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A review by sam8834
Yerba Buena by Nina LaCour
emotional
hopeful
sad
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
3.5
Disclaimer here, I listened to this on audio, which probably greatly affected my enjoyment. Though I don't know in which direction, haha. I'm just admittedly terrible at "being read to" and am trying to improve my focus for audiobooks. Yerba Buena is a cool little queer, adult-coming-of-age novel that I suspect audiobook lovers would enjoy, for all its sensory details hinging on food, cocktails, flower arrangements, and the yerba buena plant. It is a multi-character story that bounces around a bit, albeit in a mostly chronological way, following Sara and Emilie as they navigate existence together while also trying to reconcile with their pasts.
The structural balance felt off, to me. I definitely enjoyed some segments more than others. The story of Sara and Grant, even though I wanted to shake Grant...hard, was very readable, whereas other parts of the narrative felt more bogged down in details. Again, maybe this would have been a better experience for me as a print book. But it was hard at times to figure out what the book wanted me to focus on - Sara and Emilie or their pasts. Coming-of-age is messy like that, though.
Interested to see Nina LaCour's next move.
The structural balance felt off, to me. I definitely enjoyed some segments more than others. The story of Sara and Grant, even though I wanted to shake Grant...hard, was very readable, whereas other parts of the narrative felt more bogged down in details. Again, maybe this would have been a better experience for me as a print book. But it was hard at times to figure out what the book wanted me to focus on - Sara and Emilie or their pasts. Coming-of-age is messy like that, though.
Interested to see Nina LaCour's next move.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Sexual assault