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336 reviews for:
The Prom: A Novel Based on the Hit Broadway Musical
Bob Martin, Matthew Sklar, Saundra Mitchell, Chad Beguelin
3.67 AVERAGE
336 reviews for:
The Prom: A Novel Based on the Hit Broadway Musical
Bob Martin, Matthew Sklar, Saundra Mitchell, Chad Beguelin
3.67 AVERAGE
I was provided an ARC of this novel by Penguin Teen, all thoughts are honest and my own.
Firstly, I wanted to say that I adored this musical and already was invested in Emma and Alyssa's relationship. I also thought it was interesting how lines from the musical were directly put into this novel. The writing was quirky and had that senses of humor to it. There were a few lines that were very awkward to me or just frankly poor sentences. Some of the slang used also got on my nerves such as "OG". There were also many jokes that felt super flat, in my opinion.
I typically stay away from looking at other reviews of a book until I write my own. But, this book I did look over something that I noticed and wanted to clarify. They change one of the character's sexualities from lesbian to pansexual. Some people are saying that the author just did this to add more representation. So it is something I wanted to ensure I mention in my review.
I enjoyed my reading experience because it reminded me of the musical. Honestly, if you are interested in an f/f romance with lesbian representation, I would highly recommend watching the Broadway musical instead. I think without my prior knowledge of the story, this would have fallen even flatter.
This does have some important themes nonetheless of sexuality, identity, romance, bullying, etc.
Firstly, I wanted to say that I adored this musical and already was invested in Emma and Alyssa's relationship. I also thought it was interesting how lines from the musical were directly put into this novel. The writing was quirky and had that senses of humor to it. There were a few lines that were very awkward to me or just frankly poor sentences. Some of the slang used also got on my nerves such as "OG". There were also many jokes that felt super flat, in my opinion.
I typically stay away from looking at other reviews of a book until I write my own. But, this book I did look over something that I noticed and wanted to clarify. They change one of the character's sexualities from lesbian to pansexual. Some people are saying that the author just did this to add more representation. So it is something I wanted to ensure I mention in my review.
I enjoyed my reading experience because it reminded me of the musical. Honestly, if you are interested in an f/f romance with lesbian representation, I would highly recommend watching the Broadway musical instead. I think without my prior knowledge of the story, this would have fallen even flatter.
This does have some important themes nonetheless of sexuality, identity, romance, bullying, etc.
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
I'm being generous with 3 stars, which it get's for still being cute and relatable.
I was familiar with the story before reading the book, having seen the Dutch adaptation of the musical back in 2022, which I enjoyed a lot. I came across this book adaptation a little while ago and I got interested so I bought it.
Obviously book and stage are different media so they are going to be different. I knew that going into the book and I did enjoy it.
I thought that, just like the stage version, it was cute and in a lot of ways relatable. Especially now the book clarified their christian community was based around an evangelical church that <i>'officially hated gay people but in practice was "too nice" to say anything about it in public'.</i> Which sounded way too much like the church I, regrettably, grew up in. In fact the whole way Emma described the church within the first chapter hit home hard.
I did, however, enjoy the stage version more than the book. Maybe it is because I saw the stage version a week after I myself came out, something that didn't go exactly great. (Though my parents did start trying to understand and learn more after a while, their first reaction was not great. Especially not dad's, whose first reaction was "I do not want to talk about it." Coincidentally also Mrs. Greene's reaction in the stage version.) So <i>The Prom</i> was the first LGBTQ+ based thing I was going to, completely as myself. (Even if I had been out for quite some time to the friend I was going with.)
And besides the lack of emotional punch, some of the changes made did not sit right with me. I get that changes are going to happen between adaptations, but was the removal of Trent and Angie really necessary? I missed them. Especially Trent, I love that man.Angie is the whole reason Emma get's some of her confidence and Trent is the reason the other teens have a change of heart! Including Kaylee and Nick. They are important, so why would you badly merge them with Barry and Dee Dee? Also Barry and Dee Dee felt so much faker in the book than in the stage version and I didn't like that. I get that they aren't the best people, but here they felt worse. And maybe this has to do with the version I saw, but I do not remember Mrs. Greene becoming this accepting at the end of the musical. At least not the version I saw, so that's an.. interesting change that I don't like, but maybe it was this way in the broadway version, or I just remembered it wrong. And why was Unruly Heart changed to Dance With You? That felt so unnecessary as well.
I do think that that my experience did give the stage version just an extra emotional layer that I didn't feel while reading the book. Overall I did enjoy the novel for what it was. It just didn't hit me in the same way the stage version did and the more I think about it the less it does.
I was familiar with the story before reading the book, having seen the Dutch adaptation of the musical back in 2022, which I enjoyed a lot. I came across this book adaptation a little while ago and I got interested so I bought it.
Obviously book and stage are different media so they are going to be different. I knew that going into the book and I did enjoy it.
