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3.92 AVERAGE
3.92 AVERAGE
challenging
emotional
hopeful
inspiring
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
I stumbled upon this one while browsing my library's digital queer collection and I do highly recommend it. However this is not what it might look like. This is not some cutesy romance like the cover might suggest. It is a book that deals very heavily with trans- and homophobia especially within religious surroundings. If you decide to read it, please take care of yourself.
emotional
funny
hopeful
inspiring
reflective
sad
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
sobbing kicking and screaming
"I'm finally out of the closet, so why can't I stop looking at the new boy who likes boys?"
I recommended this graphic novel on my bookstagram (quirkilybookish) for Pride Month 2019 for its queer representations.
~~~
Go and read this gorgeous graphic novel as soon as you can!
I bought it not planning on reading it for a while, flicked through it, ended up skim reading the entire thing in an afternoon because it hooked me right away, and then I had to go back and read it all in more depth! It's just so good!
It follows Amanda, a teenage girl in a conservative town who attends a Christian school, as she explores her sexuality and learns about her transgender grandfather.
It’s everything I need in a book; well-developed characters, honest storytelling, amazing dialogue, interesting plot, and perhaps most importantly: DIVERSITY!! So. Many. Queer. Characters. Also lots of racially diverse character designs, which brings me to my other favourite thing...
On top of everything else, it’s beautifully illustrated too! The art style is gorgeous, and the facial expressions, body language, and layouts add so much more depth to the story. It’s all so well put together.
It fits into both the “coming of age” and “coming out” categories, but it subverts so many stereotypical tropes and felt a lot more honest than other similar stories.
It deals with some hard topics and experiences, and for this reason, contains a fair amount of homophobia and transphobia. A lot of this comes from ignorance and most of it is called out by side characters or the main character. I personally found these instances realistic and was not offended or upset by any of them. If it something that might trigger you, I would definitely recommend looking further into it before reading.
It made me cry, which books don’t generally do, but rather than being at a sad tragic ending it was because I felt so perfectly represented!
I recommended this graphic novel on my bookstagram (quirkilybookish) for Pride Month 2019 for its queer representations.
~~~
Go and read this gorgeous graphic novel as soon as you can!
I bought it not planning on reading it for a while, flicked through it, ended up skim reading the entire thing in an afternoon because it hooked me right away, and then I had to go back and read it all in more depth! It's just so good!
It follows Amanda, a teenage girl in a conservative town who attends a Christian school, as she explores her sexuality and learns about her transgender grandfather.
It’s everything I need in a book; well-developed characters, honest storytelling, amazing dialogue, interesting plot, and perhaps most importantly: DIVERSITY!! So. Many. Queer. Characters. Also lots of racially diverse character designs, which brings me to my other favourite thing...
On top of everything else, it’s beautifully illustrated too! The art style is gorgeous, and the facial expressions, body language, and layouts add so much more depth to the story. It’s all so well put together.
It fits into both the “coming of age” and “coming out” categories, but it subverts so many stereotypical tropes and felt a lot more honest than other similar stories.
It deals with some hard topics and experiences, and for this reason, contains a fair amount of homophobia and transphobia. A lot of this comes from ignorance and most of it is called out by side characters or the main character. I personally found these instances realistic and was not offended or upset by any of them. If it something that might trigger you, I would definitely recommend looking further into it before reading.
It made me cry, which books don’t generally do, but rather than being at a sad tragic ending it was because I felt so perfectly represented!
This is not a light graphic novel to read. The course of the story deals with characters exploring their relationships around sex and gender, with the added tension of the 2004 setting, both just yesterday and so long ago regarding discourse in these areas. I appreciate the nuance and room to breathe and thought this was a thoughtful, compelling story. I think the story could have been told a little more succinctly but perhaps this leaves space for a sequel with another character (pretty please?).
Ok, I’m going to be completely honest, there’s a lot going on in this book. Like a lot.
With that out of the way, I really did enjoy this book. I’ve read it twice, and I finished it in one sitting both times. The art style is awesome, and my favorite part about the book is how it feels like Mads (the central protagonist), as well as the other characters, feel realistic. As a teenager myself, I often struggle to read YA books. I’m constantly thinking to myself “who really talks like this?” or “is this what teens are supposed to act like?” But these characters felt real, so that’s great.
