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3.91 AVERAGE
3.91 AVERAGE
emotional
lighthearted
CeCe Ross is a social media influencer, one half of the popular couple #Cevie. However, when Silvie breaks up with her, CeCe must face not only the pain of her first break up, but also the fear of losing followers. Josh is an aspiring musician who has no interest for social media. When both worlds collide, CeCe hides the fact that she's internet famous, but secrets eventually catch up with her.
I started this book with caution, because I am not a big fan of influencers, but I ended up enjoying it a lot. I admit the commentary on bisexuality, on biphobia to be more specific, is what swayed me in the end. As many bisexuals, CeCe struggles with being part of the LGBT community and dating a boy. That's the old "not gay enough, not straight enough". But the issue was very well handled and that last speech was powerful.
The commentary on social media was also interesting. CeCe starts hiding parts of herself from her followers to be more likeable and, in the end, she realises which are her priorities. There are other topics such as the break up and the start of a new relationship that were good too. Both were slowly developed and it made them feel more realistic.
The characters were good. There was a varied cast, some diversity and realistic parents. Josh was a likeable love interest, although a bit... carboard-ish. Some more depth would have been nice for some of the characters, him included, and there were a few lose ends that I would have liked to see closed, so not all was positive. Still, it was an interesting read, emotional at times, very cute and with a powerful message.
I started this book with caution, because I am not a big fan of influencers, but I ended up enjoying it a lot. I admit the commentary on bisexuality, on biphobia to be more specific, is what swayed me in the end. As many bisexuals, CeCe struggles with being part of the LGBT community and dating a boy. That's the old "not gay enough, not straight enough". But the issue was very well handled and that last speech was powerful.
The commentary on social media was also interesting. CeCe starts hiding parts of herself from her followers to be more likeable and, in the end, she realises which are her priorities. There are other topics such as the break up and the start of a new relationship that were good too. Both were slowly developed and it made them feel more realistic.
The characters were good. There was a varied cast, some diversity and realistic parents. Josh was a likeable love interest, although a bit... carboard-ish. Some more depth would have been nice for some of the characters, him included, and there were a few lose ends that I would have liked to see closed, so not all was positive. Still, it was an interesting read, emotional at times, very cute and with a powerful message.
TW/CW: Biphobia, cyberbullying, homophobia
My feelings about Follow Your Arrow can essentially be summed up by that one Reductress article—“Why I Couldn’t Care Less About Your Relationsh—Oh, It’s Gay? Tell Me More.” I don’t think I would’ve picked up this book if not for several people telling me about how great the bisexual rep was, and I liked it on that front. However, it was definitely lacking for me in some of the other departments.
So, the bisexual rep! That aspect of Follow Your Arrow was what stood out most to me, and it was the most well-executed aspect of the book! Verdi did a fantastic job of discussing so many aspects of bisexuality and biphobia, especially about the stigmas of bisexual people in straight-passing relationships. Even though some of the social media aspects of the book weren’t very well-done (more on that later), the backdrop of social media was a perfect setting for CeCe to come into her own. There’s so much discussion about how bisexual people are pigeonholed as simply straight or gay, depending on their relationship, and how even within the queer community, there’s still so much biphobia present. Follow Your Arrow is a solid book for anyone who wants to learn more about bisexuality, and Verdi did a great job of representing it respectfully.
As far as the other aspects of the book…I wasn’t quite as invested. The romance, although the representation of bi people in a straight-passing relationship was great, didn’t hold a lot for me. It’s a pretty standard setup—"she’s an influencer, he’s a hipster musician who doesn’t even have social media! oh boy, how will this work out? he doesn’t even know what ‘ship’ means, tee hee!” It didn’t help that neither CeCe nor Josh were characterized much more beyond a few base character traits. The combination of the cliche pairing without much of an original spin on it (other than CeCe being bi) and the lack of characterization for both parties made me lose interest more than not.
I also had an issue with the writing—it tried way too hard not to date itself, but it ended up backfiring spectacularly. Even though app names (Instagram, Twitter, etc.) weren’t specifically mentioned (there was only the mysterious App…oookay), the slang peppered in and the excessive use of hashtags at the end of every other paragraph made it feel painfully like a Gen X-er trying to sound “hip.” (How do you do, fellow kids?) CeCe’s status as an influencer didn’t make the hashtags make any more sense—I doubt that even influencers think in random hashtags. It felt weird. Additionally, Follow Your Arrow couldn’t seem to make up its mind about the message it was trying to share about social media; all it got was that there are good and bad aspects of social media, but it never got much more nuanced than that. Given how large of a role social media played in this book, I wish that were more developed.
