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A review by elskabee
I Wish You All the Best by Mason Deaver
challenging
emotional
hopeful
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.5
You know it's good if I finished in less than 24 hours. I don't have a lot to say because there's no plot, just 300 pages of our nonbinary main character getting therapy and making friends. I think teens who are reading this might get more out of it than I did, which gives it some extra points in my rating.
I will note that the start is ROUGH. Take care of yourself if you read this because it opens with the main character coming out to their family and it going horribly wrong. Though the details are sparse, it still made me feel quite anxious reading it. There's also a lot of description of the main character having anxiety and panic attacks, especially with dissociation. They're very realistic (at least to my own experiences) so again, be careful. That said, I think that stuff being in there is good. There's a time and place for purely wholesome queer books, and then there's these that speak to the painful reality of being trans for many.
I expected it to be more of a romance going in, but I'm not disappointed that that was a fairly minor aspect. It's a heart-warming story of a kid's world being shattered and them learning how to pick up the pieces and as several of the blurbs say, I think this book can change and save lives.
I will note that the start is ROUGH. Take care of yourself if you read this because it opens with the main character coming out to their family and it going horribly wrong. Though the details are sparse, it still made me feel quite anxious reading it. There's also a lot of description of the main character having anxiety and panic attacks, especially with dissociation. They're very realistic (at least to my own experiences) so again, be careful. That said, I think that stuff being in there is good. There's a time and place for purely wholesome queer books, and then there's these that speak to the painful reality of being trans for many.
I expected it to be more of a romance going in, but I'm not disappointed that that was a fairly minor aspect. It's a heart-warming story of a kid's world being shattered and them learning how to pick up the pieces and as several of the blurbs say, I think this book can change and save lives.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Panic attacks/disorders and Transphobia
Moderate: Gaslighting and Dysphoria
Minor: Religious bigotry and Homophobia
there's a lot of misgendering in the book, most of it is not purposeful (either accidental from people who are learning, or people who aren't aware as the character isn't out to many people for most of the book)