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rororoyaboat's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
hopeful
informative
inspiring
reflective
relaxing
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
LOVE LOVE LOVE this book. It made me so emotional and I felt like I really connected with the main character. It was a great way to have an insight of living in the liberal world as a POC and how white folks throw the saviour complex around. Then on top of that it taught you how to love the skin youre in, to accept yourself and put yourself first. This book is a 10 outta 10.
followinglilies's review against another edition
emotional
funny
hopeful
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.0
chronicallyhanreads's review against another edition
emotional
funny
hopeful
lighthearted
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
5.0
casebounder's review against another edition
4.0
Happy Pride Month, readers! Four strong stars here.
I loved this book. I cried, I laughed in public, and I'm really grateful to have read it at this moment. It made me absolutely giddy and primed me perfectly for Pride. It made me want to rally up all my queer friends for talks and marches and meditations and protests... And also just to take time to fortify each other.
Juliet Takes a Breath is about a young college Puerto Rican from the Bronx who scores an internship with a feminist icon in Portland, OR. (Although my favorite bit is actually a brief stint in Miami.) It's a coming-of-age story and can function as a bit of a 101/intro to feminist and queer circles, but it also worked for me as a pure celebration of all those things. I believe it's a semi-autobiographical story for [a:Gabby Rivera|14889581|Gabby Rivera|https://images.gr-assets.com/authors/1454460911p2/14889581.jpg], and her voice is necessary, needed, wanted, and requested.
Fans of the POC lovefest in [b:The Sun Is Also a Star|28763485|The Sun Is Also a Star|Nicola Yoon|https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1459793538s/28763485.jpg|48954670], the empowerment/community stories of [b:The Hate U Give|32075671|The Hate U Give|Angie Thomas|https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1476284759s/32075671.jpg|49638190] and [b:The Color Purple|11486|The Color Purple|Alice Walker|https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1386925078s/11486.jpg|3300573], and the Latino jubilation in Junot Diaz's [b:The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao|297673|The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao|Junot Díaz|https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1391409748s/297673.jpg|3281466] should check this one out.
Thanks to NetGalley for access to an e-copy! Almost halfway through reading I decided I had to run to the Bureau of General Services - Queer Division to get my hands on a hardcopy. :D
I loved this book. I cried, I laughed in public, and I'm really grateful to have read it at this moment. It made me absolutely giddy and primed me perfectly for Pride. It made me want to rally up all my queer friends for talks and marches and meditations and protests... And also just to take time to fortify each other.
Juliet Takes a Breath is about a young college Puerto Rican from the Bronx who scores an internship with a feminist icon in Portland, OR. (Although my favorite bit is actually a brief stint in Miami.) It's a coming-of-age story and can function as a bit of a 101/intro to feminist and queer circles, but it also worked for me as a pure celebration of all those things. I believe it's a semi-autobiographical story for [a:Gabby Rivera|14889581|Gabby Rivera|https://images.gr-assets.com/authors/1454460911p2/14889581.jpg], and her voice is necessary, needed, wanted, and requested.
Fans of the POC lovefest in [b:The Sun Is Also a Star|28763485|The Sun Is Also a Star|Nicola Yoon|https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1459793538s/28763485.jpg|48954670], the empowerment/community stories of [b:The Hate U Give|32075671|The Hate U Give|Angie Thomas|https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1476284759s/32075671.jpg|49638190] and [b:The Color Purple|11486|The Color Purple|Alice Walker|https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1386925078s/11486.jpg|3300573], and the Latino jubilation in Junot Diaz's [b:The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao|297673|The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao|Junot Díaz|https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1391409748s/297673.jpg|3281466] should check this one out.
Thanks to NetGalley for access to an e-copy! Almost halfway through reading I decided I had to run to the Bureau of General Services - Queer Division to get my hands on a hardcopy. :D
novellenovels's review against another edition
emotional
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
3.5
sammerp219's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
inspiring
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
5.0
leasummer's review against another edition
4.0
Please seek out diverse reviews.
I found this really entertaining. The audiobook is narrated by the author and has a certain lyrical quality you probably don't get in the book.
As a WW from Oregon, I thought the portrayal of Harlowe was spot on and PDX was described in the best way. It's a coming of age story, as a person learns to navigate new places and a new identity. Really well done I thought.
I found this really entertaining. The audiobook is narrated by the author and has a certain lyrical quality you probably don't get in the book.
As a WW from Oregon, I thought the portrayal of Harlowe was spot on and PDX was described in the best way. It's a coming of age story, as a person learns to navigate new places and a new identity. Really well done I thought.
kategallo's review against another edition
3.0
'She smelled like citrus and leather. I was so into it. The whole scene made me feel like I wasn't myself. I was on the back of a vintage Harley, riding down the middle of a street I didn't know with a beautiful biker librarian. I was free of self-doubt.'