All in all, a decent rom-com with great discussions around biphobia and bisexuality, but not-so-great writing and an underdeveloped romance. 3 stars.
My feelings about Follow Your Arrow can essentially be summed up by that one Reductress article—“Why I Couldn’t Care Less About Your Relationsh—Oh, It’s Gay? Tell Me More.” I don’t think I would’ve picked up this book if not for several people telling me about how great the bisexual rep was, and I liked it on that front. However, it was definitely lacking for me in some of the other departments.
So, the bisexual rep! That aspect of Follow Your Arrow was what stood out most to me, and it was the most well-executed aspect of the book! Verdi did a fantastic job of discussing so many aspects of bisexuality and biphobia, especially about the stigmas of bisexual people in straight-passing relationships. Even though some of the social media aspects of the book weren’t very well-done (more on that later), the backdrop of social media was a perfect setting for CeCe to come into her own. There’s so much discussion about how bisexual people are pigeonholed as simply straight or gay, depending on their relationship, and how even within the queer community, there’s still so much biphobia present. Follow Your Arrow is a solid book for anyone who wants to learn more about bisexuality, and Verdi did a great job of representing it respectfully.
As far as the other aspects of the book…I wasn’t quite as invested. The romance, although the representation of bi people in a straight-passing relationship was great, didn’t hold a lot for me. It’s a pretty standard setup—"she’s an influencer, he’s a hipster musician who doesn’t even have social media! oh boy, how will this work out? he doesn’t even know what ‘ship’ means, tee hee!” It didn’t help that neither CeCe nor Josh were characterized much more beyond a few base character traits. The combination of the cliche pairing without much of an original spin on it (other than CeCe being bi) and the lack of characterization for both parties made me lose interest more than not.
I also had an issue with the writing—it tried way too hard not to date itself, but it ended up backfiring spectacularly. Even though app names (Instagram, Twitter, etc.) weren’t specifically mentioned (there was only the mysterious App…oookay), the slang peppered in and the excessive use of hashtags at the end of every other paragraph made it feel painfully like a Gen X-er trying to sound “hip.” (How do you do, fellow kids?) CeCe’s status as an influencer didn’t make the hashtags make any more sense—I doubt that even influencers think in random hashtags. It felt weird. Additionally, Follow Your Arrow couldn’t seem to make up its mind about the message it was trying to share about social media; all it got was that there are good and bad aspects of social media, but it never got much more nuanced than that. Given how large of a role social media played in this book, I wish that were more developed.
All in all, a decent rom-com with great discussions around biphobia and bisexuality, but not-so-great writing and an underdeveloped romance. 3 stars.
Follow Your Arrow by Jessica Verdi is out March 2nd from Scholastic, so grab your copy! I was able to read an ARC thanks to @kidlitexchange, @jessverdi, and @scholasticinc, but all opinions are mine.
Cece and her girlfriend Silvie practically live their lives online, earning money from sponsorships and doing livestreams together. When Silvie breaks up with Cece, Cece is stunned. Silvie was such a good actress that she didn’t know anything was wrong.
In the wake of her heartbreak, Cece tries to find herself while still posting regularly and keeping her follower count on the rise. She’s always tried to show her best side online, but that’s not the real Cece. She has to decide how to show that part of herself before someone gets hurt.
I love books about social media because I have such a love/hate relationship with it, as I think many of us do. It was especially interesting to read about how it affects what influencers post and how free they feel to be themselves...or not. This book is amazing, a must-read for ages 12 and up.
Cece and her girlfriend Silvie practically live their lives online, earning money from sponsorships and doing livestreams together. When Silvie breaks up with Cece, Cece is stunned. Silvie was such a good actress that she didn’t know anything was wrong.
In the wake of her heartbreak, Cece tries to find herself while still posting regularly and keeping her follower count on the rise. She’s always tried to show her best side online, but that’s not the real Cece. She has to decide how to show that part of herself before someone gets hurt.
I love books about social media because I have such a love/hate relationship with it, as I think many of us do. It was especially interesting to read about how it affects what influencers post and how free they feel to be themselves...or not. This book is amazing, a must-read for ages 12 and up.
Jessica Verdi's novel has several interesting layers. It's a breakup story, and while Verdi tries to keep Sylvie from being the villain, some of her behaviors do seem questionable. It's also a love story with an attraction and eclectic love interest. But it's also a meditation on the power of social media for good and ill. Recommended for the social media obsessed and as LGBTQ representation.
Read more at Bookish Adventures.
Read more at Bookish Adventures.
Definitely a little juvenile. The constant use of hashtags in the prose is a little grating. However, both of these things are understandable considering it’s audience and it’s plot.
