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3.55 AVERAGE
3.55 AVERAGE
challenging
emotional
hopeful
reflective
tense
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:
Yes
I want you to know that this book has caused me such anxiety as if I was going through this. This is all the proof I need to work on my anxiety BECAUSE THE MAIN CHARACTER WASN'T EVEN AS ANXIOUS AS I WAS READING THIS. My friend can attest to the anxious text I send to her while reading this.
That being said, this book was great. I wasn't sure what I was getting into as it is very different than a lot of my current reads but I think it was a nice breath of air of something different. The entire time I was worried about what Perla was going through. But I understood her, being a child of immigrants brings a different set of pressure. It brings a feel of trying to make them proud and owning them that not everyone understands, and Tracy Badua managed to get those feelings down so well. You understood that some of the pressure Perla feels seemed like there was no way around it.
I think my favorite thing is the clear view of Perla not being likable. She makes mistakes, she does things that make you question her. But yet you are still hoping she succsseed in her crazy scheme. I think it's clear to see where the anxiety came from. And I think that on its own makes it a great novel. But at the same time as someone who's slowly applying to graduate school, I feel that same pressure. I can see that struggle and thoughts of what if I don't get in? What then? And each time things were going well I just kept waiting for something to get bad. I will say though the side characters were iconic! I loved them. I want them to be my friends.
I loved at all the slight hints that showed that she was still struggling because there are so many aspects you would have to figure out. I do think this book is just as important for parents to read as it is for their kids. It shows that such pressure of aiming so high can do to a child. Maybe you won't fake an acceptance letter, but who knows? If anything this will help you realize that you are more than what others believe you to be.
Thank you for an ARC!
That being said, this book was great. I wasn't sure what I was getting into as it is very different than a lot of my current reads but I think it was a nice breath of air of something different. The entire time I was worried about what Perla was going through. But I understood her, being a child of immigrants brings a different set of pressure. It brings a feel of trying to make them proud and owning them that not everyone understands, and Tracy Badua managed to get those feelings down so well. You understood that some of the pressure Perla feels seemed like there was no way around it.
I think my favorite thing is the clear view of Perla not being likable. She makes mistakes, she does things that make you question her. But yet you are still hoping she succsseed in her crazy scheme. I think it's clear to see where the anxiety came from. And I think that on its own makes it a great novel. But at the same time as someone who's slowly applying to graduate school, I feel that same pressure. I can see that struggle and thoughts of what if I don't get in? What then? And each time things were going well I just kept waiting for something to get bad. I will say though the side characters were iconic! I loved them. I want them to be my friends.
I loved at all the slight hints that showed that she was still struggling because there are so many aspects you would have to figure out. I do think this book is just as important for parents to read as it is for their kids. It shows that such pressure of aiming so high can do to a child. Maybe you won't fake an acceptance letter, but who knows? If anything this will help you realize that you are more than what others believe you to be.
Thank you for an ARC!
adventurous
challenging
emotional
hopeful
reflective
tense
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:
Yes
This was a sweet read, even if it feels like a huge suspension of disbelief to stick with the protagonist for as long as she is able to forge her counterfeit student life.
That said, I really appreciated the internal struggles she dealt with as she learned to separate her own ideas and beliefs from those of her well-intentioned but overbearing parents.
That said, I really appreciated the internal struggles she dealt with as she learned to separate her own ideas and beliefs from those of her well-intentioned but overbearing parents.
emotional
lighthearted
reflective
tense
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
//rtc
——
This book gives me anxiety... but like in a good way. In a thrilling kind of way. You know?
A big thank you to Netgalley, publisher, and author Tracy Badua for the ARC!
I absolutely loved this book. It explores unrealistic sky-high expectations, academic pressures, and the suffocating demands of perfection. Discovering that the principles you've held on to for basically your whole life is wrong, realizing that the people you've looked up to and whom you spent your whole life trying to please are extremely flawed, and having to unlearn and relearn all that you've believed in. That's a lot to take in.
Our main protagonist, Perla here, well, she's a mess. She did some, oh you know, just a bit of some illegal actions here and there. She made some decisions that led her to a rather of a sticky situation, I guess you could say. "Trespassing, fraud, theft of services, etc." But, despite all, I found myself rooting for her. I found myself rooting for her to not get caught. To be able to gain success from her seven-part plan spreadsheet. Perla was such a likeable character. A complex one too. This book did a brilliant job diving deeper and deeper into her heart and unravel all the tangled knots and chains until all break loose in the ending.
I loved the cast of characters too. Especially Camilla and Jackson. The way they became this sort of anchor to Perla, helping her through and through, but didn't hold back their punches, their criticism, that they knew were necessary for her to take so she could grow and improve.
I loved loved loved that ending, but there's no way I'm talking about it here and take away from you the experience of reading it for the first time! Just trust me, if YA contemporary novels are right up your alley and loveable characters, messy storyline, and a lively cast of characters makes up your nice cup of tea, you would NOT want to miss this.
