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vampirerat's review
emotional
reflective
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.75
I enjoyed this a lot despite having a few issues with it.
Stuff I Iiked: the relatability of Frankie realizing she's queer - cutting the hair off her doll that "wanted to be a boy", admiring the girl get ing the short haircut, throwing up after she sees her crush flirting with a straight boy (mood). I also loved Mr White and Ivneet and the library - very much Buffy vibes. It was cool that Frankie's mum's MS was treated with sensitivity but also realistically and that the wider issues of ableism within capitalism were hinted at.
Stuff I didn't like: The word lesbian was never used in the book, apart from a derogatory version of the word as a homophobic slur. Fair enough if Frankie as a character labels herself gay over lesbian, but for Jacqueline Wilson's first book about a lesbian character I just found it kinda odd for the word to be unspoken. Especially when "lesbian" is still pretty stigmatised and treated as a bad or inappropriate word. If this had come out when I was 14 it definitely wouldn't have done my relationship with the word any favours. I also thought, as other reviews have said, that Frankie lacked introspection in her queer realisation. It very much jumps from: Sammy has a crush on Frankie, Frankie see's herself and Sammy as just friends, Frankie has a crush on Sally, so Frankie is gay. Obviously this could be enough to for Frankie to realise she likes girls and not boys but I do think it's a little over simplified and she doesn't really think about it very much. I also think the ending was very rushed and unsatisfying, not enough was resolved for my liking.
Overall a good book with some likeable characters (Mr White, Bear) and lovely moments especially for a young teen audience I'm sure (I'm 24 for context). But lacked some depth that I know JW is very capable of.
I listened to this in audiobook form :)
Stuff I Iiked: the relatability of Frankie realizing she's queer - cutting the hair off her doll that "wanted to be a boy", admiring the girl get ing the short haircut, throwing up after she sees her crush flirting with a straight boy (mood). I also loved Mr White and Ivneet and the library - very much Buffy vibes. It was cool that Frankie's mum's MS was treated with sensitivity but also realistically and that the wider issues of ableism within capitalism were hinted at.
Stuff I didn't like: The word lesbian was never used in the book, apart from a derogatory version of the word as a homophobic slur. Fair enough if Frankie as a character labels herself gay over lesbian, but for Jacqueline Wilson's first book about a lesbian character I just found it kinda odd for the word to be unspoken. Especially when "lesbian" is still pretty stigmatised and treated as a bad or inappropriate word. If this had come out when I was 14 it definitely wouldn't have done my relationship with the word any favours. I also thought, as other reviews have said, that Frankie lacked introspection in her queer realisation. It very much jumps from: Sammy has a crush on Frankie, Frankie see's herself and Sammy as just friends, Frankie has a crush on Sally, so Frankie is gay. Obviously this could be enough to for Frankie to realise she likes girls and not boys but I do think it's a little over simplified and she doesn't really think about it very much. I also think the ending was very rushed and unsatisfying, not enough was resolved for my liking.
Overall a good book with some likeable characters (Mr White, Bear) and lovely moments especially for a young teen audience I'm sure (I'm 24 for context). But lacked some depth that I know JW is very capable of.
I listened to this in audiobook form :)
Content Warnings
Moderate: Homophobia, Bullying, Abandonment, Chronic illness, Fatphobia, Vomit, Ableism, Alcohol, Classism, Lesbophobia, and Outing
Minor: Addiction and Medical content
A university student (18+) flirts with and dances with Frankie who is 13. This age gap is never addressed. There are multiple mentions of dieting and "healthy eating". Frankie's mum's friend Coral also makes some weird comments about how handsome Frankie's best friend Sammy is. This is brushed over and treated as normal.
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