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elysareadsitall's review against another edition
3.0
"Felix Ever After" left me conflicted. I thought I was cruising towards 5 stars in the beginning, but the more Felix and his relationships developed, the more uncomfortable I felt. Felix is a good character for teens to read because he shows that process of being confused and dealing with a supportive parent who makes mistakes. Unfortunately, Felix doesn't recognize when he does something wrong; he only apologizes if it will benefit him.
That brings me to interpersonal relationships. 1. He lets his anger at Marisol stew and then drops their business in a group setting and runs away. Does he owe her an apology? NO. Is it crappy to blow up your friend group and bail? Yes. 2. Declan. 3. Ezra. All that said. They are teenagers, and that's where you should make your romantic mistakes. However, I don't think we see enough growth in this area.
I loved the writing. It was beautiful and smooth. I may even reread this book to see if my feelings get less confused, and I'd read more from this author. It's a good book and one I would recommend with caveats.
Spoiler
I think Felix was far too hard on his dad. This is a parent who's trying and adjusting and being supportive how he knows. Their talk about sex is what annoys me most. His dad's concern about birth control is valid. Yes, Felix is a boy, but he can still give birth! His dad's mention of BC does not signify he only thinks of Felix as his little girl. I think every parent ever worries about teen pregnancy.That brings me to interpersonal relationships. 1. He lets his anger at Marisol stew and then drops their business in a group setting and runs away. Does he owe her an apology? NO. Is it crappy to blow up your friend group and bail? Yes. 2. Declan.
Spoiler
You can't catfish people, learn about their heartbreak from their ex, make out with them, and then run away to be with their ex. One of these things is bad, but all of them together just sucks.Spoiler
They're set up as this beautiful high school sweetheart romance, but Ezra being in love with Felix, spending the night with him, and being so physically affectionate with him without hinting at his feelings is weird. They were basically boyfriends, and Ezra made himself a necessary part of Felix's life AND THEN he shared his feelings. That feels manipulative to me.I loved the writing. It was beautiful and smooth. I may even reread this book to see if my feelings get less confused, and I'd read more from this author. It's a good book and one I would recommend with caveats.
ceceewing_'s review against another edition
5.0
So overwhelmed with love for this cover with a queer poc main character with top surgery scars. It's so visible and incredible I can't handle it.
Update 6/20/20:
Wow. Wow wow wow. There is such a scope of emotion here that it all overwhelms me. This is the messy queer book that I have needed desperately. It is sad and it is fierce and it is funny and it is hopeful and it is so full of love and full of forgiveness and fucking up and learning from it all. It’s a masterpiece.
Update 6/20/20:
Wow. Wow wow wow. There is such a scope of emotion here that it all overwhelms me. This is the messy queer book that I have needed desperately. It is sad and it is fierce and it is funny and it is hopeful and it is so full of love and full of forgiveness and fucking up and learning from it all. It’s a masterpiece.
hallncandenza's review against another edition
5.0
Roman young adult vraiment très très bien écrit de bout en bout. Ca fait du bien de voir un·e auteurice concerné·e parler des sujets importants : être trans, non binaire, racisé·e mais aussi du rapport à l'art, à l'autre, à l'adolescence.
kmkasiner's review against another edition
5.0
This review has SPOILERS!
Wow, this was such an emotional ride! Felix Love has a lot going on. Friend drama, breakup drama, and family drama. But all he wants is to know what it's like to fall in love for the first time. The book takes place over one summer, during an intensive arts class. On the first day of class, someone puts up photos of Felix before he transitioned, including his deadname. The plot centers on Felix trying to figure out who did that, while navigating his friendships and relationships with his dad.
Felix has such a strong narrative voice and his personality came through on the page. Ironically, he talks so much about being unlovable but I loved him as a character! There were definitely some moments when I wanted to yell at him because he's a 17 year old really acting like a teenager, but he felt very genuine to me.
I almost docked this a star because the Declan storyline/red herring threw me for a loop. I started out thinking this was a friends to lovers romance, but then Felix started talking with his former friend/enemy Declan in a Love Simon-esque anonymous fashion. I'm dumb, so I thought they were going to end up together, and then I was confused when Felix decided it wouldn't work. Then he has a realization that yes, he WAS in love with Ezra all along! It was ultimately explained well though. Marisol and Declan both served a role to make Felix recognize his true feelings.
I did also like that Felix never reconciles with his mother. Sometimes abusive parents don't deserve forgivness, and that isn't often portrayed in fiction.
One of the final scenes, where Felix attends the pride parade and experiences so much joy, made me cry. It was so beautiful! And the Big Gestureness of it all! Felix deals with many low moments throughout the book but the ending is ultimately very happy, which made me smile. I echo the author's words in the afterword that I hope people can pick up this book and see something of themselves in it.
Wow, this was such an emotional ride! Felix Love has a lot going on. Friend drama, breakup drama, and family drama. But all he wants is to know what it's like to fall in love for the first time. The book takes place over one summer, during an intensive arts class. On the first day of class, someone puts up photos of Felix before he transitioned, including his deadname. The plot centers on Felix trying to figure out who did that, while navigating his friendships and relationships with his dad.
Felix has such a strong narrative voice and his personality came through on the page. Ironically, he talks so much about being unlovable but I loved him as a character! There were definitely some moments when I wanted to yell at him because he's a 17 year old really acting like a teenager, but he felt very genuine to me.
