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lilly_anne's review against another edition
emotional
funny
hopeful
reflective
medium-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
Content Warnings
Graphic: Toxic relationship and Outing
Moderate: Vomit, Transphobia, Panic attacks/disorders, and Alcohol
Minor: Suicide attempt
xhndel's review
hopeful
inspiring
lighthearted
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- 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
5.0
Absolutely loved this book so much. The representation of diversity in this book is just phenomenal. Highly recommend!
Content Warnings
Moderate: Vomit and Emotional abuse
Minor: Transphobia, Gaslighting, and Suicide attempt
nightshaderoots's review
emotional
funny
hopeful
inspiring
lighthearted
reflective
relaxing
sad
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
The book was cute and has wonderful representation for poc, trans people nonbinary people, ace people, and so much other people looking for love. This book had really good characters but by the end of the book I still wasn't a fan of the main character.
It didn't really seem like Noah made much character development by the end of the book and if he did it didn't seem finished or well rounded.
In addition to that I will say I wished I had an older brother like Brian around as well as Becca and Devin. They really were stars in the book and made it as great as it was.
There is also a character who goes through various pronouns and then settles with the neopronouns e/em/ey/eir.
In addition to that I will say I wished I had an older brother like Brian around as well as Becca and Devin. They really were stars in the book and made it as great as it was.
There is also a character who goes through various pronouns and then settles with the neopronouns e/em/ey/eir.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Abandonment, Mental illness, Panic attacks/disorders, Toxic relationship, Alcohol, and Vomit
Moderate: Suicide attempt, Gaslighting, and Sexual content
Minor: Homophobia, Bullying, Dysphoria, and Transphobia
seawarrior's review
emotional
funny
lighthearted
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
1.0
I really did try to like this book, yet Noah has to be the most unlikeable and entitled teenage protagonist I've encountered in young adult literature so far, and his character development was far too weak to make up for how selfishly he behaved throughout the story.
First of all, I take serious issue with Noah feeling that his serial lying on the Meet Cute Diary is the only thing standing in the way of some trans teenagers killing themselves. I had assumed that we would learn that Noah got in over his head with the Diary to explain why he felt it was appropriate to lie to so many people for attention, yet instead he seems to feel no guilt for being dishonest for popularity and justifies his decision to waste his parents' money to seek out more strangers to romanticize fake relationships with because "trans kids may lose hope and kill themselves if I don't continue placating them with an endless series of lies". His eventual apology to his followers was not nearly enough to make up for his self-absorbed behavior in my opinion. If he had actually wanted to help other trans people he would have asked for them to submit their own stories from the beginning instead of presenting them with poorly written fantasies to serve his own ego and further delude himself that his dishonesty was needed so desperately that the situation was life or death.
To make matters worse, Noah likens his role as the writer of this blog to a situation where a transgender girl he did not know in high school inspired him to discover he was trans after he heard that she was bullied so severely that she attempted suicide. Perhaps predictably,this same transgender girl, who now identifies as nonbinary and uses e / em pronouns, becomes Noah's endgame love interest. Yet e's history as a survivor of a suicide attempt and vicious harassment is only discussed briefly in its application to Noah's life, which I find deplorable. Suicidal trans teenagers deserve more than to be "inspiration" or an excuse for why an egotistical character feels no remorse for doing something that is ultimately self-serving. I also find it interesting how Noah's "trolls" are presented as anonymous haters with un-explored motivations when they were right about his blog to begin with and have a reason to be angry with him. Why would anyone thinking critically about this scenario not agree that Noah was undeserving of the endless praise being sent his way?
I don't even want to bother fully reviewing other elements of the book, because I don't see the point. Why create a character this selfish and manipulative to begin with if you don't intend to confront his actions? Noah's behavior just put me in a foul mood whenever I was reading about him, and I only stuck around because I was hoping he would grow up. Unfortunately these hopes were not met. It is not uncommon for young adult literature to contain self-absorbed protagonists, yet these characters generally learn that their attitudes and behaviors are unacceptable to continue if they want to mature as people and develop relationships that are lasting and not toxic. This did not happen with Noah.
