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3.71 AVERAGE
3.71 AVERAGE
funny
inspiring
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
TW/CW: sexism/misogyny (external & internalized), racism, bullying, slut-shaming, substance abuse (alcohol)
Don’t you just love it when you’ve forgotten about a book existing, so you go in with low expectations, and you end up dazzled? Top 10 feelings, for sure.
I’ve read my fair share of feminist, realistic-fiction YA in my day, and sadly, it’s easy for them to miss the mark, whether it’s introducing diverse characters for the sake of intersectionality and doing nothing with them (Six Angry Girls) or having a protagonist who only focuses on very surface-level aspects of feminism without getting any more nuanced (half of Watch Us Rise). But Not Here to Be Liked delivered the nuance, heart, and punch that it was supposed to, making for a powerful story of systemic misogyny and leadership.
I think some of the reviews seemed to miss the point when talking about Eliza—she’s a great character, but she’s not intended to be entirely likable. It’s in the title, after all! Sure—she’s determined to make the school paper as good as possible, and sometimes, that comes off as abrasive or strict. But that’s the point—were she a man, these traits would be praised: she’s “too harsh,” but he’s “willing to take charge” or “a fearless leader.” See the double standard? That’s what this book was trying to say all along. And Quach did an excellent job of having a flawed but incredibly root-able protagonist: every position that she takes is a laudable one that’s backed up more often than not. Eliza was robbed of her position, simply because a man’s charisma meant more than a woman’s experience and talent.
Not Here to Be Liked also portrayed how we think of feminism so well! As soon as Eliza’s manifesto is leaked and both support and vitriol begin to flow towards her, many of her classmates stand behind her, but their support is often half-baked; it’s a great commentary on that shallow, hollow white feminism that’s so prevalent among people who aren’t willing to do anything politically uncomfortable: slapping an “I am a feminist” pin on your shirt, saying “smash the patriarchy!” a few times because it’s briefly profitable, and being done with it. This novel does an incredible job of dissecting the true nuance of feminism and teaching others that making genuine change isn’t simple or easy—there are always more layers than you think there are. It’s never just about gender—it’s about race, sexuality, class, and so many other facets of our national (and international) identity. And even though this book doesn’t necessarily cover every bit of it—it’s a big ask for a single book to cover every single component that falls under feminism—it didn’t need to: misogyny and racism were the main focuses, and they were dealt with in a nuanced way. Apart from a misunderstanding of the Bechdel test (the book seemed to interpret a lot of it as how much real women think about men, when Bechdel’s focus was more about how female characters are written, especially in male-dominated Hollywood), it’s a great view of feminism in a YA setting.
Plus, with all of my gripes, Not Here to Be Liked did something of an enemies-to-lovers romance pretty well! Going into this novel, that part was what I was most suspicious about, but Quach, unlike many romances with “enemies-to-lovers” slapped onto them as a buzzword, actually handled in a way that felt authentic. The stages of Eliza and Len’s relationship didn’t feel like it was cut into neat, digestible slices—they had their ups and downs, and the result wasn’t entirely black and white, either. That’s what love is. It’s not quantifiable by any of the labels we put on it, and that’s how it’s supposed to be. Personally, I didn’t think that they had a whole lot of chemistry together, but their relationship was well-written enough that I could push some of that to the side.
All in all, an incredible story of one young woman’s fight for justice in her high school that scores high on its protagonist and depictions of feminism. 4 stars!
Don’t you just love it when you’ve forgotten about a book existing, so you go in with low expectations, and you end up dazzled? Top 10 feelings, for sure.
I’ve read my fair share of feminist, realistic-fiction YA in my day, and sadly, it’s easy for them to miss the mark, whether it’s introducing diverse characters for the sake of intersectionality and doing nothing with them (Six Angry Girls) or having a protagonist who only focuses on very surface-level aspects of feminism without getting any more nuanced (half of Watch Us Rise). But Not Here to Be Liked delivered the nuance, heart, and punch that it was supposed to, making for a powerful story of systemic misogyny and leadership.
I think some of the reviews seemed to miss the point when talking about Eliza—she’s a great character, but she’s not intended to be entirely likable. It’s in the title, after all! Sure—she’s determined to make the school paper as good as possible, and sometimes, that comes off as abrasive or strict. But that’s the point—were she a man, these traits would be praised: she’s “too harsh,” but he’s “willing to take charge” or “a fearless leader.” See the double standard? That’s what this book was trying to say all along. And Quach did an excellent job of having a flawed but incredibly root-able protagonist: every position that she takes is a laudable one that’s backed up more often than not. Eliza was robbed of her position, simply because a man’s charisma meant more than a woman’s experience and talent.
