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4.19 AVERAGE
4.19 AVERAGE
Amazing, powerful, emotional and inspiring read. I love this story and these characters who do such a great job of bringing to life a pivotal time in American history. I also really admired the author’s note at the end that reminded us that while we have come so far we still have so much to go when it comes to equality for the LGTBQ+ community.
*Thank you to the publisher for providing me with a free copy of this book in exchange for my honest review.
*Thank you to the publisher for providing me with a free copy of this book in exchange for my honest review.
There is a severe lack in quality lesbian love stories and Music From Another Room is certainly one of the best I've read! Set in the 70s when San Francisco was fighting against Proposition 6, which would make discrimination against queer individuals legal, the story does an amazing job of mixing politics, great punk music, and emotional and sexual exploration. I thoroughly enjoyed the story and the characters were believable and not fetishized or over-exaggerated. I also love that not only were gay and lesbian themes explored, but bi-sexuality as well. As a bi-sexual myself, I appreciate the representation. There are a lot of religious obstacles and antagonists. Being from the south, I feel these are very fairly portrayed. These figures are often very hypocritical in real life and were played the same way in the book. Overall, I loved the book!
emotional
hopeful
inspiring
tense
medium-paced
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
This book takes place on the 70s but it felt like it could be right now. This was a hard and hopeful read.
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Music From Another World is a powerful and emotional read, about fighting for freedom and acceptance and the amazing feeling when you finally find a crowd where you can really fit in!
Synopsis:
It’s summer 1977 and closeted lesbian Tammy Larson can’t be herself anywhere. Not at her strict Christian high school. Not at her conservative Orange County church. And certainly not at home, where her ultra religious aunt relentlessly organizes anti gay political campaigns. Tammy’s only outlet is writing secret letters in her diary to gay civil rights activist Harvey Milk… until she has a real-life pen pal who changes everything.
Sharon Hawkins will bond with Tammy over punk music and carefully shared secrets, and soon their letters become the one place she can be honest. The rest of her life in San Francisco is full of lies. The kind she tells for others - like helping her gay brother hide the truth from their mom. But as anti gay fervor in America reaches a frightening new pitch, Sharon and Tammy must rely on their long-distance friendship to discover their deeply personal truths. What they’ll stand for…and who they’ll rise against.
My Thoughts:
From the very first moment I read the synopsis, I knew I needed to read this book. It seemed filled with 1970's spirit, the movement to be brave and honest. The discussions in this book are through the form of letters or diary entries, which I really enjoyed. This writing style helped me get through the book extremely quickly.
We get to meet the two girls, Tammy and Sharon, both very different, but both struggling with the same issues of being contained in a world where they cannot be themselves. And even though this particular book is about the LGBTQ+ community, I believe this issue also applies to anything else in life, where people feel like they cannot be who they really are. Sometimes it is religion, other times it is political opinions, it could even be different hobbies where the person feels needs to contain in themselves because of the fear they might be frowned upon or laughed at.
It is amazing to see how the world has progressed over the years, where people start feeling like they can finally express who they really are. It is not yet ideal, but I have a good feeling we are getting there. There is also the very powerful force of the internet, the advantage people didn't have before, to find people across the globe that share the same beliefs and interests.
Music From Another World really moved me, and it brought up various emotions. It talks about the struggles and the reprimands, but it also talks about real happiness and laughter. The amazing feeling when you finally find a crowd that accepts you and where you truly belong. I believe this is the first book with a plot that made me feel so happy, so sad and so angry at the same time.
Thank you to NetGalley and the HQ Team, for sending me an ARC copy of this book in exchange for an honest review!
Music From Another World is a powerful and emotional read, about fighting for freedom and acceptance and the amazing feeling when you finally find a crowd where you can really fit in!
Synopsis:
It’s summer 1977 and closeted lesbian Tammy Larson can’t be herself anywhere. Not at her strict Christian high school. Not at her conservative Orange County church. And certainly not at home, where her ultra religious aunt relentlessly organizes anti gay political campaigns. Tammy’s only outlet is writing secret letters in her diary to gay civil rights activist Harvey Milk… until she has a real-life pen pal who changes everything.
Sharon Hawkins will bond with Tammy over punk music and carefully shared secrets, and soon their letters become the one place she can be honest. The rest of her life in San Francisco is full of lies. The kind she tells for others - like helping her gay brother hide the truth from their mom. But as anti gay fervor in America reaches a frightening new pitch, Sharon and Tammy must rely on their long-distance friendship to discover their deeply personal truths. What they’ll stand for…and who they’ll rise against.
My Thoughts:
From the very first moment I read the synopsis, I knew I needed to read this book. It seemed filled with 1970's spirit, the movement to be brave and honest. The discussions in this book are through the form of letters or diary entries, which I really enjoyed. This writing style helped me get through the book extremely quickly.