Noah never had to seriously reevaluate why he felt so secure being manipulative and egotistical because every character exists in this book to serve Noah. Their identities revolve around Noah. Even when they were said to be upset with Noah they forgave his half-hearted apologies because they are useless to the narrative when not there to bolster Noah's self esteem. This applies to every character in the book, even Noah's parents. Worst of all for a romance book, the end romance did not feel genuine because it was manufactured to be perfect for Noah, a person who remained too immature and self-serving to healthily participate in any romantic relationship. This book is a shadow of what it could have been if the author had been willing to put Noah into scenarios where forgiveness was not so easily given, and worked to make the supporting characters less one-dimensional. I believe that teenage readers are intelligent enough that they should not be asked to relate to a protagonist this shallow. I am angry with this book now and I would have been angry with it when I was sixteen. It is insulting to the very people it intends to uplift.
I love to see trans authors flourishing, so despite my frustrations with this book I will keep an open mind for Lee's next title. However, I would not recommend Meet Cute Diary to anyone but the most desperate seekers of trans representation. Trans identity is not the forefront of this book, which is not an inherent flaw, yet the book's focus is reserved for deceit, egomaniacal behavior, and poorly developed romances. I wish I had never read it to begin with. I feel nothing but manipulated and diminished by the story it held.
First of all, I take serious issue with Noah feeling that his serial lying on the Meet Cute Diary is the only thing standing in the way of some trans teenagers killing themselves. I had assumed that we would learn that Noah got in over his head with the Diary to explain why he felt it was appropriate to lie to so many people for attention, yet instead he seems to feel no guilt for being dishonest for popularity and justifies his decision to waste his parents' money to seek out more strangers to romanticize fake relationships with because "trans kids may lose hope and kill themselves if I don't continue placating them with an endless series of lies". His eventual apology to his followers was not nearly enough to make up for his self-absorbed behavior in my opinion. If he had actually wanted to help other trans people he would have asked for them to submit their own stories from the beginning instead of presenting them with poorly written fantasies to serve his own ego and further delude himself that his dishonesty was needed so desperately that the situation was life or death.
To make matters worse, Noah likens his role as the writer of this blog to a situation where a transgender girl he did not know in high school inspired him to discover he was trans after he heard that she was bullied so severely that she attempted suicide. Perhaps predictably,
I don't even want to bother fully reviewing other elements of the book, because I don't see the point. Why create a character this selfish and manipulative to begin with if you don't intend to confront his actions? Noah's behavior just put me in a foul mood whenever I was reading about him, and I only stuck around because I was hoping he would grow up. Unfortunately these hopes were not met. It is not uncommon for young adult literature to contain self-absorbed protagonists, yet these characters generally learn that their attitudes and behaviors are unacceptable to continue if they want to mature as people and develop relationships that are lasting and not toxic. This did not happen with Noah.
Noah never had to seriously reevaluate why he felt so secure being manipulative and egotistical because every character exists in this book to serve Noah. Their identities revolve around Noah. Even when they were said to be upset with Noah they forgave his half-hearted apologies because they are useless to the narrative when not there to bolster Noah's self esteem. This applies to every character in the book, even Noah's parents. Worst of all for a romance book, the end romance did not feel genuine because it was manufactured to be perfect for Noah, a person who remained too immature and self-serving to healthily participate in any romantic relationship. This book is a shadow of what it could have been if the author had been willing to put Noah into scenarios where forgiveness was not so easily given, and worked to make the supporting characters less one-dimensional. I believe that teenage readers are intelligent enough that they should not be asked to relate to a protagonist this shallow. I am angry with this book now and I would have been angry with it when I was sixteen. It is insulting to the very people it intends to uplift.
