Funny, heartfelt, and absolutely adorable.
A queer love triangle leads to an unexpected romance.
Belle Hawkins, high school senior and school mascot (she wanted a role where she didn’t have to show her face), finally finds the courage to ask out her crush, confident head cheerleader Regina Moreno. But she learns Gina already has a girlfriend, star athlete Chloe Kitagawa. Meanwhile, Gina has a Ten-Year Plan, and she refuses to let Chloe get them off track by failing her English class. Knowing Belle would be keen to please her, Gina gets her to tutor Chloe. Turns out, Belle and Chloe were friends when they were kids. As the school year progresses, Chloe and Gina’s relationship has its ups and downs, their friendships with Belle grow, and Belle’s romantic feelings change. With a palette of pink hues and strong black outlines, the cartoon art uses exaggerated elements for comedic effect and to cue heightened emotions. The three leads have well-developed personalities and are all lovingly imperfect and relatable. They are physically distinct with notably different body shapes, styles of gender expression, and ethnicities. Belle appears White and is cued Jewish, Chloe’s name implies Japanese heritage, and Gina is Brazilian American. Queerness is normalized, and the shifting dynamics of queer women between friendships and romantic partnerships are accurately depicted, making the happy ending believable. There’s enough conflict to propel the plot and give space for growth, but overall, this low-stakes tale feels like a warm, charming hug.
Funny, heartfelt, and absolutely adorable. (Graphic romance. 13-18)Pub Date: March 21, 2023
ISBN: 978-1-250-78412-4
Page Count: 320
Publisher: First Second
Review Posted Online: Jan. 11, 2023
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Feb. 1, 2023
BOOK REVIEW
PERSPECTIVES
There’s not much plot here, but readers will relish the opportunity to climb inside Autumn’s head.
The finely drawn characters capture readers’ attention in this debut.
Autumn and Phineas, nicknamed Finny, were born a week apart; their mothers are still best friends. Growing up, Autumn and Finny were like peas in a pod despite their differences: Autumn is “quirky and odd,” while Finny is “sweet and shy and everyone like[s] him.” But in eighth grade, Autumn and Finny stop being friends due to an unexpected kiss. They drift apart and find new friends, but their friendship keeps asserting itself at parties, shared holiday gatherings and random encounters. In the summer after graduation, Autumn and Finny reconnect and are finally ready to be more than friends. But on August 8, everything changes, and Autumn has to rely on all her strength to move on. Autumn’s coming-of-age is sensitively chronicled, with a wide range of experiences and events shaping her character. Even secondary characters are well-rounded, with their own histories and motivations.
There’s not much plot here, but readers will relish the opportunity to climb inside Autumn’s head. (Fiction. 14 & up)Pub Date: April 1, 2013
ISBN: 978-1-4022-7782-5
Page Count: 336
Publisher: Sourcebooks Fire
Review Posted Online: Feb. 12, 2013
Kirkus Reviews Issue: March 1, 2013
BOOK REVIEW
SEEN & HEARD
A heavy read about the harsh realities of tragedy and their effects on those left behind.
In this companion novel to 2013’s If He Had Been With Me, three characters tell their sides of the story.
Finn’s narrative starts three days before his death. He explores the progress of his unrequited love for best friend Autumn up until the day he finally expresses his feelings. Finn’s story ends with his tragic death, which leaves his close friends devastated, unmoored, and uncertain how to go on. Jack’s section follows, offering a heartbreaking look at what it’s like to live with grief. Jack works to overcome the anger he feels toward Sylvie, the girlfriend Finn was breaking up with when he died, and Autumn, the girl he was preparing to build his life around (but whom Jack believed wasn’t good enough for Finn). But when Jack sees how Autumn’s grief matches his own, it changes their understanding of one another. Autumn’s chapters trace her life without Finn as readers follow her struggles with mental health and balancing love and loss. Those who have read the earlier book will better connect with and feel for these characters, particularly since they’ll have a more well-rounded impression of Finn. The pain and anger is well written, and the novel highlights the most troublesome aspects of young adulthood: overconfidence sprinkled with heavy insecurities, fear-fueled decisions, bad communication, and brash judgments. Characters are cued white.
A heavy read about the harsh realities of tragedy and their effects on those left behind. (author’s note, content warning) (Fiction. 14-18)Pub Date: Feb. 6, 2024
ISBN: 9781728276229
Page Count: 416
Publisher: Sourcebooks Fire
Review Posted Online: Jan. 5, 2024
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Feb. 1, 2024
BOOK REVIEW
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