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3.68 AVERAGE
3.68 AVERAGE
emotional
funny
reflective
fast-paced
Content Warnings
Moderate: Ableism
Minor: Bullying
This was cute. Josh Sundquist went through almost his entire life without having kissed or dated a girl. Could it be because of his missing leg? Or his strict Christian upbringing? Or his reluctance to DTR (define the relationship)?
So he embarks on a quest. He lists down the special girls who became a part of his life to find out exactly WHAT HAPPENED. They all had a good thing going (probably), so why did they never officially date? Josh breaks down each encounter by background (how he met the girl), hypothesis (what probably went wrong), and conclusion (meeting/chatting with the girl years later).
This novel is a short, quick read. Although Josh's failed relationships are sad, he presents them in a way that doesn't sound bitter. You can tell that this was more of a cathartic experience that finally gave him closure.
So he embarks on a quest. He lists down the special girls who became a part of his life to find out exactly WHAT HAPPENED. They all had a good thing going (probably), so why did they never officially date? Josh breaks down each encounter by background (how he met the girl), hypothesis (what probably went wrong), and conclusion (meeting/chatting with the girl years later).
This novel is a short, quick read. Although Josh's failed relationships are sad, he presents them in a way that doesn't sound bitter. You can tell that this was more of a cathartic experience that finally gave him closure.
Spoiler
And I'm really glad that he has finally found his happily ever after.
Myehhhh. I really really did not like this guy. Sorry, guy! I felt like he was just like, "Oh there's a pretty girl - she should date me. I'm going to get her to date me. I'm going to be awkward and a little bit stalkery. Oh noooo she doesn't like me! Friend Zone, womp womp." UGH. That is my very well-written, thought-out review.
Cute, quirky, some legit LOL moments. Easy read.
Originally posted here
Josh Sundquist has been single his whole life, minus that period in eighth grade when he dated a girl. For 23 hours. Josh wants to know why he’s been single, so he wrote a book about it. Yes, that is the whole point of this book, why has he never really dated someone. And Sundquist, really isn’t a bad guy, throughout the book that is proven to be true. He goes back and talks to every girl he really had a crush on to find out what went wrong and a lot of the time, it was miscommunication.
Through drawings and in-depth analysis of his dating history he begins to find out where things went wrong. “Background”, “Hypothesis”, and “Investigation.” This was very much a legit scientific discovery and because this is a memoir, Sundquist often seems a bit obsessed with romance; however, I never once thought he wasn’t genuine, honest, and a bit awkward which makes him more genuine. He talks about being homeschooled through eighth grade to that first day of public high school and those experiences in college we all wouldn’t mind forgetting.
Sundquist often assumed girls wouldn’t like him. He’s awkward, he has one leg, that he lost to childhood cancer and while he tries to not let that be a problem, it does effect how he acts. He tries so hard to not be a bother about that fact, that he has one leg, but it does cause him to have walls up around himself. The reader, and Sundquist himself, find out he had a lot of walls up around himself and for the longest time really didn’t love and accept himself. How could he expect someone to love him, if he really didn’t love himself? I’ve read enough romance novels in my time to know that it’s not impossible, no wait it generally is. But once he starts to accept his disability and himself, he stops looking for love and what happens? He finds Ashley, he present day fiancée. (Another Ashley, not me Ashley.)
I wanted to enjoy this book. And I found it to be a quick read; however, I also found it to be quite problematic. It started before I picked up the book and saw this post my friend Anna had on tumblr. I was like “Ugh. Bad joke to promote the book.” And then I started to read the book and found this in the book and my heart hurt. Because why? Why do we have to “joke” about the friend zone? It’s almost 2015, can’t we move on?
Josh Sundquist has been single his whole life, minus that period in eighth grade when he dated a girl. For 23 hours. Josh wants to know why he’s been single, so he wrote a book about it. Yes, that is the whole point of this book, why has he never really dated someone. And Sundquist, really isn’t a bad guy, throughout the book that is proven to be true. He goes back and talks to every girl he really had a crush on to find out what went wrong and a lot of the time, it was miscommunication.