I love to see trans authors flourishing, so despite my frustrations with this book I will keep an open mind for Lee's next title. However, I would not recommend Meet Cute Diary to anyone but the most desperate seekers of trans representation. Trans identity is not the forefront of this book, which is not an inherent flaw, yet the book's focus is reserved for deceit, egomaniacal behavior, and poorly developed romances. I wish I had never read it to begin with. I feel nothing but manipulated and diminished by the story it held.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Panic attacks/disorders, Suicide attempt, Toxic relationship, Transphobia, and Vomit
baponthecob's review against another edition
hopeful
reflective
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? Yes
4.0
While i love the endgame couple's dynamic, i just can never understand fast romances like this. do allos really fall in love that fast? they had chemistry and friendship and everything i love in a couple, but i wish there was more pining.
however, i know that this is what a lot of people dream of for a relationship. the overall themes of friendship and staying true to yourself really resonated with me and carried me away with the story. usually, too-fast romance takes me out of things, but i was able to forget about that and just enjoy that this is Noah's life right now and he's figuring things out and things will be messy. it was a story about hope. i dont think it needed to be realistic, but it was anyway
however, i know that this is what a lot of people dream of for a relationship. the overall themes of friendship and staying true to yourself really resonated with me and carried me away with the story. usually, too-fast romance takes me out of things, but i was able to forget about that and just enjoy that this is Noah's life right now and he's figuring things out and things will be messy. it was a story about hope. i dont think it needed to be realistic, but it was anyway
Content Warnings
Moderate: Transphobia, Toxic relationship, Mental illness, Panic attacks/disorders, and Suicide attempt
kaylamoran's review against another edition
funny
hopeful
lighthearted
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
Okay, so I know people are getting annoyed with adult reviewers saying this, but I have to. Devin and Brian were the only characters in the book that were even a little bit likeable. This made me have a really hard time caring about it.
I picked up this book because I needed something cute and fluffy and this was that.
I'm a bit confused by the genre though. It felt very juvenile (which is fine, not a bad thing) but then there was a lot of the f word so I'm confused as to who the audience was supposed to be.
I really wanted to love this, I just didn't.
I picked up this book because I needed something cute and fluffy and this was that.
I'm a bit confused by the genre though. It felt very juvenile (which is fine, not a bad thing) but then there was a lot of the f word so I'm confused as to who the audience was supposed to be.
I really wanted to love this, I just didn't.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Suicide attempt, Mental illness, Suicidal thoughts, Transphobia, Gaslighting, Panic attacks/disorders, and Toxic relationship
Minor: Cursing, Dysphoria, Vomit, Alcohol, and Bullying
nerdysread's review
funny
lighthearted
relaxing
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
4.0
At first I was like « Gosh I hate Noah » then I realised that on some point he reminds me of my brother so… also he has such a good chemistry with Devin, and I was rooting for them as soon as Devin vomited on him. Also I loved Devin, e’s such a good person and gosh I felt em at some point
Also, great character development for Noah, and we stan
Also, great character development for Noah, and we stan
Content Warnings
Graphic: Transphobia, Emotional abuse, Panic attacks/disorders, and Toxic relationship
Moderate: Vomit and Alcohol
Minor: Drug use and Suicide attempt
matheo's review
emotional
hopeful
lighthearted
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.75
Content Warnings
Graphic: Emotional abuse, Gaslighting, Toxic relationship, Transphobia, and Vomit
Moderate: Toxic friendship, Panic attacks/disorders, Adult/minor relationship, Racism, and Dysphoria
Minor: Suicide attempt, Drug use, Bullying, and Alcohol
wintah's review
emotional
lighthearted
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? N/A
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.5
made a 180° turn, this book had me screaming, crying, laughing, smiling and honestly i like it for that. also main characters don't always have to be perfect or 100% likable, they are humans too you know. and the most important thing bloody neopronoun representation (i'm not gonna lie that played a massive part in the rating)
Content Warnings
Minor: Suicide attempt and Transphobia
nickoliver's review
lighthearted
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
I was a bit disappointed, tbh. I appreciated being able to read a book about a trans character without also having to deal with severe transphobia (there was transphobia in this, too, but it didn't feel as heavy as in some other books I'd read), but the main character Noah made a lot of my reading hard. It was refreshing to have a character who was quite self-confident about the way they looked, but he was also very entitled and self-absorbed (though the latter was challenged later in the book). Plus, his views on romance were confusing, and he moved way too quickly.
