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A review by lbarsk
Some Girls Do by Jennifer Dugan
4.0
Read this very fast, which meant that I found it engrossing and I wanted to see what happened with each character. The will-they-won’t-they evolving chemistry between Morgan and Ruby was a great hook, though there were several times when I was like LADIES JUST COMMUNICATE. PLEASE.
One aspect I particularly liked was Morgan’s journey with what “activism” can mean, and how she can give back to her local queer community in a way that’s realistic and achievable instead of like, “let’s sue the NFL,” which she does suggest in a moment of anger. I think if I had read this as a teen it would’ve definitely inspired me to think about my own high school relationship with volunteering and making a difference. I did a TON of volunteering as a Girl Scout, later a member of the NHS, as a participant in the regional Jewish youth group NFTY, but I’m not sure I ever examined it as in-depth as Morgan does in this book!
I think the one thing bugging me most about the book was actually Morgan’s family — Ruby goes through A LOT with her mom and her ex-stepfather Billy who’s the real parent in her life (we LOVE Billy in this house! he was giving Bi Adult energy but that’s not my call now is it haha…), and it’s fleshed out really strongly. Morgan also goes through a lot with her parents, but it seems like her brother… kind of does the emotional lifting *for* Morgan’s parents? I would’ve liked to see the resolution of Morgan’s family story on the page instead of off-screen and just kind of resolved positively by the time we get to the epilogue.
All in all, though, a solid wlw young adult novel that I would’ve really enjoyed as a teen and that I did really enjoy as an adult. I also think that its many portrayals of what “being out” means and how that can differ for varying people is REALLY important, especially for a young audience!
One aspect I particularly liked was Morgan’s journey with what “activism” can mean, and how she can give back to her local queer community in a way that’s realistic and achievable instead of like, “let’s sue the NFL,” which she does suggest in a moment of anger. I think if I had read this as a teen it would’ve definitely inspired me to think about my own high school relationship with volunteering and making a difference. I did a TON of volunteering as a Girl Scout, later a member of the NHS, as a participant in the regional Jewish youth group NFTY, but I’m not sure I ever examined it as in-depth as Morgan does in this book!
I think the one thing bugging me most about the book was actually Morgan’s family — Ruby goes through A LOT with her mom and her ex-stepfather Billy who’s the real parent in her life (we LOVE Billy in this house! he was giving Bi Adult energy but that’s not my call now is it haha…), and it’s fleshed out really strongly. Morgan also goes through a lot with her parents, but it seems like her brother… kind of does the emotional lifting *for* Morgan’s parents? I would’ve liked to see the resolution of Morgan’s family story on the page instead of off-screen and just kind of resolved positively by the time we get to the epilogue.
All in all, though, a solid wlw young adult novel that I would’ve really enjoyed as a teen and that I did really enjoy as an adult. I also think that its many portrayals of what “being out” means and how that can differ for varying people is REALLY important, especially for a young audience!