Scan barcode
A review by thepaperbackprincess
With You All the Way by Cynthia Hand
3.0
I'm not quite sure how this book got on my radar - I like Cynthia Hand's Lady Janies series that she wrote with two other authors, but I haven't actually read any of her other stuff. I saw somewhere that this was a sex positive YA book and I guess I felt like I didn't get enough of that as an actual young adult and decided to read it. It also might have been that the cover was gorgeous... who knows.
With You All the Way tells the story of 16 year old Ada. She wants to have sex with her boyfriend, but when she finds out he's been cheating on her just before her family trip to Hawaii, her plans are dashed. At the same time, she is worried about her parents who seem to be losing their connection to one another and she's constantly fighting with her older sister, who she used to feel very close to. She's tired of sex being such a big deal and so she hatches a plan to lose her virginity while in Hawaii.
So what I did like about this book was the sister relationship. I love sister stories and I love family dramas, so I liked that the plot had a bit more depth to it than just a teenager trying to lose her virginity. But overall the book was a bit underwhelming for me. I thought Ada was going to be 18 and 16 just felt so young for a girl to be putting so much thought into sex (in reality I know it's not, and me saying that is probably not very sex positive, but 16 year olds just seem like babies to me now). Though it is handled pretty well; Ada receives advice from her sister and while she's anxious to lose her virginity, it's never a shameful or embarrassing thing, so I did like that portrayal.
But in reality, I am just too old for this book. I do think there's lots of YA that can be enjoyed by adults, but I did feel that this is a YA book that really is intended for young adults, and that's great! Young people should have books that focus on sex in a positive way, that tells them it's okay to want to have sex and it's okay to wait. You don't have to put a ton of pressure on making your first time super special, but it's also okay if you want to!
Overall it's a pretty quick read and I would recommend to teenagers, but otherwise maybe give it a pass.
With You All the Way tells the story of 16 year old Ada. She wants to have sex with her boyfriend, but when she finds out he's been cheating on her just before her family trip to Hawaii, her plans are dashed. At the same time, she is worried about her parents who seem to be losing their connection to one another and she's constantly fighting with her older sister, who she used to feel very close to. She's tired of sex being such a big deal and so she hatches a plan to lose her virginity while in Hawaii.
So what I did like about this book was the sister relationship. I love sister stories and I love family dramas, so I liked that the plot had a bit more depth to it than just a teenager trying to lose her virginity. But overall the book was a bit underwhelming for me. I thought Ada was going to be 18 and 16 just felt so young for a girl to be putting so much thought into sex (in reality I know it's not, and me saying that is probably not very sex positive, but 16 year olds just seem like babies to me now). Though it is handled pretty well; Ada receives advice from her sister and while she's anxious to lose her virginity, it's never a shameful or embarrassing thing, so I did like that portrayal.
Spoiler
Plus in the end Ada decides not to have sex, not for any preachy reason, just a simple acknowledgement that she's doing it for the wrong reason and that it's okay to wait.But in reality, I am just too old for this book. I do think there's lots of YA that can be enjoyed by adults, but I did feel that this is a YA book that really is intended for young adults, and that's great! Young people should have books that focus on sex in a positive way, that tells them it's okay to want to have sex and it's okay to wait. You don't have to put a ton of pressure on making your first time super special, but it's also okay if you want to!
Overall it's a pretty quick read and I would recommend to teenagers, but otherwise maybe give it a pass.