I thought that, just like the stage version, it was cute and in a lot of ways relatable. Especially now the book clarified their christian community was based around an evangelical church that <i>'officially hated gay people but in practice was "too nice" to say anything about it in public'.</i> Which sounded way too much like the church I, regrettably, grew up in. In fact the whole way Emma described the church within the first chapter hit home hard.
I did, however, enjoy the stage version more than the book. Maybe it is because I saw the stage version a week after I myself came out, something that didn't go exactly great. (Though my parents did start trying to understand and learn more after a while, their first reaction was not great. Especially not dad's, whose first reaction was "I do not want to talk about it." Coincidentally also Mrs. Greene's reaction in the stage version.) So <i>The Prom</i> was the first LGBTQ+ based thing I was going to, completely as myself. (Even if I had been out for quite some time to the friend I was going with.)
And besides the lack of emotional punch, some of the changes made did not sit right with me. I get that changes are going to happen between adaptations, but was the removal of Trent and Angie really necessary? I missed them. Especially Trent, I love that man.
I do think that that my experience did give the stage version just an extra emotional layer that I didn't feel while reading the book. Overall I did enjoy the novel for what it was. It just didn't hit me in the same way the stage version did and the more I think about it the less it does.
I saw the musical twice and loved it. The adaptation was cute, and I liked that the actresses were the narrators. I didn't like that they combined Dee Dee/Angie and Barry/Trent's characters. But I do get it. It's a YA book. Can't have too many adults.
At one point Alyssa says something about Emma's dark, hair, though, and Emma is a blonde. It's established early on she's a blonde. So that bugged me.
At one point Alyssa says something about Emma's dark, hair, though, and Emma is a blonde. It's established early on she's a blonde. So that bugged me.
I was obsessed with the show, and this wasn't a great adaptation.
emotional
funny
hopeful
inspiring
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
i love the prom musical so i was super excited to read this but it fell a lot short of my expectations. i rlly wanted to get a more in depth perspective that isn’t possible with musicals of both emma and alyssa, especially alyssa bc she is less in the musical than emma, but we got absolutely nothing new on these characters, no nuances or complexities that aren’t already in the show PLUS we rlly lack perspective from dee dee and barry, who are very important to the narrative. I barely feel their presence here. It rlly added nothing new to the story, it actually sort of detracts from it. It doesnt make any changes either except for small things that either dont make sense or dont rlly make a difference which is odd to read bc stage plays are written in a certain way and are dramatized in a way that doent typically work it novel format (its not working here). It also does this weird thing where it tries to add song lyrics into normal conversations but it rlly doesnt work at all and makes the whole scene feel awkward. Idk i wanted more and just watch the musical tbh (not the netflix movie version the actual musical!)
Okay, my Stupid Ass didn't realise that this was based on a play (and is a scheduled film release for 2020??) until I was 30 pages away from the end. And trust me when I say that that fact makes a world of difference. The Prom is a mixture of campy, serious, and gay; set in small-town Indiana, it follows along the lives of Emma and Alyssa, two gay teens, who are dealing with the homophobia of their school and the upcoming prom. At times, I couldn't quite manage the flow between silly moments and serious, and the way that the plot progressed so quickly in so few pages. But I reiterate, knowing that this is based off a musical definitely makes sense, and I do understand the writing choices made for this adaptation.
The Prom is overall just a short, entertaining read that really does portray the impact of homophobia on both out and closeted teens, and the ending is super sweet. I am excited to see what the movie will do with this narrative!
The Prom is overall just a short, entertaining read that really does portray the impact of homophobia on both out and closeted teens, and the ending is super sweet. I am excited to see what the movie will do with this narrative!
Very striking and moving story about a high school girl who wants to bring her girlfriend to the prom, only to be bullied and ostracized for being gay. The writing is very engaging, but occasionally falls into too obvious stereotypes for the supporting characters.
inspiring
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
challenging
emotional
hopeful
inspiring
reflective
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Nagyon amerikai, mit ne mondjak.
Nekem tetszett, főleg a végkimenetel de nagyon erősen sztereotípnak éreztem. Persze vannak ilyen emberek (sajnos), és a mű is egy már meglevő színdarabon alapult, szóval voltak limitek.
Fontosnak tartom az ilyen történetek elmondását és a végkimenetelt átjáró pozitivitást, viszont fiatalabban, kevesebb élettapasztalattal jobban tudtam volna értékelni.
Ez sokkal inkább a "babygay"-eknek szól mint az idősebb queer emebreknek akik már kényelmesebben ülnek a bőrükben.
Nekem tetszett, főleg a végkimenetel de nagyon erősen sztereotípnak éreztem. Persze vannak ilyen emberek (sajnos), és a mű is egy már meglevő színdarabon alapult, szóval voltak limitek.
Fontosnak tartom az ilyen történetek elmondását és a végkimenetelt átjáró pozitivitást, viszont fiatalabban, kevesebb élettapasztalattal jobban tudtam volna értékelni.
Ez sokkal inkább a "babygay"-eknek szól mint az idősebb queer emebreknek akik már kényelmesebben ülnek a bőrükben.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Homophobia, Transphobia
Moderate: Hate crime