Before Occupy Wall Street swept through New York City, the World Trade Organization riots of 1999 took control of downtown Seattle. A throng of activists swarmed the streets to protest the WTO convention, opposing free trade policies, motivated by anti-capitalist agendas, pressed by environmental concerns. Within this storm, Sunil Yapa composes a riveting fictional drama that walks the line between the radical will of the demonstrating people and the law enforcement designated to keep them in check.
This tension is most poignant between Victor, a young black man selling weed on the street, and Chief Bishop, the white policeman charged by the mayor to clear the road for the conference delegates--and Victor's estranged stepfather. The two haven't seen each other in three years, since Victor ran away from home.
When Officer Timothy Park, a loose cannon with a nasty scar on his face, swoops in to bust Victor for possession, he gets more than he bargained for when Kingfisher, a seasoned activist who isn't about to let the police take advantage of the situation, comes to the dealer's aid.
Yapa builds Your Heart Is a Muscle the Size of a Fist upon a chorus of characters to craft a song that's just as much Nina Simone as it is Woody Guthrie. Beneath sharp political overtones, he reveals the beating heart of love as it is pushed and pulled to extremes by forces beyond its control. With ferocity on one side and regret on the flip, this excellent debut novel punches upward in the hope of a better tomorrow. --Dave Wheeler, associate editor, Shelf Awareness