavia Butler. In that book, Lauren, the protagonist, can feel others’ pain, which affects her ability to live her life. Sariyah’s experience isn’t quite so potentially life-threatening. However, it leaves her struggling to balance meeting others’ needs, which gives her internal peace, versus protecting herself and her ability so no one exploits or endangers her. I thought the similarity/difference was interesting. The author used Sariyah’s gift well to drive the story forward and create thought-provoking situations.
I enjoyed the book, especially once I was better attuned to its main theme (finding a missing girl). I’d love to read more by Channelle Desamours, so I’ll be on the lookout for her books.
Content Notes
Recommended for Ages 14 up.
Profanity/Crude Language Content
Some swearing, including f-bombs, is used with moderate frequency.
Romance/Sexual Content
Kissing.
Spiritual Content
None.
Violent Content
References to an unsolved missing persons case. A woman stabs a man in the neck with a nail file when she perceives him as a threat. Some references to stalking behavior and verbal threats. Kidnapping. Someone attacks a girl and a man.
Drug Content
Characters smoke pot. Reference to a character smoking pot offscene.
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