Not Here to Be Liked also portrayed how we think of feminism so well! As soon as Eliza’s manifesto is leaked and both support and vitriol begin to flow towards her, many of her classmates stand behind her, but their support is often half-baked; it’s a great commentary on that shallow, hollow white feminism that’s so prevalent among people who aren’t willing to do anything politically uncomfortable: slapping an “I am a feminist” pin on your shirt, saying “smash the patriarchy!” a few times because it’s briefly profitable, and being done with it. This novel does an incredible job of dissecting the true nuance of feminism and teaching others that making genuine change isn’t simple or easy—there are always more layers than you think there are. It’s never just about gender—it’s about race, sexuality, class, and so many other facets of our national (and international) identity. And even though this book doesn’t necessarily cover every bit of it—it’s a big ask for a single book to cover every single component that falls under feminism—it didn’t need to: misogyny and racism were the main focuses, and they were dealt with in a nuanced way. Apart from a misunderstanding of the Bechdel test (the book seemed to interpret a lot of it as how much real women think about men, when Bechdel’s focus was more about how female characters are written, especially in male-dominated Hollywood), it’s a great view of feminism in a YA setting.
Plus, with all of my gripes, Not Here to Be Liked did something of an enemies-to-lovers romance pretty well! Going into this novel, that part was what I was most suspicious about, but Quach, unlike many romances with “enemies-to-lovers” slapped onto them as a buzzword, actually handled in a way that felt authentic. The stages of Eliza and Len’s relationship didn’t feel like it was cut into neat, digestible slices—they had their ups and downs, and the result wasn’t entirely black and white, either. That’s what love is. It’s not quantifiable by any of the labels we put on it, and that’s how it’s supposed to be. Personally, I didn’t think that they had a whole lot of chemistry together, but their relationship was well-written enough that I could push some of that to the side.
All in all, an incredible story of one young woman’s fight for justice in her high school that scores high on its protagonist and depictions of feminism. 4 stars!
I'm giving this book a 4 and I thought it was a great read overall. I do though low-key think that the Bok Tok Girlies were overhyping the academic rivals-lovers aspect of the book the rest of it was very good.
Feminism
I really did enjoy the feminism discussions in the book and how we had a flawed main character who wasn't completely despicable (because yes it is possible to have a flawed main character who isn't just straight-up evil other authors should take note of that) and I really enjoyed her journey with feminism and the complexities that come with the topic. I guess for me it was kind of refreshing to read a book that centred on a romance that didn't center on straight white women and completely ignore intersectionality. While its portrayal of feminism isn't perfect by any means I do still think young girls could learn from this book about how to critically think about feminism and not really take things at face value. I kinda wished they didn't brush over what could have happened to Natalie a the party, to me that was a really striking moment, Eliza saving Natalie from what could have happened to her but I felt as though they kind of brushed past it. There was definitely an opportunity to talk about SA in a high school setting but I understand if that's not the vibe that Quach was going for.
Romance
Now, for the romance aspects of this book. First of all, I would not categorize this book as romance because to me the feminism aspect is really what the book is all about and the romance kind of takes a back seat in the plot to highlight other things in the story and of course I didn't mind that at all I really liked Quach was doing but that's just not how I heard other people describing the book. Second of all, I'm sure if I like completely buy the relationship between Len and Eliza. Like yeah I know it's a high school romance and teenagers are really shallow but really you couldn't add just like a little more development on the blooming of their romance. However, I did think there were some cute moments between Len and Eliza like the scene at the baseball game when she just kisses him out of nowhere like I was genuinely surprised when she did that and I loved it so much. Third of all, the book is also really funny to me like there were so many moments where I would laugh out loud because what was going on was so funny to me. One of my favourite Eliza moments is when she dumps out her backpack full of tampons in front of the whole school during morning announcements like the girl has a lot of guts and I really liked her.
Overall, I thought this book was pretty great while there was room for improvement (there usually is) I definitely recommend picking up this book!
Feminism
I really did enjoy the feminism discussions in the book and how we had a flawed main character who wasn't completely despicable (because yes it is possible to have a flawed main character who isn't just straight-up evil other authors should take note of that) and I really enjoyed her journey with feminism and the complexities that come with the topic. I guess for me it was kind of refreshing to read a book that centred on a romance that didn't center on straight white women and completely ignore intersectionality. While its portrayal of feminism isn't perfect by any means I do still think young girls could learn from this book about how to critically think about feminism and not really take things at face value. I kinda wished they didn't brush over what could have happened to Natalie a the party, to me that was a really striking moment, Eliza saving Natalie from what could have happened to her but I felt as though they kind of brushed past it. There was definitely an opportunity to talk about SA in a high school setting but I understand if that's not the vibe that Quach was going for.
