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readingrobyn 's review for:
If You Come Softly: Twentieth Anniversary Edition
by Jacqueline Woodson
Reading If You Come Softly was a single sitting experience for me. The writing was so well done it barely felt like time was passing.
I love how Woodson creates characters and the duel perspective was perfect. So often in YA romance it feels like one side is far more developed than the other (usually the female side), but here you didn't get that cardboard cut out, could-be-anyone, self-insert feeling. It felt like Ellie and Jeremiah were two living, breathing teenagers who were excited to be falling in love for the first time.
In the plot department, I liked that this was more than a romance. There is some serious depth in how parental relationships are experienced and how this can effect a teen perspective on love. But more importantly, the racial tension was palpable. It was really interesting to see how both Ellie and Jeremiah experienced the gawking within their own perspectives. I think it made that element of daily racism also feel like a living breathing thing.
I would recommend this if you are looking for something quick to read and yet relevant as hell.
I love how Woodson creates characters and the duel perspective was perfect. So often in YA romance it feels like one side is far more developed than the other (usually the female side), but here you didn't get that cardboard cut out, could-be-anyone, self-insert feeling. It felt like Ellie and Jeremiah were two living, breathing teenagers who were excited to be falling in love for the first time.
In the plot department, I liked that this was more than a romance. There is some serious depth in how parental relationships are experienced and how this can effect a teen perspective on love. But more importantly, the racial tension was palpable. It was really interesting to see how both Ellie and Jeremiah experienced the gawking within their own perspectives. I think it made that element of daily racism also feel like a living breathing thing.
I would recommend this if you are looking for something quick to read and yet relevant as hell.