We get to meet the two girls, Tammy and Sharon, both very different, but both struggling with the same issues of being contained in a world where they cannot be themselves. And even though this particular book is about the LGBTQ+ community, I believe this issue also applies to anything else in life, where people feel like they cannot be who they really are. Sometimes it is religion, other times it is political opinions, it could even be different hobbies where the person feels needs to contain in themselves because of the fear they might be frowned upon or laughed at.
It is amazing to see how the world has progressed over the years, where people start feeling like they can finally express who they really are. It is not yet ideal, but I have a good feeling we are getting there. There is also the very powerful force of the internet, the advantage people didn't have before, to find people across the globe that share the same beliefs and interests.
Music From Another World really moved me, and it brought up various emotions. It talks about the struggles and the reprimands, but it also talks about real happiness and laughter. The amazing feeling when you finally find a crowd that accepts you and where you truly belong. I believe this is the first book with a plot that made me feel so happy, so sad and so angry at the same time.
Thank you to NetGalley and the HQ Team, for sending me an ARC copy of this book in exchange for an honest review!
emotional
hopeful
inspiring
medium-paced
Strong character development:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
i really wish this book had existed when i was in high school and i'm so glad that kids will have it now
I received this ARC from the publisher on NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.
I’d like to start off this review by saying homophobia is a huge trigger warning within this book, as I’m sure you’d expect from that description but just in case, if that’s a sensitive topic for you please skip this one. If it’s not, please go pick this book up IMMEDIATELY. Okay, I guess I wouldn’t go that far, I do think I loved this book so strongly because of the emotionally personal attachment I had to the characters and their journeys. I’m sure if you’ve read more than one of my posts, or my ‘About Me’, you’ll know I identify as queer, more specifically I identify as pansexual. It definitely wasn’t easy for me to come to terms with that idea and I had quite a hard time understanding my feelings so I really searched for books that could help me figure things out. Unfortunately, I didn’t have this book when I was in high school but I’m SO happy it exists now and I truly hope more people start talking about this one.
This book is about two high-school aged girls who were born and raised in very religious households. They are assigned as each others pen-pals which is when their friendship truly begins to develop. The story is told through diary entries and letters, which I thought was a fun format. This book is full of beautiful quotes and I’m thinking I’ll have to re-read the physical copy I just purchased so I can tab it up. The budding romance between these two girls felt authentic and I totally believe the way they fell for each other because of the way they were written as friends for the majority of the novel. The friendship and support these two provided each other honestly brought me to tears. They saw past the bigotry and hate their family had towards people like them. They were true to themselves, even if it took one of the main characters awhile to get there, and I loved reading about it. I also appreciated that one of the main characters wasn’t always so accepting. She does speak about how when her brother came out to her she wanted to tell her mom and her church about it because she thought it was wrong and she was scared for him. I loved that that was touched on and I think it’s important. People’s views change and develop and as long as we realize our viewpoints were bigoted and wrong before, we can move on and become better people. But that’s a whole different tangent. The side characters in this story were well developed as well and I enjoyed the ways they continued to move the story forward. These side characters were used throughout the novel to help our main characters in one way or another and I loved reading about this found family.
I also really loved the political aspects of this story. This all takes place in the 70’s when Proposition 6 was being passed in many states, allowing schools to fire teachers for being gay. Harvey Milk is prominently featured throughout the story as most of it takes place in San Francisco and there were multiple moments where I felt empowered reading about the ways these high school girls found ways to help spread his message. This book is especially poignant right now with the current political climate and the way our administration seems to be trying to take steps back rather than steps forward. I think the author did a fantastic job of weaving the politics into the plot. It didn’t seem like it just took a back seat to the romance and at the same time, it didn’t feel like it was overdone.
This book is also about women finding their voices through music, which I absolutely love. I don’t listen to any 70’s punk but, the way the author described the experience completely put me in their shoes and made me want to listen to it. Music is a prominent topic in this story and it’s another thing that helps bond these characters. It’s also what helped them to develop from the passive, quiet women they start this story as to the angry, loud, confrontational women they become. I just think the development was so subtle until it really hits you in the face at the end and you can’t help but root for them both. It also doesn’t feel like it comes from left field because the author continues to develop this as a subplot for most of the book.
If you’ve ever questioned your identity, if you want to feel some hope in this current political climate, or if you just like reading contemporary fiction set in the past, I’d highly recommend this story. This one will stick with me for years to come and I’m so disappointed this book is flying under the radar. If you know any girls who are struggling with their sexuality, please recommend this book to them. It’s so important and I just wish I had a bigger platform so I could boost this book in the way it truly deserves. If you’re a librarian or if you can request books for your library to purchase, please request this one. It could truly change the world for a young girl who needs it.
hopeful
inspiring
fast-paced
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
WORDS CAN’T EVEN BEGIN TO DESCRIBE HOW I FEEL ABOUT THIS BOOK