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3.59 AVERAGE
3.59 AVERAGE
Something Like Gravity is, ultimately, the story of two teenagers grieving the loss of the version of themselves that existed prior to a traumatic event. It is also about love. And about figuring out how to be comfortable in your own skin. This story was incredibly important as it's both a story of healing and of finding someone that loves you AND all of your baggage.
What I found to be stunning about this book is that it is one of the first books I have read that is about a trans boy falling in love. It is not about him figuring out he was trans, but instead his life being trans.
This book was heartbreaking and important and another step in the right direction toward having every kind of story for every kind of person. I especially appreciated the experience of reading from a trans character and the understanding and empathy-building that is included as a result.
Amber Smith's writing style is one of my favorites in contemporary literature.
What I found to be stunning about this book is that it is one of the first books I have read that is about a trans boy falling in love. It is not about him figuring out he was trans, but instead his life being trans.
This book was heartbreaking and important and another step in the right direction toward having every kind of story for every kind of person. I especially appreciated the experience of reading from a trans character and the understanding and empathy-building that is included as a result.
Amber Smith's writing style is one of my favorites in contemporary literature.
a soft sweet mellow story about a trans boy finding someone who loves him at the right time and the right place for who he is.
I fell in love with this book from the first page and was captivated the entire time by the emotions woven into such amazing story telling. Despite dual perspectives, the writing never loses its flow and instead gains something from the constant back and forth.
2.5 stars. i wanted to like this so bad :( but there was hardly any plot, the main characters were problematic and unrealistic... and it totally didn't feel like a love story
Things I liked:
- the acknowledgement of both North Carolina and New York having broad differences in where you can live (I was born in Rochester, New York, which is more like Ohio than it is NYC, and I live in central North Carolina but have been on trips to both the mountains and beaches and yeah, you get a bit of everything here)
- astronomy geekery
- the raw, honest portrayal of complicated relationships
Things I did NOT like:
-
I went to a panel with Amber Smith before buying this book, and she gave the disclaimer that she wasn't trans, her wife isn't trans, and she did a LOT of research to get this book right, but... One of the number one no-gos when writing trans characters is having them be outed because someone saw them undressing (beaten only by having them being killed, I think). That scene... Just made me sick. It's otherwise a very fantastic book, but the scene where Maia watches Chris get changed...
You don't do that to trans characters. You just don't.
- the acknowledgement of both North Carolina and New York having broad differences in where you can live (I was born in Rochester, New York, which is more like Ohio than it is NYC, and I live in central North Carolina but have been on trips to both the mountains and beaches and yeah, you get a bit of everything here)
- astronomy geekery
- the raw, honest portrayal of complicated relationships
Things I did NOT like:
-
Spoiler
how Maia first found out that Chris is transI went to a panel with Amber Smith before buying this book, and she gave the disclaimer that she wasn't trans, her wife isn't trans, and she did a LOT of research to get this book right, but... One of the number one no-gos when writing trans characters is having them be outed because someone saw them undressing (beaten only by having them being killed, I think). That scene... Just made me sick. It's otherwise a very fantastic book, but the scene where Maia watches Chris get changed...
You don't do that to trans characters. You just don't.
if they had ended up together it would be a 1 star
Unfortunately, Something Like Gravity wasn't for me. I'd picked up this book because of the trans rep, and not only did I find that the rep was potentially harmful, neither Chris nor Maia's stories were particularly captivating to me, and I was bored for most of the book.
The book is told in alternating perspectives from Chris and Maia, two teenagers living next to each other in a small town. Both Chris and Maia are dealing with two very life-changing events, which is what brings them together: alienated from the rest of their community, they find comfort in each other because they understand what it's like to be alone without knowing the history behind it. That they don't know each other's histories is, I believe, the driving point behind their relationship, and it also makes their whole conflict possible: namely, both characters keep secrets from each other throughout the book.
Personally, I found Chris and Maia both to be quite frustrating during the book. I did sympathize with both of them, however: both are going through a lot, and it makes a lot of their behaviours understandable. Both of their storylines reflected each other in a very poetic way, which I liked: it definitely lent more weight to the story.
