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thebookberrie 's review for:
All Out: The No-Longer-Secret Stories of Queer Teens Throughout the Ages
by Saundra Mitchell
While not my favorite anthology ever, I absolutely love how this is based around queer teens throughout history. Like normal anthologies, there were a couple of stories I really enjoyed but it felt like the rest were very forgettable. Plus it felt like half of the authors in here are ones that either I've read before and haven't enjoyed or I've never heard of them... awkward.
I'm just gonna go through my top three real quick: Walking After Midnight, The Dresser & The Chambermaid, and Roja. Honorable mention to The Sweet Trade though as is was about two girls in 1717 Virginia colony running away on the day of their weddings to become pirates and I have to stan.
Walking After Midnight by Kody Keplinger is about a past child actress in the 50s. Her fame is fading as she grows up so she moves from Hollywood to NYC to work in a play. Her train to NYC is delayed and she spends the night talking with a waitress named Laura who fears she'll never leave her small town. They are ADORABLE together and it was such a sweet story. My favorite out of the entire anthology.
The Dresser & The Chambermaid by Robin Talley takes place Kensington Palace, 1726 about a girl named Mary who becomes a princess's dresser. The princess's chambermaid, Susanna is quickly fed up with Mary because Suzanna wanted to be the dresser and Mary has no idea what she's doing. Weirdly unnecessary multiple mentions of the princess using chamber pots aside, I really loved Mary and Susanna together and the other servants we get to meet.
Roja by Anna-Marie McLemore, I haven't liked this author's writing in the past (and I still can't say I particularly like it here) but I did love this story and what she did with it. It's a Red Riding Hood retelling that takes place in 1870 Mexico about a girl that has poison in her blood who rescues the French solider she has fallen in love with. It was SO badass and the love interest was trans and everything was well done. I wouldn't have been mad at a full length novel of this.
I'm just gonna go through my top three real quick: Walking After Midnight, The Dresser & The Chambermaid, and Roja. Honorable mention to The Sweet Trade though as is was about two girls in 1717 Virginia colony running away on the day of their weddings to become pirates and I have to stan.
Walking After Midnight by Kody Keplinger is about a past child actress in the 50s. Her fame is fading as she grows up so she moves from Hollywood to NYC to work in a play. Her train to NYC is delayed and she spends the night talking with a waitress named Laura who fears she'll never leave her small town. They are ADORABLE together and it was such a sweet story. My favorite out of the entire anthology.
The Dresser & The Chambermaid by Robin Talley takes place Kensington Palace, 1726 about a girl named Mary who becomes a princess's dresser. The princess's chambermaid, Susanna is quickly fed up with Mary because Suzanna wanted to be the dresser and Mary has no idea what she's doing. Weirdly unnecessary multiple mentions of the princess using chamber pots aside, I really loved Mary and Susanna together and the other servants we get to meet.
Roja by Anna-Marie McLemore, I haven't liked this author's writing in the past (and I still can't say I particularly like it here) but I did love this story and what she did with it. It's a Red Riding Hood retelling that takes place in 1870 Mexico about a girl that has poison in her blood who rescues the French solider she has fallen in love with. It was SO badass and the love interest was trans and everything was well done. I wouldn't have been mad at a full length novel of this.