The plot of Kiss Number 8 is pretty elaborate and complex. It goes between Mads’s struggle with her sexuality, to a secret family mystery, to themes about religion and friendship. I wasn’t really sure how I felt about Mads’s supposed crush on her best friend, Cat. It sort of hit me out of nowhere. I wish that there had been more focus on Mads’s internal struggle with her sexuality, or the family mystery instead. Both plot lines felt like there were constantly at odds trying to grab my attention.
Overall, this is a fun read. It’s cute, fast - paced (especially the last third of the book), and though the plot lines are complex, I still enjoyed it.
With that out of the way, I really did enjoy this book. I’ve read it twice, and I finished it in one sitting both times. The art style is awesome, and my favorite part about the book is how it feels like Mads (the central protagonist), as well as the other characters, feel realistic. As a teenager myself, I often struggle to read YA books. I’m constantly thinking to myself “who really talks like this?” or “is this what teens are supposed to act like?” But these characters felt real, so that’s great.
The plot of Kiss Number 8 is pretty elaborate and complex. It goes between Mads’s struggle with her sexuality, to a secret family mystery, to themes about religion and friendship. I wasn’t really sure how I felt about Mads’s supposed crush on her best friend, Cat. It sort of hit me out of nowhere. I wish that there had been more focus on Mads’s internal struggle with her sexuality, or the family mystery instead. Both plot lines felt like there were constantly at odds trying to grab my attention.
Overall, this is a fun read. It’s cute, fast - paced (especially the last third of the book), and though the plot lines are complex, I still enjoyed it.
Amanda’s life is idyllic -- she’s best friends with her dad, she feels like she belongs in her religious community, and she’s tight with her best friend Cat -- but things start to unravel when she overhears her dad on the phone with a mysterious woman named Dina. She then receives a letter, an old photograph of a man she doesn’t know, and sizable check in the mail from this same person. Amanda decides to get to the bottom of this mystery but finds herself in over her head with family secrets and confronting her own identity.
The cover of Venable’s Kiss Number 8 led me to believe that I was going to be diving into a kissy, maybe kind of mysterious, queer read. I was NOT prepared to be thrown into an engaging family drama that would make me cry (more than once). I went into this work with almost no knowledge of the plot, so I really don’t want to give much away. However, please be warned that this is not a light read and could potentially be very triggering for a lot of people.
All that being said, I really enjoyed this! The drama might be a bit much for some readers, but I found it to be very engaging and compelling. Amanda felt very authentically teen and was relatably flawed. Also, while I myself am not religious, I appreciated how the religious community in this work was portrayed (far from perfect, but not villainized either).
I loved Crenshaw’s clear B&W art. However, as pointed out in this review, I found it a bit odd how stylistically different Cat looked from almost everyone else. It didn’t detract or distract for me, but it was noticeable.
Overall, I would highly recommend. What a great way to kick off my reading year. :)
The cover of Venable’s Kiss Number 8 led me to believe that I was going to be diving into a kissy, maybe kind of mysterious, queer read. I was NOT prepared to be thrown into an engaging family drama that would make me cry (more than once). I went into this work with almost no knowledge of the plot, so I really don’t want to give much away. However, please be warned that this is not a light read and could potentially be very triggering for a lot of people.
All that being said, I really enjoyed this! The drama might be a bit much for some readers, but I found it to be very engaging and compelling. Amanda felt very authentically teen and was relatably flawed. Also, while I myself am not religious, I appreciated how the religious community in this work was portrayed (far from perfect, but not villainized either).
I loved Crenshaw’s clear B&W art. However, as pointed out in this review, I found it a bit odd how stylistically different Cat looked from almost everyone else. It didn’t detract or distract for me, but it was noticeable.
Overall, I would highly recommend. What a great way to kick off my reading year. :)
emotional
lighthearted
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
This. This is a beautiful book. The characters are so complicated. There are queer characters who are also catholic, and grappling with that. There are homophobic and transphobic older generations having tension with the younger generation. There are wives keeping secrets to protect their homo/transphobic male partners. This is no ordinary coming of age graphic novel. It was painful. Consistently, through the whole book, painful. But beautiful too- the power of the nuclear family and the power of finding your chosen family are strong here. I can’t speak to the trans rep in this book, but I felt very well represented as a bisexual woman. This one hit close to home, in a wonderful way.