Romance
Now, for the romance aspects of this book. First of all, I would not categorize this book as romance because to me the feminism aspect is really what the book is all about and the romance kind of takes a back seat in the plot to highlight other things in the story and of course I didn't mind that at all I really liked Quach was doing but that's just not how I heard other people describing the book. Second of all, I'm sure if I like completely buy the relationship between Len and Eliza. Like yeah I know it's a high school romance and teenagers are really shallow but really you couldn't add just like a little more development on the blooming of their romance. However, I did think there were some cute moments between Len and Eliza like the scene at the baseball game when she just kisses him out of nowhere like I was genuinely surprised when she did that and I loved it so much. Third of all, the book is also really funny to me like there were so many moments where I would laugh out loud because what was going on was so funny to me. One of my favourite Eliza moments is when she dumps out her backpack full of tampons in front of the whole school during morning announcements like the girl has a lot of guts and I really liked her.
Overall, I thought this book was pretty great while there was room for improvement (there usually is) I definitely recommend picking up this book!
Len had a way better speech than Eliza. Len is popular and everyone thinks he is cool, but everyone thinks Eliza is harsh and uptight. The more likable person will win, that's how elections work. This is how all school elections work. They vote for the most popular, not the most capable. Len winning didn't have much to do with him being a guy.
funny
hopeful
lighthearted
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Eliza Quan is a smart, self-confident student and main contributor to her school paper. She runs an unopposed race for editor and chief…until the last minute when Len, a former baseball player throws his hat in the ring. After a compelling speech he wins over her, sparking rage. She pecks out an angry manifesto against the patriarchy that someone else posts to the front page of the school newspaper.
Eliza is hailed a femminazi with all the all the hazing that comes with the title. When she starts to fall for Len, the face of the patriarchy she starts to wonder what it really means to be a feminist.
If I were a preteen I would have given this a 5 star review. For me, I found myself skimming large parts, more interested in the teen romance than the school drama. I appreciated the nuance, peek into Asian American culture, and dialogue about feminism, but I’m a tried and true romantic at heart. Great message for young girls. Give me the romance.
Eliza is hailed a femminazi with all the all the hazing that comes with the title. When she starts to fall for Len, the face of the patriarchy she starts to wonder what it really means to be a feminist.
If I were a preteen I would have given this a 5 star review. For me, I found myself skimming large parts, more interested in the teen romance than the school drama. I appreciated the nuance, peek into Asian American culture, and dialogue about feminism, but I’m a tried and true romantic at heart. Great message for young girls. Give me the romance.
Not normally the type of book I gravitate to, but it’s one of my pookie’s favorite books so i really wanted to try it :)
This was really cute! It didn’t really feel like the typical YA romance since a lot of the focus is on strategies of journalism in a high school environment, which I had a blast reading. There were lots of passages about editing tactics for journalism, interview scenes about ongoing stories that had been discussed prior to the scene, and all the relationships between the writing staff made me think a lot of I Hope This Finds You Well which I read earlier this year.
Plus, the motivations and struggles for every character were really well defined, and the conflict moved along pretty quickly so I breezed through this story. Plus, all the characters actually made pretty understandable choices, especially when you take into consideration that these are high schoolers. A lot of the time these YA high school romances become so unbelievably absurd in scale that it becomes ridiculous to think that these are human beings making these choices, but in the case of this book it actually all felt pretty understandable to me, especially with some of the bits that came along in the last quarter of the book.
It does sometimes follow the common YA style of overexplaining how the narrator is feeling / what they’re going through. However, this didn’t really bother me this much, as the way it’s written actually felt like I was just listening to an op-ed article, so it made sense for the narrator’s position in her life.
7.5/10
This was really cute! It didn’t really feel like the typical YA romance since a lot of the focus is on strategies of journalism in a high school environment, which I had a blast reading. There were lots of passages about editing tactics for journalism, interview scenes about ongoing stories that had been discussed prior to the scene, and all the relationships between the writing staff made me think a lot of I Hope This Finds You Well which I read earlier this year.
Plus, the motivations and struggles for every character were really well defined, and the conflict moved along pretty quickly so I breezed through this story. Plus, all the characters actually made pretty understandable choices, especially when you take into consideration that these are high schoolers. A lot of the time these YA high school romances become so unbelievably absurd in scale that it becomes ridiculous to think that these are human beings making these choices, but in the case of this book it actually all felt pretty understandable to me, especially with some of the bits that came along in the last quarter of the book.
It does sometimes follow the common YA style of overexplaining how the narrator is feeling / what they’re going through. However, this didn’t really bother me this much, as the way it’s written actually felt like I was just listening to an op-ed article, so it made sense for the narrator’s position in her life.
7.5/10
Your parents want what's good for you, but don’t always know what’s best for you.