I've started 2020 off with quite a few conflicting books. Juliet Takes A Breath allows us to follow a journey of discovery in the realms of feminism, liberation, and queerness. When Juliet moves from the Bronx to Portland to become an intern for the author of her favourite (and first) feminist book in the summer of 2003, she learns a lot about herself and the evolving communities she is a part of. Overcoming the preconceived notions of who she is, and who she must be, suddenly become central to her self-development, and understanding of where she belongs. Specifically, this book highlights many past and present issues found in womanhood plagued by the patriarchy, ally-ship in QPOC spaces, and white feminism.
I learned a lot about the importance of hearing queer, and specifically queerWOC voices in our spaces, and how tokenism in our community manifests itself in harmful ways. There were also some truly beautiful chapters of discovery, such as when Juliet travels to Miami to visit her queer cousin, Ava; and the sweet relationship between Kira and Juliet. I also found the stream-of-consciousness type style of writing to be super fitting for this book, as it made Juliet feel realistic, and her confusion about new terms and queer phrases to be earnest.
I just found some of the book to be strange? I despised Harlowe so much, and I understand she is meant to represent the classic white feminist character, but she just is... so terrible. And honestly low-key TERF-y as she literally does not shut up about 'pussy power' the entire time. And a lot of the older lesbian characters felt preachy at times, in ways that was stilted against the rest of the book's tempo. There were also a few times where issues weren't resolved or followed through, and some of the chapters felt a little rough.
I think this book is important both for queer POC women who may also be striving for self-discovery, but also allies in all forms - white, straight & cis women who can learn a lot from the queer history and the importance of hearing POC voices. A good 3.5!
I've started 2020 off with quite a few conflicting books. Juliet Takes A Breath allows us to follow a journey of discovery in the realms of feminism, liberation, and queerness. When Juliet moves from the Bronx to Portland to become an intern for the author of her favourite (and first) feminist book in the summer of 2003, she learns a lot about herself and the evolving communities she is a part of. Overcoming the preconceived notions of who she is, and who she must be, suddenly become central to her self-development, and understanding of where she belongs. Specifically, this book highlights many past and present issues found in womanhood plagued by the patriarchy, ally-ship in QPOC spaces, and white feminism.
I learned a lot about the importance of hearing queer, and specifically queerWOC voices in our spaces, and how tokenism in our community manifests itself in harmful ways. There were also some truly beautiful chapters of discovery, such as when Juliet travels to Miami to visit her queer cousin, Ava; and the sweet relationship between Kira and Juliet. I also found the stream-of-consciousness type style of writing to be super fitting for this book, as it made Juliet feel realistic, and her confusion about new terms and queer phrases to be earnest.
I just found some of the book to be strange? I despised Harlowe so much, and I understand she is meant to represent the classic white feminist character, but she just is... so terrible. And honestly low-key TERF-y as she literally does not shut up about 'pussy power' the entire time. And a lot of the older lesbian characters felt preachy at times, in ways that was stilted against the rest of the book's tempo. There were also a few times where issues weren't resolved or followed through, and some of the chapters felt a little rough.
I think this book is important both for queer POC women who may also be striving for self-discovery, but also allies in all forms - white, straight & cis women who can learn a lot from the queer history and the importance of hearing POC voices. A good 3.5!
conpierre's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
funny
hopeful
informative
inspiring
reflective
sad
tense
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.5
This was a beautiful read that eloquently captures the journey of finding one’s voice and recognizing one’s value. I love how this story isn’t afraid to push the envelope by challenging stereotypes and celebrating diversity. While the pacing was a bit slow for my taste, I still found the coming-of-age story intriguing.
This story is about Juliet Palante who is a Puerto Rican who lives in Bronx NY. When we are introduced to Juliet we find out that she’s a lesbian in a secret relationship. She hasn’t come out to her family but is planning to before she leaves for her internship in Portland with popular writer Harlowe Brisbane. Harlow is an author who wrote Juliet’s favorite book Raging Flower and whom she looks up to and hopes to learn all about feminism and the power of being a woman during the summer. The story centers on the journey Juliet takes during this summer internship where she grapples with her intersecting identities of sexuality, gender, and ethnicity. This book was an eye-opener and I enjoyed having a front-row seat to Juliet finding herself.
This story is about Juliet Palante who is a Puerto Rican who lives in Bronx NY. When we are introduced to Juliet we find out that she’s a lesbian in a secret relationship. She hasn’t come out to her family but is planning to before she leaves for her internship in Portland with popular writer Harlowe Brisbane. Harlow is an author who wrote Juliet’s favorite book Raging Flower and whom she looks up to and hopes to learn all about feminism and the power of being a woman during the summer. The story centers on the journey Juliet takes during this summer internship where she grapples with her intersecting identities of sexuality, gender, and ethnicity. This book was an eye-opener and I enjoyed having a front-row seat to Juliet finding herself.
jnobrien21's review against another edition
hopeful
inspiring
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
5.0
Beautiful coming-of-age story.