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4.31 AVERAGE
4.31 AVERAGE
A beautiful story told with love and care. A joy to read!
adventurous
challenging
emotional
hopeful
inspiring
mysterious
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
hopeful
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
adventurous
emotional
funny
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
funny
hopeful
mysterious
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:
Complicated
adventurous
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
adventurous
emotional
funny
mysterious
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
challenging
emotional
funny
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
Thomas’ debut does a brilliant job of exploring trans identity, through the lens of a Latinx, brujx culture. Inspired by Thomas’ own desire to see elements of their own identity reflected in the media. It’s clear Thomas thoroughly enjoyed bringing to life a book that explores Latinx culture. And although the novel deals with some pretty significant issues, such as death and grief, Cemetery Boys has a light-hearted tone that makes it less dark than it could have been.
Yadriel was an interesting and likeable character who was very easy to connect to right from the beginning. The story portrayed his struggles to be seen and accepted for who he was, as he deals with bullying in school and the hurt of being misgendered and deadnamed even within his own family. They prevent him from going through the ceremony of becoming a brujo, thinking he could only have been a bruja. We also see some of the more personal details; for example, Yadriel wears a binder. I always appreciate seeing transgender, nonbinary, and gender-nonconforming characters, and this book offers excellent representation with warmth and nuance.
Aiden Thomas’ Not only does Thomas beautifully build this intricate world by combining high fantasy with Latinx tradition, but he sets it against the diverse and authentic setting of East Los Angeles in a contemporary, youthful and entertaining tale. I don’t have a lot of knowledge about brujo and the culture surrounding dia de muertos, so as well as being completely enthralled in the story, I also loved learning a lot about the culture. Thomas does an incredible job of weaving in Spanish phrases throughout the dialogue, There is an important phrase uttered by Julian towards the end of the novel. Given the emotional intimacy of his speech, I liked how it was delivered in Spanish, since it offered the character a layer of privacy in this moment and celebrated the language. Spanish is also a gendered language, which adds complexity to the conversation about trans identities at the heart of Cemetery Boys and the brujx roles within the community.
The relationship between Yadriel and Julian was sweet and touching, and written perfectly for this young adult novel. Although Yadriel and Julian have very different personalities and energy levels, it’s nice to see how they grow close. I often found myself asking why Julian had to have passed away to begin with, it gave me a bittersweet feeling seeing them fall for one another.
Cemetery Boys deserves all the hype. This was a beautiful and touching book about a trans Latinx team named Yadriel. A thoughtful story about a teen coming of age in a family that tries but doesn’t quite know how to fully accept Yadriel’s gender, this was perfectly executed by debut author Aiden Thomas. This book really hit all the right notes, and was a wonderful story featuring strong diversity in main and secondary characters.
Yadriel was an interesting and likeable character who was very easy to connect to right from the beginning. The story portrayed his struggles to be seen and accepted for who he was, as he deals with bullying in school and the hurt of being misgendered and deadnamed even within his own family. They prevent him from going through the ceremony of becoming a brujo, thinking he could only have been a bruja. We also see some of the more personal details; for example, Yadriel wears a binder. I always appreciate seeing transgender, nonbinary, and gender-nonconforming characters, and this book offers excellent representation with warmth and nuance.
Aiden Thomas’ Not only does Thomas beautifully build this intricate world by combining high fantasy with Latinx tradition, but he sets it against the diverse and authentic setting of East Los Angeles in a contemporary, youthful and entertaining tale. I don’t have a lot of knowledge about brujo and the culture surrounding dia de muertos, so as well as being completely enthralled in the story, I also loved learning a lot about the culture. Thomas does an incredible job of weaving in Spanish phrases throughout the dialogue, There is an important phrase uttered by Julian towards the end of the novel. Given the emotional intimacy of his speech, I liked how it was delivered in Spanish, since it offered the character a layer of privacy in this moment and celebrated the language. Spanish is also a gendered language, which adds complexity to the conversation about trans identities at the heart of Cemetery Boys and the brujx roles within the community.
The relationship between Yadriel and Julian was sweet and touching, and written perfectly for this young adult novel. Although Yadriel and Julian have very different personalities and energy levels, it’s nice to see how they grow close. I often found myself asking why Julian had to have passed away to begin with, it gave me a bittersweet feeling seeing them fall for one another.
Cemetery Boys deserves all the hype. This was a beautiful and touching book about a trans Latinx team named Yadriel. A thoughtful story about a teen coming of age in a family that tries but doesn’t quite know how to fully accept Yadriel’s gender, this was perfectly executed by debut author Aiden Thomas. This book really hit all the right notes, and was a wonderful story featuring strong diversity in main and secondary characters.
adventurous
emotional
funny
hopeful
sad
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
More books about trans kids simply living their lives (bonus points for the supernatural aspects)!