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A review by tracimreed
Darius the Great Deserves Better by Adib Khorram
4.0
Darius is such a lovable character. I love how much of a typical teen he is, often unsure of himself and those around him. Now that Darius is home in the US again, I really missed the cultural references and warmth in this book that were so prevalent in Darius The Great is Not Okay, but I understand that the focus was less on Darius's ethnic identity in this book and more on his queer identity.
Other things I loved about this book was how HONEST Darius/the author was about Darius's hesitancy with physical intimacy and how that was OKAY. Not enough teen books allow their leads mixed emotions when it comes to sex, especially the male leads, and those mixed emotions are real and honest and I was happy they were included.
I also really enjoyed the matter-of-fact way that Darius's dad dealt with Darius's burgeoning sex life, with an emphasis on safety and emotional health, rather than forbidding him sex. I picked up a few pointers for talking to my own teen boys as well, even though they're probably tired of me talking to them about sex now. (lol)
Finally, getting a glimpse into what it's like to deal with a parent/family member going through a depressive episode in a way that wasn't ALL doom and gloom was important as well.
Other things I loved about this book was how HONEST Darius/the author was about Darius's hesitancy with physical intimacy and how that was OKAY. Not enough teen books allow their leads mixed emotions when it comes to sex, especially the male leads, and those mixed emotions are real and honest and I was happy they were included.
I also really enjoyed the matter-of-fact way that Darius's dad dealt with Darius's burgeoning sex life, with an emphasis on safety and emotional health, rather than forbidding him sex. I picked up a few pointers for talking to my own teen boys as well, even though they're probably tired of me talking to them about sex now. (lol)
Finally, getting a glimpse into what it's like to deal with a parent/family member going through a depressive episode in a way that wasn't ALL doom and gloom was important as well.