This book was very charming, and it offered a surprisingly mature outlook on breakups and moving on. It felt really nice to read about the main character reckoning with a life-altering breakup, and her being able to eventually find true friendship with her ex.
Above all else, this book spoke to me deeply as a bisexual. Dealing with biphobia, both internally and externally, is an exhausting experience. And even for people who aren’t influencers but have any sort of presence on the internet—it’s incredibly common to have people pass judgments and make assumptions on your sexuality. I’ve been the person who was treated like I wasn’t gay enough. I’ve been the person who was treated like I was gay one second and straight the next. It sucks. Feeling silenced by not only bigots but your own community. This book celebrated its MC’s bisexuality and made it a point to address these things. I had visceral reactions to the fake social comments— both the biphobic ones and the supportive ones. Reading someone in a book say “I’m genderqueer and bisexual” was so bizarre and so wonderful. I’m lucky that these days I’m not exactly starving for representation like I was when I was younger, or like so many still are. But this little piece of super specific visibility? That was groundbreaking for me. I’m almost 27 years old, and I hadn’t had that before.
The romance at the center of the book is also incredibly sweet. It had me kicking my feet and giggling. As a bisexual with a boyfriend, I truly appreciate CeCe’s narrative about finding love with a man while still being unabashedly queer.
In short: fun little read that made me feel warm inside.
This book was very charming, and it offered a surprisingly mature outlook on breakups and moving on. It felt really nice to read about the main character reckoning with a life-altering breakup, and her being able to eventually find true friendship with her ex.
Above all else, this book spoke to me deeply as a bisexual. Dealing with biphobia, both internally and externally, is an exhausting experience. And even for people who aren’t influencers but have any sort of presence on the internet—it’s incredibly common to have people pass judgments and make assumptions on your sexuality. I’ve been the person who was treated like I wasn’t gay enough. I’ve been the person who was treated like I was gay one second and straight the next. It sucks. Feeling silenced by not only bigots but your own community. This book celebrated its MC’s bisexuality and made it a point to address these things. I had visceral reactions to the fake social comments— both the biphobic ones and the supportive ones. Reading someone in a book say “I’m genderqueer and bisexual” was so bizarre and so wonderful. I’m lucky that these days I’m not exactly starving for representation like I was when I was younger, or like so many still are. But this little piece of super specific visibility? That was groundbreaking for me. I’m almost 27 years old, and I hadn’t had that before.
The romance at the center of the book is also incredibly sweet. It had me kicking my feet and giggling. As a bisexual with a boyfriend, I truly appreciate CeCe’s narrative about finding love with a man while still being unabashedly queer.
In short: fun little read that made me feel warm inside.
This book was a perfect mix of adorable and funny and even had a few parts that made me tear up. CeCe Ross is an influencer from Cincinnati and her girlfriends, Silvie has just broken up with her. Although originally heartbroken, CeCe ends up falling for this guy, Josh, who has no social media presence whatsoever.
CeCe deals with hiding the fame from Josh, dealing with hater and her own unsupportive father. Overall, I loved all of the major characters and I love how realistic CeCe’s mom was, which is really hard to find in most YAs. Although I found some parts of the plot unrealistic, what would I know? I’m not an influencer :(
CeCe deals with hiding the fame from Josh, dealing with hater and her own unsupportive father. Overall, I loved all of the major characters and I love how realistic CeCe’s mom was, which is really hard to find in most YAs. Although I found some parts of the plot unrealistic, what would I know? I’m not an influencer :(
I really enjoyed this book! I thought it was a great story with a great lesson!
CeCe was an enjoyable character who went through a lot but I thought that she was a realistic teenager so that was really nice! The story itself showed a lot of ups and downs and I liked that, it showed the good and bad side of social media, and I enjoyed how CeCe totally had a love-hate relationship with social media. I mean, she LOVED it, but then stuff happened and it sort of made her miserable, but she still loved it despite that. Also, her speech at the pride parade was literally amazing, I loved it SO. MUCH. I also loved how this book ended. Overall, amazing book.
CeCe was an enjoyable character who went through a lot but I thought that she was a realistic teenager so that was really nice! The story itself showed a lot of ups and downs and I liked that, it showed the good and bad side of social media, and I enjoyed how CeCe totally had a love-hate relationship with social media. I mean, she LOVED it, but then stuff happened and it sort of made her miserable, but she still loved it despite that. Also, her speech at the pride parade was literally amazing, I loved it SO. MUCH. I also loved how this book ended. Overall, amazing book.
emotional
funny
hopeful
inspiring
lighthearted
reflective
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:
Yes