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seventhswan's review
funny
hopeful
lighthearted
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.75
Although I've not read a whole lot of it, this is probably the best YA fiction I've picked up! I thought Imogen was just the sweetest character, and was rooting for her from the get go. The plot felt super realistic and authentic, the representation of a range of identities and perspectives within the LGBT+ community was on point, and everything was extremely feelgood from start to finish. I'm not someone who gets annoyed by pop culture references in fiction anyway, but I especially enjoyed them in this book as little signposts to other queer media and artists. Also: the characters were not irritating, which is usually my biggest problem with YA - teenagers are irritating, being a teenager is irritating, but it's not something I look to relive! Setting this story largely at a university and having the characters be actual young adults instead of older children solved a lot of this for me.
Where I thought this book fell down was the ending. The conflict between Imogen andGretchen was never fully resolved, and I wanted more than a couple of paragraphs of Imogen and Tessa actually getting to be girlfriends! I'd definitely read a sequel if there was one, though, and I'd be open to reading more of Albertalli's books in future.
Where I thought this book fell down was the ending. The conflict between Imogen and
Content Warnings
Graphic: Toxic friendship
Moderate: Alcohol and Homophobia
Minor: Drug use and Hate crime
sophiesmallhands's review
emotional
funny
lighthearted
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Biphobia
Moderate: Gaslighting, Alcohol, and Toxic friendship
Minor: Sexual content and Lesbophobia
sglance9's review against another edition
emotional
funny
inspiring
reflective
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Biphobia
Moderate: Toxic friendship and Outing
annieisawesome's review against another edition
emotional
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.75
The basic plot of the book is very gripping. There’s just a lot of cringey “discourse” about queerness. I understand that’s kind of the point. To challenge conventional thinking about it all, but it seems a little soap box-y. It’s just such a large part of the book, when it could definitely be smaller. There’s also a LOT that happens that is unnecessary and doesn’t really further the plot.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Biphobia, Toxic friendship, and Outing
Minor: Alcohol
jei_reads_sometimes's review against another edition
emotional
funny
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
Content Warnings
Graphic: Biphobia, Toxic friendship, and Outing
Minor: Alcohol
malleykde's review against another edition
emotional
funny
hopeful
inspiring
lighthearted
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.25
Content Warnings
Graphic: Lesbophobia, Toxic friendship, and Biphobia
Moderate: Gaslighting
torismazarine's review against another edition
funny
hopeful
inspiring
lighthearted
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.75
Content Warnings
Graphic: Outing, Toxic friendship, Alcohol, Biphobia, and Bullying
sarasbookmark's review against another edition
emotional
funny
hopeful
lighthearted
reflective
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
Content Warnings
Graphic: Biphobia, Gaslighting, and Toxic friendship
piperrhoads's review
emotional
funny
hopeful
inspiring
lighthearted
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Biphobia and Gaslighting
Moderate: Toxic friendship
sampetsdogs's review against another edition
challenging
emotional
funny
hopeful
informative
inspiring
reflective
tense
fast-paced
5.0
I can't even begin to describe how much I love this book. I wasn't expecting to feel so strongly about it; I just thought it sounded like a cute, fluffy story. And yet, here I am crying. Once again. Some people never learn. It's me, I'm "some people."
Imogen's internal monologue was so relatable. The way she described her uncertainty and confusion and agony about trying to determine whether she's queer....sounds a lot like my own inner voice. At one moment feeling certain of who and what I am, but then seeing/hearing others' experiences making me second-guess myself. Am I actually queer? And if I am, am I queer ENOUGH to claim space in the queer community? If I haven't experienced the discrimination and turmoil that other "out" queer people have experienced, then does my queer identity even count? It's way too easy to gaslight myself into thinking that I'm an impostor, even though I'm smart and logical enough to know that I'm not. Imogen and her best friend, Lily, end up discussing this internal dilemma in such a way that I just felt so seen and, more importantly, valid.
"It's like there's this idea that you have to earn your label through suffering. And then you have to prove it with who you date, how you dress, how other people perceive you." --chapter 58
"Sometimes I am [confident]. And then ten minutes later, I'm convinced I'm somehow faking it in my own head...And it's such bullshit....Sometimes I feel like, 'oh my god, why am I giving this so much mental energy? I'm literally at home watching Netflix, no one cares.' But I care. It matters. Of course it matters, it's a whole big piece of who you are." --chapter 57
I could wax on forever about how reading this book has monumentally shifted my perspective on queer identity, but I doubt there's enough room here for that many characters. I'll just say, I think this book is such a fantastic addition to the YA Queer Lit genre, and I'd highly recommend it to all the baby queers out there, as well as anyone that's questioning their identity. And maybe also anyone that thinks they're, as one of the characters from the book put it, "The One True Queer" who feels entitled to know what every single person's labels and pronouns are.
There's no right or wrong way to be queer, no one gets to decide what labels apply to you, and there's no time limit on realizing and claiming your identity.
Imogen's internal monologue was so relatable. The way she described her uncertainty and confusion and agony about trying to determine whether she's queer....sounds a lot like my own inner voice. At one moment feeling certain of who and what I am, but then seeing/hearing others' experiences making me second-guess myself. Am I actually queer? And if I am, am I queer ENOUGH to claim space in the queer community? If I haven't experienced the discrimination and turmoil that other "out" queer people have experienced, then does my queer identity even count? It's way too easy to gaslight myself into thinking that I'm an impostor, even though I'm smart and logical enough to know that I'm not. Imogen and her best friend, Lily, end up discussing this internal dilemma in such a way that I just felt so seen and, more importantly, valid.
"It's like there's this idea that you have to earn your label through suffering. And then you have to prove it with who you date, how you dress, how other people perceive you." --chapter 58
"Sometimes I am [confident]. And then ten minutes later, I'm convinced I'm somehow faking it in my own head...And it's such bullshit....Sometimes I feel like, 'oh my god, why am I giving this so much mental energy? I'm literally at home watching Netflix, no one cares.' But I care. It matters. Of course it matters, it's a whole big piece of who you are." --chapter 57
I could wax on forever about how reading this book has monumentally shifted my perspective on queer identity, but I doubt there's enough room here for that many characters. I'll just say, I think this book is such a fantastic addition to the YA Queer Lit genre, and I'd highly recommend it to all the baby queers out there, as well as anyone that's questioning their identity. And maybe also anyone that thinks they're, as one of the characters from the book put it, "The One True Queer" who feels entitled to know what every single person's labels and pronouns are.
There's no right or wrong way to be queer, no one gets to decide what labels apply to you, and there's no time limit on realizing and claiming your identity.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Outing, Biphobia, and Homophobia
Moderate: Gaslighting, Toxic friendship, and Alcohol