I was, however, definitely the most disappointed by how Chris was written. I'm not transgender, but a lot of the content surrounding Chris made me really uncomfortable. There's a couple ownvoices reviews that echo these thoughts here and here and I suggest you read those because they say it better than I could ever. But there is a scene where Maia spies on Chris as he changes, which is how Maia finds out that Chris is trans, and I feel like that's such a common yet harmful trope which was really uncomfortable to read about. Both Chris and Maia are hiding things from each other, but Chris being trans is treated with as much gravity as Maia lying about her hobbies, and it felt very wrong to me to equate the two. In addition, I'm just ... tired of reading about queer pain in contemporary novels, and tired of queer identities being held as hostage, so to speak. I know that the author is a lesbian, but she's cis and so is Maia, and I felt like Maia acted like Chris being transgender was something she used against him. Which isn't something I particularly enjoy reading about.
This is also a very character-driven novel, which meant that because I wasn't too into the characters, I was not into the plot, either. Amber Smith's writing is beautiful, and I've heard a lot about her previous books -- so I was disappointed that I couldn't get into the rest of the book like I wanted to.
I feel like Something About Gravity had a lot of potential behind it, but I didn't find either of its main characters particularly interesting. In addition, the portrayal of Chris as a trans person played into a lot of harmful plotlines and tropes about trans people that made me really uncomfortable.
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The book is told in alternating perspectives from Chris and Maia, two teenagers living next to each other in a small town. Both Chris and Maia are dealing with two very life-changing events, which is what brings them together: alienated from the rest of their community, they find comfort in each other because they understand what it's like to be alone without knowing the history behind it. That they don't know each other's histories is, I believe, the driving point behind their relationship, and it also makes their whole conflict possible: namely, both characters keep secrets from each other throughout the book.
Personally, I found Chris and Maia both to be quite frustrating during the book. I did sympathize with both of them, however: both are going through a lot, and it makes a lot of their behaviours understandable. Both of their storylines reflected each other in a very poetic way, which I liked: it definitely lent more weight to the story.
I was, however, definitely the most disappointed by how Chris was written. I'm not transgender, but a lot of the content surrounding Chris made me really uncomfortable. There's a couple ownvoices reviews that echo these thoughts here and here and I suggest you read those because they say it better than I could ever. But there is a scene where Maia spies on Chris as he changes, which is how Maia finds out that Chris is trans, and I feel like that's such a common yet harmful trope which was really uncomfortable to read about. Both Chris and Maia are hiding things from each other, but Chris being trans is treated with as much gravity as Maia lying about her hobbies, and it felt very wrong to me to equate the two. In addition, I'm just ... tired of reading about queer pain in contemporary novels, and tired of queer identities being held as hostage, so to speak. I know that the author is a lesbian, but she's cis and so is Maia, and I felt like Maia acted like Chris being transgender was something she used against him. Which isn't something I particularly enjoy reading about.
This is also a very character-driven novel, which meant that because I wasn't too into the characters, I was not into the plot, either. Amber Smith's writing is beautiful, and I've heard a lot about her previous books -- so I was disappointed that I couldn't get into the rest of the book like I wanted to.
I feel like Something About Gravity had a lot of potential behind it, but I didn't find either of its main characters particularly interesting. In addition, the portrayal of Chris as a trans person played into a lot of harmful plotlines and tropes about trans people that made me really uncomfortable.
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Charming and cute YA romance. The characters are mostly normal teenagers and have very realistic parents, which was nice. It was refreshing to read a romance about average normal people that find each other extrodinary.
DNF @ page 10. Ivy Moore's and Isaiah's reviews are much more worthwhile to read and to understand why this book does not represent the trans experience. Being someone who is cis, I can't speak about the trans experience, but there are reviews for this book by people who are trans and are able to speak on this books accuracy as it was written by a cis-female author. What I have seen is that Maia is an awful character with practically no redeemable qualities and the portrayal of Chris and his ftm transition is inaccurate and full of problems regarding binding, body dysphoria, and hormones. Again I can not speak about Chris' trans experience as it is not mine or one I am familiar with as a cis gender person.
Such a moving story! Really enjoyed the characters as individuals and as a couple. Made me cry multiple times throughout (for happy and sad moments).