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A review by rozymbanks
If I Tell by Janet Gurtler
If I Tell was a refreshing read simply because I’ve read so many YA paranormals lately. It was a good story without having any vampires or shifters. The protagonist, Jaz, has a believable voice. Towards the end of the book many of her actions seem immature until I remembered the way I behaved at times when I was 17.
It seems like all YA contemporary protagonists must have a quirky or creative hobby. Jaz’s hobby is playing the guitar and songwriting, and this is explored in the story without overwhelming the whole book.
A lot of weighty issues are explored in this book, such as racial identity, the aftermath of sexual abuse, bullying, and postpartum depression. This added up to a lot of drama, and it was balanced to some degree by the sweet romance between Jaz and Jackson. The central dilemma of the book seems to fizzle out at the end, but this shows that Jaz is able to deal with the question of whether or not to tell in a more mature way as well as heal her relationship with Simon, her mother’s boyfriend.
It seems like all YA contemporary protagonists must have a quirky or creative hobby. Jaz’s hobby is playing the guitar and songwriting, and this is explored in the story without overwhelming the whole book.
A lot of weighty issues are explored in this book, such as racial identity, the aftermath of sexual abuse, bullying, and postpartum depression. This added up to a lot of drama, and it was balanced to some degree by the sweet romance between Jaz and Jackson. The central dilemma of the book seems to fizzle out at the end, but this shows that Jaz is able to deal with the question of whether or not to tell in a more mature way as well as heal her relationship with Simon, her mother’s boyfriend.