Reviews tagging 'Deportation'

The Lesbiana's Guide to Catholic School by Sonora Reyes

228 reviews

kthconvos's review

challenging emotional inspiring reflective 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

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Biphobia, Homophobia, Religious bigotry, Lesbophobia, and Outing

Moderate: Mental illness, Racism, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, Suicide attempt, and Deportation

filipa_maia's review

challenging emotional sad slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

2.0

I had high hopes for this book, but it disappointed me. Don't take me the wrong way: this is a very important book about a very important topic. How many teenagers (and adults) suffer in silence, trying to hyde who they are? When the rejection comes from your own house, what can you expect form everyone else?

I felt sorry for Yammi many times throughout this book: trying to be straight, feeling the catholic guilt... The part where she starts saving money waiting to be kicked out of her house broke my heart.

Now let's get to the negative points: this is the slowest of slow paced if I've ever read - we spend half the book just getting to know Yammi and then everything is rushed towards the end; the lack of communications between that family just was a deal breaker for me; her mother constantly showing love and affection towards Cesar and never Yammi; the mother being a complete homophobic and then, by the end, everything is reversed; the father (I don't need to say more); the way things turn out to be at the end... was just 'meh'...

Anyway, maybe this book was written for a different target audience, maybe I'm just not the right age. Despite all this, I think this book can help someone.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Biphobia, Bullying, Emotional abuse, Homophobia, Racism, Toxic relationship, Lesbophobia, Outing, Gaslighting, Toxic friendship, Abandonment, and Classism

Moderate: Deportation

Minor: Police brutality and Alcohol

naisdayz's review against another edition

dark emotional funny inspiring sad tense 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

5.0

The Lesbiana's Guide to Catholic School is a very important book. It touches on a variety of topics, from coming out (in an immigrant household specifically), being outed involuntarily, religious guilt and shame, as well as racism and homophobia generally.

It took me a bit to get into the book, but once I did, I devoured it. 

Since the book tries to do a lot, it obviously doesn't cut very deep on all topics - but I think it's a great base for doing further research or reading other books about related issues. Therefore, I don't necessarily view it as a weakness.

The mom's switch-up toward the end seemed a little sudden to me, as well. I wonder if she would have reacted the same if Cesar hadnt attempted suicide.

I loved Yami as a character and a narrator. I often found myself smiling or even laughing at her sarcastic remarks. I really wanted to give her a hug.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Cursing, Homophobia, Racism, Violence, Blood, and Religious bigotry

Moderate: Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, Toxic friendship, Classism, and Deportation

empirerecords1995's review

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? It's complicated

4.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Homophobia, Self harm, Suicidal thoughts, Blood, Suicide attempt, and Deportation

mamacalidad's review

emotional funny 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? It's complicated

4.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Homophobia, Racism, and Deportation

Moderate: Bullying, Cultural appropriation, Abandonment, Alcohol, and Classism

whiteflowerose's review

emotional funny hopeful lighthearted fast-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

4.75

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Biphobia, Bullying, Hate crime, Homophobia, Mental illness, Racism, Self harm, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide attempt, Outing, Cultural appropriation, Abandonment, and Deportation

spoopfish's review

hopeful lighthearted slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.75

Character development was slow, sometimes it felt like it was unrealistically so. I have religious trauma myself and had a difficult coming out to my own parents, but the extremity of the main character’s hang ups about coming out to other queer people was kind of ridiculous. That being said, the characters were (mostly) fleshed out and I cried at some point, but I think the latter was more reflective of my own personal experiences as a lesbian. The romance was very well developed, including all the realistic trappings of stupid teenagers being stupid, and the useless lesbian trope, something I can’t help but love. Story was cute and the cultural bits were lovely to see, but again, the writing was somewhat annoying in how “fellow kids” relatable it tried to be for contemporary youth. Sure, mentions of TikTok and Twitter make sense, but there’s a point where having characters dab and twerk so much feels… out of touch, to put it lightly. The story resolution was a bit too convenient with a specific character’s development. If you can get past these things, though, I’d recommend giving it a read - it’s a good look into the mind of a closeted lesbian, parentified teenager who’s honestly just trying her best while connecting to her indigenous latina roots. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Homophobia, Racism, Suicidal thoughts, Religious bigotry, Lesbophobia, Cultural appropriation, Injury/Injury detail, and Deportation

Moderate: Alcohol

Minor: Hate crime, Police brutality, and Toxic friendship

Re: story resolution,

mom’s change of heart and acknowledgment of her parentifying her daughter

seems to come far too easily and the whole scene of

all of them yelling at their dad over the phone and essentially high-fiving like they just fixed everything

was cringey.

elliereadsthings's review against another edition

emotional funny hopeful sad medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.0

 ★ ★ ★ ✩ ✩
 
"Mijo, if the Bible tells me I shouldn't love my kids, then the Bible is wrong."

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Cursing, Hate crime, Homophobia, Mental illness, Racism, Violence, Grief, Lesbophobia, and Deportation

Moderate: Biphobia, Bullying, Emotional abuse, Suicidal thoughts, Blood, Vomit, Police brutality, Outing, Cultural appropriation, Toxic friendship, Abandonment, Alcohol, and Injury/Injury detail

Minor: Forced institutionalization, Medical content, Abortion, and Classism

quietmarki's review

dark 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? It's complicated

3.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Biphobia, Bullying, Cursing, Homophobia, Racial slurs, Racism, Suicide attempt, Lesbophobia, Outing, and Deportation

sonnyygrayy's review

emotional hopeful inspiring 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? No

5.0

This book made me feel so many things. I often use rom coms as palette cleansers because they’re pretty mindless for me, but this one was so much more than a palette cleanser. 

Yamilet Flores is a character that will stick with me forever. Her journey from not wanting to accept her queerness to being out and proud of the a girlfriend is genuinely one of the most beautiful journeys I’ve seen from a YA romcom. 

While there’s moments of levity in this novel, do not be mistaken: the author handles some heavy topics in here, such as religious trauma, homophobia, suicidal ideation, deportation and class struggles. Sonora Reyes will be an author to watch out for. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Homophobia

Moderate: Racism, Suicidal thoughts, Religious bigotry, Suicide attempt, Outing, and Deportation