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bibliomich's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
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? It's complicated
5.0
Oh, this was an EASY five stars for me! What a phenomenal novel. I need to read more Natalia Sylvester now.
What I loved:
- The diversity. Sylvester has created a book that truly highlights intersectional diversity: ability, chronic pain, race, sexuality and sexual orientation, gender identity, mental health. And while all of these elements are present, none of them feel forced. She has created a truly diverse cast of characters.
- The representation of hip dysplasia and chronic pain.
- The way she addresses ableism. In recent times, I've noticed a lot of contemporary middle grade and YA authors using the word "lame" in their books (often by the protagonist, and rarely called out). I LOVE that Sylvester tackles this ableism in her book. We see the way language affects Verónica, and we hear her explain why it matters in her own words.
- The complicated family dynamics. I appreciated that Verónica's relationships with her parents and sister were complicated, nuanced, and fully explored. Verónica's parents were not perfect (esp. all the slut shaming), though they clearly cared about her. Additionally, Verónica was not a perfect daughter, though her behavior made total sense given her age, her wants and needs, and her feelings about her bodily autonomy. I loved the way we saw their relationships evolve over the course of the book, and the fact that it was never neat and tidy, but always a little messy. How refreshingly real.
- The love interest. Ahh, Alex was just so lovable (and again, a fully developed, very realistic character). I appreciated that he had his own challenges, particularly his struggles with mental health. I loved how he respected Verónica, and that he showed up when it mattered. I also enjoyed the way Alex provided Verónica with new perspectives when it came to her relationships with her parents.
What I loved:
- The diversity. Sylvester has created a book that truly highlights intersectional diversity: ability, chronic pain, race, sexuality and sexual orientation, gender identity, mental health. And while all of these elements are present, none of them feel forced. She has created a truly diverse cast of characters.
- The representation of hip dysplasia and chronic pain.
- The way she addresses ableism. In recent times, I've noticed a lot of contemporary middle grade and YA authors using the word "lame" in their books (often by the protagonist, and rarely called out). I LOVE that Sylvester tackles this ableism in her book. We see the way language affects Verónica, and we hear her explain why it matters in her own words.
- The complicated family dynamics. I appreciated that Verónica's relationships with her parents and sister were complicated, nuanced, and fully explored. Verónica's parents were not perfect (esp. all the slut shaming), though they clearly cared about her. Additionally, Verónica was not a perfect daughter, though her behavior made total sense given her age, her wants and needs, and her feelings about her bodily autonomy. I loved the way we saw their relationships evolve over the course of the book, and the fact that it was never neat and tidy, but always a little messy. How refreshingly real.
- The love interest. Ahh, Alex was just so lovable (and again, a fully developed, very realistic character). I appreciated that he had his own challenges, particularly his struggles with mental health. I loved how he respected Verónica, and that he showed up when it mattered. I also enjoyed the way Alex provided Verónica with new perspectives when it came to her relationships with her parents.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Ableism
Moderate: Medical content and Sexism
Minor: Deportation and Sexual assault
emily_mh's review against another edition
emotional
hopeful
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? No
4.0
I have never highlighted a book like I have this one! The disability rep here spoke to me on another level. The story perfectly captured the relationship I have to my body; the disconnect, and how simultaneously my body is hugely familiar AND unfamiliar to me. I also appreciated how the book showed that ableism comes in part from disabled people “making” abled people uncomfortable, as we are “uncomfortable” reminders that humans are not meant to be “perfect”, are not designed to be, and that ALL bodies have needs. Furthermore, I loved how the story poked holes in how abled people want to “fix” us. This quote in particular spoke to that:
“And why should it matter, anyway, when so many things in nature - rivers and trees and shorelines and mountains - are free to be imperfect? No one calls a flower chueca as it bends its way toward the sky.”
There’s so much more glowing praise I could lavish on the disability rep here! It was so spot on, and I’ll be looking at the annotations I’ve made for years to come.
The key theme of the book is bodily autonomy, and how Verónica is trying to find and assert this as a disabled immigrant Latina girl. Each of her intersecting identities impact this challenge, and it is in her search that she develops so much as a character. I really loved this part of the story.
I also really liked the summery feel this novel had. It is brought out by the pools and sunbathing, sunshine and, of course, mermaids. We got so much detail regarding how being a mermaid performer works and I loved it! It gave me a whole new appreciation for that profession.
I did struggle with two things. The first is the romance between Verónica and Alex. I didn’t get their chemistry, especially as everything within their relationship seemed to move so quickly. On top of this, I just don’t think having a romance was necessary for this book. The same themes could have been explored without it, and it took time and space away from the development of these themes. The second thing I didn’t like was that Sylvester never really properly addressed Verónica’s belief that her younger sister Dani didn’t have problems, or that the ones that she did have were insignificant. I didn’t like this invalidation of Dani’s experience especially as, aside from being disabled, she would have been going through similar struggles to Verónica. I will say that I DID appreciate how Sylvester handled the glass-child narrative within this relationship, though!
Rep: Peruvian-American MC with hip dysplasia, Mexican-American LI with depression, Peruvian-American SCs, sapphic SC, Black sapphic SC, Japanese-American SC, Native American genderqueer SC
Rep: Peruvian-American MC with hip dysplasia, Mexican-American LI with depression, Peruvian-American SCs, sapphic SC, Black sapphic SC, Japanese-American SC, Native American genderqueer SC
Content Warnings
Graphic: Sexual assault
Moderate: Medical content, Racism, Xenophobia, Ableism, Sexism, Cursing, and Body shaming
Minor: Fatphobia, Deportation, Vomit, Suicidal thoughts, Death, Injury/Injury detail, Mental illness, Drug use, Alcohol, and Child death
NB: the graphic warning for sexual assault is not because the sexual assault occurs graphically on page, but because it is a prominent theme throughout the book. Minor: suicidal ideation, heternormativity, cisnormativity
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