Moreover, the whole thing about the Diary made little sense to me. First of all, the way the meet cutes were written was very juvenile, sometimes over the top cheesy, and it always amazed me that people even believed him that they happened? They were also all very clearly written by the same person, tbh. Honestly, I didn't understand why he even did that Diary in the first place. Like, I get wanting trans people to have hope that there was love waiting for them too, but by publishing stories he invented, wasn't he making it seem like it was actually hopeless?
Secondly, I didn't quite understand how pretending to be in love with a boy would prove that he didn't write all the meet cutes himself? Just because he himself had (supposedly) a happy ending didn't mean that everything that was ever published on his blog couldn't be complete hogwash, and it was weird to me how everyone just believed him about himself and Drew, even though it couldn't have been more obviously fake (the timing, the way he wrote about it, etc.). I also found all the Tumblr asks Noah got very annoying, because they usually all said more or less the same thing (usually, they asked him to post more about himself and Drew and mentioned that he didn't answer asks a lot anymore) and just made it seem like Noah didn't care at all about his blog, which obviously portrayed all his desperate tries to save it in a ridiculous light. I felt like the whole story line around the Diary wasn't developed enough; there was too much left in the dark.
What I did like about the book was Devin, specifically the way eir struggle with eir gender was explored. E changed eir pronouns several times, and I kinda liked that? It did happen very fast - I would've preferred it a bit more spaced out, tbh -, but I loved the way Devin and Noah talked about it, and how supportive Noah was. I haven't read many books yet with characters who use neopronouns, so this was nice. Devin was generally a great character, though e also kind of didn't feel as fleshed out as I wanted em to be? It was obvious e were going to be Noah's endgame, but I always felt like there was something missing there. The same goes for Becca. Both she and Devin were present in the story but often seemed to disappear behind Noah a little.
It took me a while to finish this - longer than I expected -, but that had less to do with the book and more to do with my current obsession of Our Flag Means Death that made me want to read more about queer middle-aged people in love and less about teenagers. So it's possible the reason I couldn't get quite as immersed in this as I'd wanted was because of that. Though I would've had the issues mentioned above nonetheless.
Moreover, the whole thing about the Diary made little sense to me. First of all, the way the meet cutes were written was very juvenile, sometimes over the top cheesy, and it always amazed me that people even believed him that they happened? They were also all very clearly written by the same person, tbh. Honestly, I didn't understand why he even did that Diary in the first place. Like, I get wanting trans people to have hope that there was love waiting for them too, but by publishing stories he invented, wasn't he making it seem like it was actually hopeless?
Secondly, I didn't quite understand how pretending to be in love with a boy would prove that he didn't write all the meet cutes himself? Just because he himself had (supposedly) a happy ending didn't mean that everything that was ever published on his blog couldn't be complete hogwash, and it was weird to me how everyone just believed him about himself and Drew, even though it couldn't have been more obviously fake (the timing, the way he wrote about it, etc.). I also found all the Tumblr asks Noah got very annoying, because they usually all said more or less the same thing (usually, they asked him to post more about himself and Drew and mentioned that he didn't answer asks a lot anymore) and just made it seem like Noah didn't care at all about his blog, which obviously portrayed all his desperate tries to save it in a ridiculous light. I felt like the whole story line around the Diary wasn't developed enough; there was too much left in the dark.
What I did like about the book was Devin, specifically the way eir struggle with eir gender was explored. E changed eir pronouns several times, and I kinda liked that? It did happen very fast - I would've preferred it a bit more spaced out, tbh -, but I loved the way Devin and Noah talked about it, and how supportive Noah was. I haven't read many books yet with characters who use neopronouns, so this was nice. Devin was generally a great character, though e also kind of didn't feel as fleshed out as I wanted em to be? It was obvious e were going to be Noah's endgame, but I always felt like there was something missing there. The same goes for Becca. Both she and Devin were present in the story but often seemed to disappear behind Noah a little.
It took me a while to finish this - longer than I expected -, but that had less to do with the book and more to do with my current obsession of Our Flag Means Death that made me want to read more about queer middle-aged people in love and less about teenagers. So it's possible the reason I couldn't get quite as immersed in this as I'd wanted was because of that. Though I would've had the issues mentioned above nonetheless.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Panic attacks/disorders
Moderate: Transphobia, Vomit, and Alcohol
Minor: Suicide attempt and Bullying