4.5/5 stars!
——
This book gives me anxiety... but like in a good way. In a thrilling kind of way. You know?
A big thank you to Netgalley, publisher, and author Tracy Badua for the ARC!
I absolutely loved this book. It explores unrealistic sky-high expectations, academic pressures, and the suffocating demands of perfection. Discovering that the principles you've held on to for basically your whole life is wrong, realizing that the people you've looked up to and whom you spent your whole life trying to please are extremely flawed, and having to unlearn and relearn all that you've believed in. That's a lot to take in.
Our main protagonist, Perla here, well, she's a mess. She did some, oh you know, just a bit of some illegal actions here and there. She made some decisions that led her to a rather of a sticky situation, I guess you could say. "Trespassing, fraud, theft of services, etc." But, despite all, I found myself rooting for her. I found myself rooting for her to not get caught. To be able to gain success from her seven-part plan spreadsheet. Perla was such a likeable character. A complex one too. This book did a brilliant job diving deeper and deeper into her heart and unravel all the tangled knots and chains until all break loose in the ending.
I loved the cast of characters too. Especially Camilla and Jackson. The way they became this sort of anchor to Perla, helping her through and through, but didn't hold back their punches, their criticism, that they knew were necessary for her to take so she could grow and improve.
I loved loved loved that ending, but there's no way I'm talking about it here and take away from you the experience of reading it for the first time! Just trust me, if YA contemporary novels are right up your alley and loveable characters, messy storyline, and a lively cast of characters makes up your nice cup of tea, you would NOT want to miss this.
4.5/5 stars!
emotional
hopeful
informative
inspiring
reflective
tense
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:
Yes
No review; HarperCollins Union has been on strike for 23 days and are asking for reviews to be held until our contract is settled.
(Disclaimer: I received this book from the publisher. This has not impacted my review which is unbiased and honest.)
The pressures for Perla from the very beginning had my heart breaking. How it feels like we're on the precipice of ruin. This toxic pressure of college and the name brands associated with it. But where This is Not a Personal Statement also excels is the way in which it also examines the generational pressures. How her immigrant parents and even generations before, have sacrificed for our dreams. For these chances and possibilities they never had before. And those unique pressures.
The pressures for Perla from the very beginning had my heart breaking. How it feels like we're on the precipice of ruin. This toxic pressure of college and the name brands associated with it. But where This is Not a Personal Statement also excels is the way in which it also examines the generational pressures. How her immigrant parents and even generations before, have sacrificed for our dreams. For these chances and possibilities they never had before. And those unique pressures.
lighthearted
reflective
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Perla is a Filipino American with a clear dream. Well, at least it's clear to her family, study hard, get into Delmont, go to med school, work alongside her month as a dermatologist. After skipping a few grades, she's ready to start her college career at the age of 16. There's just one thing, Delmont doesn't want her.
With no safety schools or other options, Perla makes a very rash decision - lying about her acceptance. Lying again. And again. And again. Forging paperwork, squatting in dorm rooms, living off of granola bars, accumulating debt and auditing classes. Her whole life is a lie. She's even lying to herself, believing that all this is really worth it, believing that Delmont is really what she wants.
This book is not a thriller. THIS IS NOT A PERSONAL STATEMENT is realistic fiction. Like most things in life, Perla's lies snowball in a slow, incremental way. And like real life, it cumulates not with some big revelation, but the slow acknowledgement of what we've known all along.
The story here isn't the actions Perla takes to pretend to be a Delmont student. The real story is the relationships she makes and breaks along the way, the self she finds, the freedom of being away from home, and the limitations of living a secret. THIS IS NOT A PERSONAL STATEMENT belongs in the hands of teen and new adult reads who want (or need) a catalyst for reflecting on the expectations put on them by society, their culture, family, and themselves.
With no safety schools or other options, Perla makes a very rash decision - lying about her acceptance. Lying again. And again. And again. Forging paperwork, squatting in dorm rooms, living off of granola bars, accumulating debt and auditing classes. Her whole life is a lie. She's even lying to herself, believing that all this is really worth it, believing that Delmont is really what she wants.
This book is not a thriller. THIS IS NOT A PERSONAL STATEMENT is realistic fiction. Like most things in life, Perla's lies snowball in a slow, incremental way. And like real life, it cumulates not with some big revelation, but the slow acknowledgement of what we've known all along.
The story here isn't the actions Perla takes to pretend to be a Delmont student. The real story is the relationships she makes and breaks along the way, the self she finds, the freedom of being away from home, and the limitations of living a secret. THIS IS NOT A PERSONAL STATEMENT belongs in the hands of teen and new adult reads who want (or need) a catalyst for reflecting on the expectations put on them by society, their culture, family, and themselves.