Reviews

Body Grammar by Jules Ohman is a queer coming-of-age story set against the glamorous backdrop of the fashion industry. It’s the summer after high school and Lou is in flux. She is set to start at U of O in the fall but is unsure of what she wants to do with her life. She has feelings for her friend Ivy that she isn’t exactly sure how to process and will do pretty much anything to avoid having to deal with them.
With her tall, lanky body and handsome androgynous features, Lou has been batting away modeling scouts her whole life. But after witnessing a tragic accident, she decides to give modeling a real try. She dives (pun intended, if you’ve already read this one) into the world of high-fashion modeling, which takes her to NYC and around the world, but struggles to keep hold of herself in the face of fame and excess.
This was a perfect summer weekend beach read. I don’t think it was marketed as YA, but definitely had a YA feel in its subject and pacing. I listened to a podcast with the author, who said they had written an entirely different novel about Lou and her family but ended up scratching that and writing this one focusing solely Lou instead. It was fun to read her thoughts about the fashion industry and editorial shoots, which I used to be a part of when I was that age (I even went to fashion school lol). I also loved the ‘figuring it out’ aspect of coming out, and how Lou was able to meet and be embraced by so many queer characters in the fashion world, which the author said reflected her own time modeling as a teenager. Overall, a fantastic sapphic coming-of-age story that also deals with self-image and trauma in an authentic and beautiful way.

sinanadolny's review

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4.0

i lowk really enjoyed this! at first it just seemed too YA for me but it was honestly just a satisfying read, especially once the modeling starts to pick up. one issue i had was i guess how maybe unrealistic her immense and immediate success was? but it was nice to read! the other main issue was sort of the ending, idk i had something i wanted her to do and i don’t think she did it.