Through drawings and in-depth analysis of his dating history he begins to find out where things went wrong. “Background”, “Hypothesis”, and “Investigation.” This was very much a legit scientific discovery and because this is a memoir, Sundquist often seems a bit obsessed with romance; however, I never once thought he wasn’t genuine, honest, and a bit awkward which makes him more genuine. He talks about being homeschooled through eighth grade to that first day of public high school and those experiences in college we all wouldn’t mind forgetting.
Sundquist often assumed girls wouldn’t like him. He’s awkward, he has one leg, that he lost to childhood cancer and while he tries to not let that be a problem, it does effect how he acts. He tries so hard to not be a bother about that fact, that he has one leg, but it does cause him to have walls up around himself. The reader, and Sundquist himself, find out he had a lot of walls up around himself and for the longest time really didn’t love and accept himself. How could he expect someone to love him, if he really didn’t love himself? I’ve read enough romance novels in my time to know that it’s not impossible, no wait it generally is. But once he starts to accept his disability and himself, he stops looking for love and what happens? He finds Ashley, he present day fiancée. (Another Ashley, not me Ashley.)
I wanted to enjoy this book. And I found it to be a quick read; however, I also found it to be quite problematic. It started before I picked up the book and saw this post my friend Anna had on tumblr. I was like “Ugh. Bad joke to promote the book.” And then I started to read the book and found this in the book and my heart hurt. Because why? Why do we have to “joke” about the friend zone? It’s almost 2015, can’t we move on?
Not quite what I expected but that’s both good and disappointing.
The good: Never would’ve guessed I would have so much in common with a Paralympian Presbyterian from Virginia. But the first chapter triggered some hilarious memories from my own evangelical upbringing and it set the tone for how real and relatable Josh’s experiences were.
The disappointing: Because I’m petty, I was expecting more direct closure with each girl. Like he sought them all out, told them about the book, and interrogated them. Which is delusional and weird so of course he would’ve have done that. I think the overall ending made up for it though. Also, along the same petty lines… a lot of those graphs had nothing to do with the story around them. They got more relevant as the book progressed but the early ones were very confusing.
The good: Never would’ve guessed I would have so much in common with a Paralympian Presbyterian from Virginia. But the first chapter triggered some hilarious memories from my own evangelical upbringing and it set the tone for how real and relatable Josh’s experiences were.
The disappointing: Because I’m petty, I was expecting more direct closure with each girl. Like he sought them all out, told them about the book, and interrogated them. Which is delusional and weird so of course he would’ve have done that. I think the overall ending made up for it though. Also, along the same petty lines… a lot of those graphs had nothing to do with the story around them. They got more relevant as the book progressed but the early ones were very confusing.
Well, I finished this, but I didn't love it. I'm not 100% sure who the audience for this is supposed to be but I agree it does have that "total dork... aimed at middle-schoolers" vibe to it. I guess the whole thing is supposed to highlight the "there's nothing wrong with you, really" concept. That relationships are hard and school is awkward, etc. I think the basic idea is passingly interesting: Sundquist wants to know why none of the potential relationships he had growing up ever turned into anything, so he finds the women he was interested in and asks them. (It's a little stalker-esque, yes, which may turn some people off.) Unfortunately, the answers were generic and boring -- I didn't know you liked me, I was embarrassed, I liked someone else, etc. -- which I guess is the point, but that doesn't make for an enthralling read.
It's a shame, because Sundquist himself has an interesting life story. He lost his leg to cancer at a very young age, was homeschooled by what sound like very conservative Christian parents, and grew up to become a paralympiad and motivational speaker. I think the rest of his life, relationships aside, would make for a good read!
I also think this highlights a common concern I (and I know others) have with homeschooling children. I definitely see the benefits of it, but it seems so often that homeschooled children do not get enough exposure to other kids and social situations. Consequently, things like navigating relationships can be exceedingly difficult.
It's a shame, because Sundquist himself has an interesting life story. He lost his leg to cancer at a very young age, was homeschooled by what sound like very conservative Christian parents, and grew up to become a paralympiad and motivational speaker. I think the rest of his life, relationships aside, would make for a good read!
I also think this highlights a common concern I (and I know others) have with homeschooling children. I definitely see the benefits of it, but it seems so often that homeschooled children do not get enough exposure to other kids and social situations. Consequently, things like navigating relationships can be exceedingly difficult.
adventurous
emotional
hopeful
inspiring
fast-paced