Reviews with content warning for Religious bigotry - The Lesbiana's Guide to Catholic School

The Lesbiana’s Guide to Catholic School by Sonora Reyes is everything I wanted and more. Even though it’s YA, it made me cry with happiness, rage alongside the characters, and feel deeply seen. As a gay Mexican girl who went to Catholic school from preschool through seventh grade, this book resonated with me in ways I didn’t expect. The familial relationships felt so real, and the balance of humor and heartbreak was just perfect.

Beyond being a compelling coming-of-age story, this book tackles mental health, bullying, racism, and homophobia with honesty and care. It’s raw and real while still being hopeful and funny. I honestly think all parents should read this. It’s poignant, powerful, and gets right inside the head of a teenager navigating identity, family, and faith. Sonora Reyes absolutely nailed it.

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happilyhalliwell's review

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emotional funny inspiring sad tense medium-paced

Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes

5.0

Very well written and perfectly paced. I was immersed in the story from start to finish. This book definitely made me cry in all the ways, too. I really appreciated going on this journey with Yami, even as a lesbian adult who thankfully did not have to attend Catholic high school, but who did attend one from K-5. Definitely worth the read and all the accolades.

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delandbeforetime's review

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emotional hopeful inspiring sad 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? It's complicated

4.5

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peachesmonahan's review

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emotional inspiring 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

4.0

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raccoonfoo's review against another edition

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emotional funny hopeful informative inspiring reflective 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

Wildly funny and deeply emptional.

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clockworkstars's review against another edition

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emotional 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? N/A

5.0

When ending this one I just wanted to burst into tears, as the only words that made it to my brain were "This was everything". But I wanted to cry in a good way. This is an incredible depiction of being queer but also Latinx, of growing up in a catholic setting as a kid who's different. This was everything I have ever wanted it to be, and it came from someone who discovered this book before it even went out and then just delayed its reading.

This was so poignant and absolutely gorgeous. It makes us live so many emotions, and thus in quite intense ways. Reading this, we cry, but most of all we laugh, we smile, we live. The writing was incredible, I really like the author's style and how they immersed us into Yami's thoughts but still managed to make us feel the other characters' point of view, what they were living, feeling even. I am not the biggest fan of 1st POV but here it just works and it was wonderful to follow Yami across this whole book. I liked the writing style so much that I am most probably gonna check out the author's other books.

However if the story was undoubtedly nice and the writing incredible, my favourite thing will forever be the characters! Yamilet was hilarious and extraordinary, I love Bo with my entire heart and don't even get me started on Cesar, Yami's younger brother because I *will* yap and cry. I adore this boy, in a "must protect" type of way. And listen, I very obviously love the romance here because it was so sweet but the sibling relationship? Their relationship with their mom? Took my heart. Destroyed it before putting it back together, better than before. It was remarkable the way Sonora Reyes depicted their relationships, turning this book into a pure wonder.

So if this was not clear yet: I adored Sonora Reye's debut and totally believe that everyone should read it because it was everything. And I can only hope that I will love their next ones as much as this one, as this one is probably gonna be in my top 10 of the year (and we have only lived one month).

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geesreadingcorner's review against another edition

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emotional funny 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

4.0

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malinski42's review against another edition

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funny hopeful inspiring medium-paced

Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes

5.0

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