I almost docked this a star because the Declan storyline/red herring threw me for a loop. I started out thinking this was a friends to lovers romance, but then Felix started talking with his former friend/enemy Declan in a Love Simon-esque anonymous fashion. I'm dumb, so I thought they were going to end up together, and then I was confused when Felix decided it wouldn't work. Then he has a realization that yes, he WAS in love with Ezra all along! It was ultimately explained well though. Marisol and Declan both served a role to make Felix recognize his true feelings.
I did also like that Felix never reconciles with his mother. Sometimes abusive parents don't deserve forgivness, and that isn't often portrayed in fiction.
One of the final scenes, where Felix attends the pride parade and experiences so much joy, made me cry. It was so beautiful! And the Big Gestureness of it all! Felix deals with many low moments throughout the book but the ending is ultimately very happy, which made me smile. I echo the author's words in the afterword that I hope people can pick up this book and see something of themselves in it.
timothyjmcl's review against another edition
5.0
Super sweet, but totally grounded. For a YA book, Callendar does a great job balancing teen stuff with real life and real dialogue. Can’t remember the last time I devoured a book so quickly.
les's review against another edition
emotional
hopeful
reflective
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.75
herphoenixloves's review against another edition
emotional
hopeful
inspiring
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.0
siavoosh's review against another edition
5.0
I started this book thinking I'm not going to really care for it. I thought it was going to be weak and predictable and badly-written, and in the first couple of chapters, with all the unnecessary info dumping about the way characters looked or dressed, I thought that might had been a correct assumption.
It was not, though.
I never use words like 'the most', 'the best' etc. I always say 'one of the best', 'one of the most'. Today, I dare say that Felix was the most relatable character I have ever read. I felt his pain and joy and questioning, I felt his confusion, I felt his yearning to be something. It hit even harder than it would usually because recently, I have been been going through the same things Felix has been going through; I've been questioning my gender, my labels, my worth, what I'm gonna do with my life after school ends (or even before it ends), my talents, if I have them in th first place and how to use them and how to be confident of them, self love and acceptance, finding platonic and romantic love in life, maybe, at some point, getting to fucking understand the difference between those (and other) kinds of love, and finally, how to be a happy, sure, functional human being, I guess.
And so this book was kind of painful in that way: as if someone was making fun of me in front of me and I couldn't do anything. But it was also a bit reassuring, to see someone having an experience so close to mine, seeing them fuck up the way I would, and knowing that it's going to be ok for them, so it probably would, for me, too.
This story had many queer characters, but that did not mean everything was rainbow and butterflies and no prejudice was seen anywhere near anyone. Transphobia (and biphobia. And misogyny) in the queer community was addressed, and the complicated truth about how each and every queer person faces a different level of bigotry in their life, how all the experiences are valid and need to be talked about and at the same time, some face way more than others.
I loved how friendship was handled in this book, and loneliness in crowds, and family, and the awkwardness of meeting someone in real life for the first time after you've been texting practically 24/7 for some time now (which is an experience I think more people have now, because the pandemic didn't let us meet new people as much as we used to).
And since Felix's pain and embarrassment felt like mine, his joy felt like mine also. By the end of the book, I felt like I'm all glittery and gay myself (I am gay though), I felt like I'm in NYC pride march or something, screaming my throat out and laughing and crying and surrounded by music and people who accept each other.
And it was one hell of a feeling.
It was not, though.
I never use words like 'the most', 'the best' etc. I always say 'one of the best', 'one of the most'. Today, I dare say that Felix was the most relatable character I have ever read. I felt his pain and joy and questioning, I felt his confusion, I felt his yearning to be something. It hit even harder than it would usually because recently, I have been been going through the same things Felix has been going through; I've been questioning my gender, my labels, my worth, what I'm gonna do with my life after school ends (or even before it ends), my talents, if I have them in th first place and how to use them and how to be confident of them, self love and acceptance, finding platonic and romantic love in life, maybe, at some point, getting to fucking understand the difference between those (and other) kinds of love, and finally, how to be a happy, sure, functional human being, I guess.
And so this book was kind of painful in that way: as if someone was making fun of me in front of me and I couldn't do anything. But it was also a bit reassuring, to see someone having an experience so close to mine, seeing them fuck up the way I would, and knowing that it's going to be ok for them, so it probably would, for me, too.
This story had many queer characters, but that did not mean everything was rainbow and butterflies and no prejudice was seen anywhere near anyone. Transphobia (and biphobia. And misogyny) in the queer community was addressed, and the complicated truth about how each and every queer person faces a different level of bigotry in their life, how all the experiences are valid and need to be talked about and at the same time, some face way more than others.
I loved how friendship was handled in this book, and loneliness in crowds, and family, and the awkwardness of meeting someone in real life for the first time after you've been texting practically 24/7 for some time now (which is an experience I think more people have now, because the pandemic didn't let us meet new people as much as we used to).
And since Felix's pain and embarrassment felt like mine, his joy felt like mine also. By the end of the book, I felt like I'm all glittery and gay myself (I am gay though), I felt like I'm in NYC pride march or something, screaming my throat out and laughing and crying and surrounded by music and people who accept each other.
And it was one hell of a feeling.
annineamundsen's review against another edition
4.0
Warning: main character experiences quite a bit of transphobia.
To sum up, this story is about accepting yourself and not defining yourself by what others think. It's about love, and letting yourself both love and be loved. I really liked this book - especially how it deals with questioning your gender identity. Very relatable and authentically written. Plus basically all the characters are queer which is a bonus.
To sum up, this story is about accepting yourself and not defining yourself by what others think. It's about love, and letting yourself both love and be loved. I really liked this book - especially how it deals with questioning your gender identity. Very relatable and authentically written. Plus basically all the characters are queer which is a bonus.