Reviews with content warning for Self harm - The Lesbiana's Guide to Catholic School

Reviews tagging 'Self harm'

The Lesbiana's Guide to Catholic School by Sonora Reyes

69 reviews

yourbookishbff's review

emotional funny hopeful 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? No

4.5

I thoroughly enjoyed this coming-of-age story and am grateful, again, that stories like this exist for today's teens. The short chapters and first-person narration make this a fast-paced read, and I enjoyed the irreverent, sincere and self-deprecating voice of our main character, Yamilet. Reyes explores the complex intersections in identity for Yamilet, who comes out as a lesbian, and her younger brother, Cesar, who comes out as bisexual, within their deeply Catholic, Mexican-American household. We can see the layered obstacles for this family as they fight to stay afloat independently years after the deportation of their father (leaving their mother as the family's sole source of income) and thrive in a world that feels fractured along too many religious, cultural and familial fault lines.

Most compelling in this story is Reyes' look at mental health crises for queer teens. We know statistically that queer teens face disproportionately high rates of bullying and harassment, physical and sexual abuse, depression, and suicidal ideation, and we see these themes explicitly played out in Yamilet and Cesar's storylines. Readers who like to see on-page discussions of mental health care and intervention (akin to Heartstopper) will appreciate how these conflicts are managed by Reyes - particularly how they evidence the ways in which racism and classism within healthcare further complicate crisis care and long-term support for marginalized youth.

I found myself more drawn to the family dynamics and interpersonal relationships (outside of the romances) in this story (the sibling dynamic between Yami + Cesar meant the world to me), so I was only disappointed that the final 20% centered romance to the degree that it did for Yamilet - that said, this was just personal preference.

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agwood32's review against another edition

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emotional funny hopeful 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? Yes

4.75

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boop123's review

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emotional inspiring reflective tense 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

Straight up five stars. And yes I’m being biased solely because this was me back in junior high.

I loved the sentiments surrounding the timeline on coming out. No one should feel obligated to tell everyone they’re queer and I’m glad this book emphasized that because it is incredibly difficult to come out when the stakes are high, in this case, religious environments. I also loved how the author tackled the relationship between religion and sexual identity because how can one truly have a personal relationship with God (or any other religion) when the scriptures tell them they’re an abomination? I truly resonate with what Yamilet was going through. How she is already panning out her future if ever she was to come out, the money that she has to save if they don’t accept her, having to convince everyone else she’s straight, her sentiments around Catholicism and her sexuality, and how she can’t fully say the word “lesbian” without feeling squirmy like…. this was literally me 😭

Even though i knew that she was gonna come out and everything would work out because almost all YA queer books, especially ones taking place in high school, end that way, it was nice to read a book like this because she got her happy ending. And we all know there are still people like me who are still stuck in those circumstances knowing the risks.

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shoeinafield's review against another edition

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emotional funny 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

4.0

Still gagged that Yami moved schools because she was outed but it was to 3 people...

YA books about LGBTQ+ characters make me happy because I didn't have books like this when I was younger. I feel like my brain chemistry would've been different if I knew more about these experiences.

Although this book made me sad from all the

homophobia

, I still enjoyed it because the

lesbian and bi

sibling duo is so slay. Towards the end of the book reminded me of the musical Prom which was fun and I just love to see the youth succeed.

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eliseondet's review against another edition

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inspiring lighthearted relaxing slow-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

3.25

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mle11's review against another edition

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emotional funny hopeful medium-paced

Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes

5.0

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madelinedalton's review against another edition

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emotional hopeful inspiring 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? It's complicated

4.25

This was so cute! Excellent representation and great storytelling. My only real complaint is that narrative voice is very YA, which was hard to get into as a 25-year-old reader. That’s not an objective flaw at all—this book is very clearly for a younger demographic—but it did impact my personal reading experience.

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