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lawbooks600's review against another edition
emotional
slow-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
3.0
Score: Six and a half out of ten.
This one was alright. I wanted to read Fat Chance, Charlie Vega by Crystal Maldonado for a while but put it off for a few months before finally getting it at a library. I glanced at the blurb, which didn't seem too unappealing, but the ratings were below four stars, so I lowered my expectations. When I closed the final page, I thought it was okay.
It starts with Charlie Vega recounting her life as a self-identified Fat (uppercase) brown (lowercase) girl with her (white) mother, and her dynamics with other people at school. It sure sounds like a slow beginning in the opening pages when I think about it, and the pacing continues to be this way from there. I liked the message of accepting yourself as who you are, but Fat Chance, Charlie Vega tried to do too much and I didn't know what the central storyline was supposed to be.
There are two narratives: one is a romance and another is a discussion on issues like body shaming and racism, and the narrative tried to do both at once but didn't concentrate on any, but perhaps only focusing on one would be better. I found the juxtaposition between the lighthearted first theme and the serious second theme to be jarring, too. The giddy tone was hard to read at times, and so was the toxic dynamic of Charlie and her mother, but at least I liked the characters, though they were not easy to connect or relate with, even though Charlie developed her character. The exploration of intersectionality is also an appreciated touch. Did I mention Charlie's (Latino) father passed before the plot started? The climax is enjoyable as Charlie starts a relationship with Brian, then they broke up, and then got back together again.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Eating disorder, Death, Body shaming, Racism, Cultural appropriation, Grief, and Fatphobia
Full trigger warnings: Body shaming, internalised body shaming, racism, internalised racism, cultural appropriation, eating disorder, restrictive dieting, grief and loss depiction, death of a father in the pastashleycmms's review against another edition
emotional
funny
hopeful
lighthearted
reflective
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.25
Content Warnings
Graphic: Fatphobia and Body shaming
Moderate: Death, Death of parent, and Emotional abuse
Minor: Grief, Racism, and Alcohol
Really great book. Realistic and difficult, but still light and enjoyable. I loved the diversity in sizes, races, and sexualities in this book. I love that it impacted everyone, but wasn’t overdone just for some quick rep. You still get to know everyone for who they are and learn to know what they are dealing with, without them becoming just a commodity. It was really emotional reading where Charlie is in her journey, but I loved how much you see she’s trying to unlearn these toxic ideas, change her behavior, and allowing herself to take chances by the end. The relationship between Charlie and her mother, Jeanne, was also ridiculously well written. As someone who has a strained relationship with their mother, I understand how you can long for a close bond with someone who simply may not be treating you the best. I also understand the constant fighting, the put downs, and being told that they want you to be better when you feel like you just want to be yourself. Things with Charlie and her mom didn’t end perfectly, but I loved that they were in a better place with no big talking about it, but just some better acceptance on both sides. Things aren’t perfect, but there’s definitely room to carve out happiness where you can.
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