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carolined314's review against another edition
emotional
funny
hopeful
informative
inspiring
slow-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
4.0
Young Black boy accidentally joins a Purity club in pursuit of his crush, small town politics, religion, and sex all well discussed, and it's funny.
Moderate: Sexual assault and Religious bigotry
Minor: Pregnancy and Infidelity
destdest's review against another edition
funny
inspiring
lighthearted
reflective
medium-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
4.25
There is an ever-present layer of general f**kboyish-ness in general (being a “nice” guy, double standards of teen pregnancy, objectification of women’s bodies, scoring how many girls you can sleep with, boys go have sex; girls stay pure, male entitlement, etc). Know that in advance it may make the story annoying for the average female reader. I know there were many times I was annoyed. But I think having the book coming from Del’s perspective helps call some things out without coming off preachy.
Beyond that, I found Del’s narrative fun. He had a strong voice. I loved Jameer! Del was always hilariously wondering if they were going to have to come to blows. The Purity Pledgers also captured my heart. I enjoyed how the story tackled that the lack of sex education can be very <b>harmful</b>. There were many times I had to laugh at the dialogue and how much of a butthole Qwan was lol.
I’m very familiar with the purity pledge especially at a Black church. So, it was relatable to me (they had a Harvest Fest; any Christian kid growing up knows the Halloween alternative parties: Hallelujah Night, Light the Night, etc). I also love that the characters weren’t just black or white, the church and the non-church goers. Neither gets demonized here.
Overall, I don’t regret reading this. I think I’m becoming a fan of Lamar Giles’ work. I would watch a Netflix adaption of this.
Ending spoilers/rambling:
so GLAD! Kiera didn’t get with Del. He was always pushing up on her in ways that made her uncomfortable. Some probably won’t like the Mya angle, but I figured they had a connection there. I was expecting Del to remain single.
Graphic: Sexism
Moderate: Misogyny
Minor: Religious bigotry, Sexual assault, and Sexual harassment
chapkip's review against another edition
challenging
funny
informative
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.75
I liked the overall message of this book but I wish it hadn’t taken so long to get there. The pacing almost made the lessons learned feel like some plot-twist reveal
Moderate: Misogyny, Religious bigotry, and Sexism
Minor: Sexual assault
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