Reviews

Can't Take That Away by Steven Salvatore

haileyannereads's review against another edition

4.0

Trigger Warning: homophobia, queerphobia, bullying, suicidal ideation

I really liked this book. I liked how each chapter included Carey's pronouns to indicate how they felt each day. I thought that also helped explain what being genderqueer is, for those who may be unfamiliar.
That being said, there were times when I was thinking, "no teen talks like this." (example: Carey telling a story. Can't give more info without spoilers.)
My only other complaint is that the believability suffers towards the end.
BUT, overall, I think it's a great genderqueer story, and there aren't enough of those.

wrenl's review against another edition

5.0

This book took my breath away. I devoured it. I loved the genderqueer main character and the pronouns in each chapter. I loved the honesty and rawness about what it means to not fit in the gender binary. I loved the pride and defiance and justice. I loved the way music was woven through every fiber of the story. I didn't love the romance; it felt a bit awkward and forced. I also wish there were trigger warnings for the content. But this book is so amazing, so quoteable, so necessary, that i can forgive these errors.

carnisht's review against another edition

2.0

I wanted to like this book so badly, but the writing (specifically, the dialogue) was so poorly written. It felt way too preachy and inauthentic about the way people actually talk. It was like the whole point of the book was to educator about genderqueer individuals (which is fine), but by having a protagonist lecture the readers about it. Needed more naturalness to it.

abookishgirl's review against another edition

5.0

Loved this. It was the perfect blend of important topics tackled seriously, without every becoming too grim or depressing. The musical theatre nerd in me loved all the Wicked stuff, and I learned more about Mariah Carey than I ever thought possible.

scott_thelibrarian's review against another edition

5.0

Very cute and relevant story! I loved the characters and the story as a whole. Bonus points for Wicked being the musical!

crysania_dangoor's review against another edition

emotional hopeful inspiring fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

imdunn's review against another edition

4.0

Overall, I really liked this book. The main character was great, and I loved all of their friends. The antagonists were realistic and believable, which is unfortunate to say, but I think that the author did a good job of portraying them. My only problem was that I found the social activism and protesting to be a bit unrealistic. As someone who has tried to start movements like Carey has before, I know that it's not that easy. Still, I understand that this is a fictional book, and it was great to see everyone succeed. Like I said, I really liked this book.

hunnybunny33's review against another edition

2.0

I love seeing my hatred for The Catcher in the Rye validated by these characters (Holden Caufield is my #1 enemy). Sweet read but too cheesy for my tastes and I feel kinda icky about the way the police were represented like saviors who are just totally chill during protests; felt very white.

lucy_gray's review against another edition

emotional hopeful inspiring sad 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

4.0

h0wtodisappear's review against another edition

emotional funny hopeful informative inspiring 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

3.5