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dlrosebyh's review
emotional
hopeful
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? No
3.75
Despite being in the same state, Héctor Muoz believes San Francisco and Orangevale to be a million miles distant. Being gay didn't make one feel different at home. Héctor couldn't feel more alone at his new school.
Héctor simply wishes he could vanish most of the time. And he complies. The janitor's closet, of course. Héctor finds himself in a chamber that shouldn't be feasible one day when the door closes behind him. The door to a life-altering year full of friendship, adventure, and just a touch of magic is opened by a room that brings him together with two new friends from different regions of the nation.
I truly appreciated this book as a POC queer person. I wish I had read something similar when I was younger to reassure me that being gay is acceptable. Although it does use certain clichés, the writing style, tone, and relatability more than make up for it. I've read one book by Mark Oshiro and didn't enjoy it, so I didn't anticipate enjoying this one as much. It's outrageous how little is known about this book because it was like a warm hug.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Bullying, Homophobia, and Lesbophobia
Moderate: Islamophobia, Racism, and Xenophobia
Minor: Outing, Injury/Injury detail, and Death
imstephtacular's review
adventurous
emotional
hopeful
inspiring
sad
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Homophobia and Bullying
Moderate: Hate crime and Racism
Minor: Car accident, Classism, Violence, Outing, Injury/Injury detail, Xenophobia, Death, Mental illness, Grief, and Islamophobia
betweentheshelves's review
emotional
hopeful
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? No
4.5
Oshiro definitely hit it out of the park in their middle grade debut! In this book, we follow the story of Héctor, who has just moved to a new school and is nervous about starting. When he starts getting bullied for being gay, a magical room starts to appear that helps him hide. It's there where he meets two students who also need a safe space: Juliana and Sal. The only catch? They all go to schools all across the country.
What I love about Oshiro's writing is that it feels so realistic. A lot of the problems that Héctor encounters are ones that many middle schoolers are going to relate to. And not being believed after getting bullied? I feel like that happens way more often than we'd like to admit. You can't help but get angry at the adults in this book because they all act so powerless to help Héctor. Or they act like they don't know what's going on. Héctor's story will definitely pull on your heartstrings.
The little friend group Héctor finds is also fantastic. Juliana and Sal were fully fleshed out characters, and they all were in each other's lives at the right time. They all help each other in different ways, and it's just so great to see. Plus, Héctor makes some new friends at his new school, and they become the support that he needs. Oh, and Héctor's Abuela is great, especially the way she lets Héctor figure out what he needs and when he needs it.
All in all, this middle grade novel is about finding your voice, about the ways that friendships can change in middle school, and about learning how to ask for help when you need it. Definitely a great addition to any middle grade collection!
What I love about Oshiro's writing is that it feels so realistic. A lot of the problems that Héctor encounters are ones that many middle schoolers are going to relate to. And not being believed after getting bullied? I feel like that happens way more often than we'd like to admit. You can't help but get angry at the adults in this book because they all act so powerless to help Héctor. Or they act like they don't know what's going on. Héctor's story will definitely pull on your heartstrings.
The little friend group Héctor finds is also fantastic. Juliana and Sal were fully fleshed out characters, and they all were in each other's lives at the right time. They all help each other in different ways, and it's just so great to see. Plus, Héctor makes some new friends at his new school, and they become the support that he needs. Oh, and Héctor's Abuela is great, especially the way she lets Héctor figure out what he needs and when he needs it.
All in all, this middle grade novel is about finding your voice, about the ways that friendships can change in middle school, and about learning how to ask for help when you need it. Definitely a great addition to any middle grade collection!
Content Warnings
Graphic: Bullying, Racism, and Homophobia
Moderate: Islamophobia, Outing, and Xenophobia
Minor: Injury/Injury detail
foreverinastory's review against another edition
emotional
hopeful
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
Thank you to Harper Collins & Harper Kids for sending me a finished copy in exchange for an honest review and promotion. All opinions are my own.
This was a delightful middle grade! The Insiders is a middle grade contemporary about young Héctor Muñoz, who is moving to a new school when his mom gets a new job. Héctor wants to fit in and find where he belongs, but a school bully and doubtful authority figure make that task feel almost impossible. Then Héctor stumbles on a janitor's closet one day. No one can find him in there, and it becomes his own refuge. One early morning Héctor enters it, only to find someone else in the room! And they don't even go to his school. And with that a long distance friendship and a year of adventures starts.
Mark Oshiro is definitely one of my fave authors. I will read anything written by them, whatever the genre. This was a really heartwarming book that also dealt with some hard topics. The bullying Héctor goes through is not light and it triggers a lot of trauma for him. I liked how he processes what he goes through and does the best he can with his options.
The friendships that Héctor makes in this book were so sweet. Especially his friendship with Juliana and Sal, the other kids he meets through the Janitor's room. I really loved seeing these three bond and grow closer. They all are dealing with something at school and I loved how they could rely on each other.
I really loved Héctor's family too. He has such a sweet and supportive network and I'm so glad we get to see that in this novel. This book is great, I highly recommend it.
Rep: Mexican gay male MC with anxiety, biracial Black-Chinese sapphic female side character, biracial Filipinx-white nonbinary side character, BIPOC queer Hijabi female side character, Black gay male side character.
CWs: Bullying, homophobia/homomisia, lesbophobia/lesbomisia, racism. Moderate: xenophobia, islamophobia, outing, mental illness (anxiety). Minor: injury of side character.
This was a delightful middle grade! The Insiders is a middle grade contemporary about young Héctor Muñoz, who is moving to a new school when his mom gets a new job. Héctor wants to fit in and find where he belongs, but a school bully and doubtful authority figure make that task feel almost impossible. Then Héctor stumbles on a janitor's closet one day. No one can find him in there, and it becomes his own refuge. One early morning Héctor enters it, only to find someone else in the room! And they don't even go to his school. And with that a long distance friendship and a year of adventures starts.
Mark Oshiro is definitely one of my fave authors. I will read anything written by them, whatever the genre. This was a really heartwarming book that also dealt with some hard topics. The bullying Héctor goes through is not light and it triggers a lot of trauma for him. I liked how he processes what he goes through and does the best he can with his options.
The friendships that Héctor makes in this book were so sweet. Especially his friendship with Juliana and Sal, the other kids he meets through the Janitor's room. I really loved seeing these three bond and grow closer. They all are dealing with something at school and I loved how they could rely on each other.
I really loved Héctor's family too. He has such a sweet and supportive network and I'm so glad we get to see that in this novel. This book is great, I highly recommend it.
Rep: Mexican gay male MC with anxiety, biracial Black-Chinese sapphic female side character, biracial Filipinx-white nonbinary side character, BIPOC queer Hijabi female side character, Black gay male side character.
CWs: Bullying, homophobia/homomisia, lesbophobia/lesbomisia, racism. Moderate: xenophobia, islamophobia, outing, mental illness (anxiety). Minor: injury of side character.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Bullying, Homophobia, Lesbophobia, and Racism
Moderate: Islamophobia, Mental illness, Outing, and Xenophobia
Minor: Injury/Injury detail
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