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3.94 AVERAGE
3.94 AVERAGE
dark
funny
hopeful
mysterious
sad
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
I enjoyed the book, even though the first half of the story was really slow. Once it picked up, I could not put it down. It's a little bit of a love story, a little bit of a mystery and lot of teenage angst.
Merged review:
I enjoyed the book, even though the first half of the story was really slow. Once it picked up, I could not put it down. It's a little bit of a love story, a little bit of a mystery and lot of teenage angst.
Merged review:
I enjoyed the book, even though the first half of the story was really slow. Once it picked up, I could not put it down. It's a little bit of a love story, a little bit of a mystery and lot of teenage angst.
I didn’t love this book. I kept waiting for it to get better and even though the plot developed more, it never felt like it got to a place I was waiting for. It felt more like someone’s journal entries or chisme which is fun to read but not the most interesting???
emotional
reflective
sad
slow-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
challenging
emotional
hopeful
reflective
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Content Warnings
Graphic: Child abuse, Homophobia, Rape, Suicide, Suicide attempt
I loved this book.
Where do I even start?
First, the main character - Julia - is so raw and real. Angry, depressed, cynical, well-read, and sarcastic - quite honestly, she reminded me of myself when I was a teenager, hiding behind books and sarcasm as a way to cope. I don't quite understand or agree with readers who say Julia is just a complainer. She's not. There's a lot more to her than that.
I love that the book has no easy solutions to anything - to Julia's sister Olga's complicated past, to Julia's relationship with her parents and with Connor, the wealthy white boy that she gets into a relationship with. I love how real her friendship with Lorena and Juanga feel.
Finally, I love the portrayal of depression and anxiety. Julia gets better, in that she takes medication and goes to therapy and learns coping strategies, but she's not magically fixed either. Her depression feels real, as does her healing.
And finally, I love that at the end,
Such a great book.
Where do I even start?
First, the main character - Julia - is so raw and real. Angry, depressed, cynical, well-read, and sarcastic - quite honestly, she reminded me of myself when I was a teenager, hiding behind books and sarcasm as a way to cope. I don't quite understand or agree with readers who say Julia is just a complainer. She's not. There's a lot more to her than that.
I love that the book has no easy solutions to anything - to Julia's sister Olga's complicated past, to Julia's relationship with her parents and with Connor, the wealthy white boy that she gets into a relationship with. I love how real her friendship with Lorena and Juanga feel.
Finally, I love the portrayal of depression and anxiety. Julia gets better, in that she takes medication and goes to therapy and learns coping strategies, but she's not magically fixed either. Her depression feels real, as does her healing.
And finally, I love that at the end,
Spoiler
she makes the choice to go to NYU. She's offered two scholarships - one to a school in Chicago and one to NYU. And even though her relationship with her parents has improved and they're all starting to understand each other a little better, in the end, she makes the choice that allows her to live her dream. I was afraid that there would be a neat, tidy ending, where Julia decides to stay in Chicago and rework her dream so that she never leaves home. I'm glad that she decided to try to live her dream instead.Such a great book.
challenging
emotional
reflective
sad
medium-paced
reflective
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
High school aged appropriate. Highly recommend to read. Solid DEI text. Suicide trigger.
I enjoyed that this book touched on subjects on what is like to be a Mexican American such as expectations due to patriarchy, daughter of immigrants, and as a teenage girl in Chicago. Although, I found the character Julia to be a little obnoxious at times due to her age and perhaps her strong personality. It could be due to her mental health and problems with relationships with others. It was good to read about her mental health but I feel that the author could have talked about that a lot more and given more information to help readers with similar situation. I gave a 4 star review because of it and also the depiction of Mexico in the books did not sit right with me either. I understand that many small towns in Mexico could be dangerous but I feel that it could've been depicted in different ways, rather than the most stereotypical ways. Overall, it was an easy read and was good to read about that is very different from most YA books. I was caught off guard with the ending, hoping that other readers find their path to heal from similar familial troubles due to being children of immigrants.