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A review by jennireadz
If You Still Recognize Me by Cynthia So
5.0
4.5 Stars!
It took me a minute to get into this book but then I could not put it down. This is a beautiful YA book filled with sapphics, lost loves, past friendships, and a queer summer!
Elsie has found herself online, reading comics and making friends within the comic fandoms she's interested in, including fanfic writer Ada. Ada lives in NY, and Elsie, in London, pines after her. She has a huge crush on Ada and wants to figure out how to tell her, but just cannot figure out the right way. Ada tells Elsie about these letters her grandmother exchanged with another woman and the sapphic undertones. The woman lives in the town that Elsie is traveling to with friends this summer, so she thinks this is the perfect way to woo Ada!
But in comes Joan, Elsie's best friend who had moved to Hong Kong 8 years ago, when they promptly lost contact, even after promising to write letters. They've both changed, almost swapping styles, but they still have that same connection they've always had. She joins on the trip and is along for the plan to reunite these women and see if true love might exist between them still, if it ever did!
This book was so beautiful and handled so many topics without feeling overwhelming. So often a book will try to handle a lot and it'll feel unfinished, but I felt like it all existed in harmony and nothing felt forgotten. It was a beautiful story with a lot of queerness, including an ace-spec side character. The queer elders were wonderful to read about and to see Elsie seeing happy queer adults felt like something she truly needed.
I definitely recommend this - it's such a beautiful summer sapphic read, including lots of letters, a lot of fandom/comic talk, and some of the best friends a girl could ask for! Though there are definitely some tougher aspects, like previous toxic relationships, homophobia in family dynamics, and a death of a grandparent, it all felt balanced and complete.
It took me a minute to get into this book but then I could not put it down. This is a beautiful YA book filled with sapphics, lost loves, past friendships, and a queer summer!
Elsie has found herself online, reading comics and making friends within the comic fandoms she's interested in, including fanfic writer Ada. Ada lives in NY, and Elsie, in London, pines after her. She has a huge crush on Ada and wants to figure out how to tell her, but just cannot figure out the right way. Ada tells Elsie about these letters her grandmother exchanged with another woman and the sapphic undertones. The woman lives in the town that Elsie is traveling to with friends this summer, so she thinks this is the perfect way to woo Ada!
But in comes Joan, Elsie's best friend who had moved to Hong Kong 8 years ago, when they promptly lost contact, even after promising to write letters. They've both changed, almost swapping styles, but they still have that same connection they've always had. She joins on the trip and is along for the plan to reunite these women and see if true love might exist between them still, if it ever did!
This book was so beautiful and handled so many topics without feeling overwhelming. So often a book will try to handle a lot and it'll feel unfinished, but I felt like it all existed in harmony and nothing felt forgotten. It was a beautiful story with a lot of queerness, including an ace-spec side character. The queer elders were wonderful to read about and to see Elsie seeing happy queer adults felt like something she truly needed.
I definitely recommend this - it's such a beautiful summer sapphic read, including lots of letters, a lot of fandom/comic talk, and some of the best friends a girl could ask for! Though there are definitely some tougher aspects, like previous toxic relationships, homophobia in family dynamics, and a death of a grandparent, it all felt balanced and complete.