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A review by elskabee
Self-Made Boys: A Great Gatsby Remix by Anna-Marie McLemore
emotional
hopeful
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
4.0
I'm gonna tell my kids this is The Great Gatsby.
I never read any of the original and only made it 5 minutes into that movie version from like 10 years ago. So I went in knowing basically nothing except that people already shipped Jay and Nick from the original so there was precedent and these days I just really want to read trans stories because the cis annoy me sometimes so give me that t4t joy.
I really enjoyed the trans rep and overall queerness in the story, it was a cool speculation on queer community in the 1920's. I found most of the characters to be shallow in that YA kind of way but still just complex enough to be enjoyable and intriguing. I think if you enjoy reading about messy people and their drama this is a good one, but personally I found it a little tiring at times. The obsession with wealth, class, and aesthetics was not something I personally enjoy a lot which is why I haven't bothered tackling the OG but I think the commentary on race was interesting to read seeing as it's own voices and I'm not American. I was pleased with how well the themes of which were woven into the story.
I don't if it's just because I've been having a health crisis in the days of reading this but this shit made me cry. The queer joy and acceptance in this story is its biggest selling point in my opinion and so I wouldn't hesitate to recommend this even if it didn't fully capture my interest.
I never read any of the original and only made it 5 minutes into that movie version from like 10 years ago. So I went in knowing basically nothing except that people already shipped Jay and Nick from the original so there was precedent and these days I just really want to read trans stories because the cis annoy me sometimes so give me that t4t joy.
I really enjoyed the trans rep and overall queerness in the story, it was a cool speculation on queer community in the 1920's. I found most of the characters to be shallow in that YA kind of way but still just complex enough to be enjoyable and intriguing. I think if you enjoy reading about messy people and their drama this is a good one, but personally I found it a little tiring at times. The obsession with wealth, class, and aesthetics was not something I personally enjoy a lot which is why I haven't bothered tackling the OG but I think the commentary on race was interesting to read seeing as it's own voices and I'm not American. I was pleased with how well the themes of which were woven into the story.
I don't if it's just because I've been having a health crisis in the days of reading this but this shit made me cry. The queer joy and acceptance in this story is its biggest selling point in my opinion and so I wouldn't hesitate to recommend this even if it didn't fully capture my interest.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Classism and Racism
Moderate: War and Alcohol
Minor: Violence, Racial slurs, and Gun violence
there's a scene where a character says a racial slur directed towards the latino main character, but the exact word used isn't on page.
There is some descriptions of a character's experience as a soldier in WW1 which mentions death, disease, and chemical warfare.
I'm happy to say there is no outing, transphobia, or homophobia here!