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4.17 AVERAGE
4.17 AVERAGE
such a sweet book. Ring s true of adolescent feelings but in a beautiful nonjudgmental world . I especially enjoyed the friendships in it and the accurate portrayal of middle school crushes
It's so cute!!!!!! So cute and endearing and lovely!!!!!!!! Dee's middle school voice is on-point, and the romance is very sweet and realistic. Mattie's grappling with her sexuality is sweetly dealt with, and it's heartwarming that there's no actual homophobia she has to grapple with because everyone is just... cool with her crushing on a girl. Truly, a utopia!!!!! Also the way Romeo & Juliet was woven throughout was charming and any Shakespeare-nerd kiddos will enjoy the heck out of it.
A great addition to any upper elementary or middle school library. Sweet, charming, and queer -- what more could you ask for?
A great addition to any upper elementary or middle school library. Sweet, charming, and queer -- what more could you ask for?
While I'm about 10 years too old to be he target audience, this was probably one of the cutest things I've read in long time, and it was honestly a lot better written than most of the f/f YA I've read.
AHHHHH I LOVED THIS BOOK! I related to Mattie so much; she feels this sort of confusing distance from normal middle school heterosexual girl stuff and I felt the exact same stuff when I was that age, only there was so much less awareness and representation then that I didn't process it until I was older. I can't even imagine what it would've meant to come across this book at age thirteen, it honestly might have changed my life.
Mattie's fears and the stress she feels are so real. She's also a genuinely sweet and interesting kid; she's a solidly engaging narrator and gives the story life. Some middle grade fiction is written so blandly that I just can't connect with it or imagine a middle schooler connecting with it, but the prose is engaging without being too complicated. Perfect.
Mattie's fears and the stress she feels are so real. She's also a genuinely sweet and interesting kid; she's a solidly engaging narrator and gives the story life. Some middle grade fiction is written so blandly that I just can't connect with it or imagine a middle schooler connecting with it, but the prose is engaging without being too complicated. Perfect.
I don't read much middle grade because I get so frustrated with their problems (kid, you're twelve and none of this will matter in like a year, chill) but this one perfectly hit the balance between this all matters so much and perspective in the long run. Mattie was such a lovable main character and I was so invested in her, her friends, her crushes, and their school play. I didn't QUITE buy 8th graders successfully pulling off a Romeo and Juliet production BUT it was the perfect backdrop for middle school relationship drama.
2.5
Nothing really problematic in the book but I honestly just thought it was boring and underwhelming (2d characters and the book was an annoying Romeo and Juliet analysis). However, the side characters trying to force/guilt Mattie to come out made me a tad uncomfortable...
An important book but this could have been way better than it turned out.
Might do a full review for this one.
Nothing really problematic in the book but I honestly just thought it was boring and underwhelming (2d characters and the book was an annoying Romeo and Juliet analysis). However, the side characters trying to force/guilt Mattie to come out made me a tad uncomfortable...
An important book but this could have been way better than it turned out.
Might do a full review for this one.
This was a sweet little book. I particularly liked that the play's casting was gender-blind, such a good idea for a public school doing Shakespeare! So much better than my school experiences! This book was so very angsty and middle school, but in a way that was actually quite sweet to watch. I would have liked the ending better if it had ended with a more explicit date, though.
The book is very sweet and entirely PG. There's no sex, no making out even, just pretty boys and pretty girls and angst. Also, nobody dies.
The book is very sweet and entirely PG. There's no sex, no making out even, just pretty boys and pretty girls and angst. Also, nobody dies.
emotional
funny
hopeful
medium-paced
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
This was adorable, which is something considering I don't usually like contemporary romance. Seriously, pick this up if you're looking for a middle grade novel with bisexual representation. Will probably be doing a full review on my channel soon.