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jenny_librarian's review against another edition
adventurous
lighthearted
reflective
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.5
Like the title suggests, this reads like fanfiction. And not good fanfiction either. It reads like the self-insert fics I wrote about my favourite singer when I was 17 years old. Which is surprising, considering Chris Colfer does this for a living. I was just killing time writing improbable romantic fantasies without any kind of beta review or editing. And yet, down to the quality of writing, it very much feels like someone found my fanfiction.net account.
It’s not all bad, mind you. It’s compelling and short enough that I powered through it easily. But it’s not good either. It kinda feels like an after school special with the dumbed-down definition of trans, the disabled brother who could be a cardboard cutout for all the time they spend talking about him like he’s furniture, and the author hitting you over the head with life lessons.
I liked some of the humour (Lewis and Clark vs Lois and Clark; Joey’s mind-movie of God, Moses and Jesus trying to tell Christians they actually don’t mind gay folks; the William Shatner Online Institute), but other jokes fell incredibly flat, if not downright offensive (“I always wanted a gay best friend” 🤢).
I wanted to read the Land of Stories, since it’s so popular, but if this book is a faithful representation of Chris Colfer’s writing, I think I’ll pass.
It’s not all bad, mind you. It’s compelling and short enough that I powered through it easily. But it’s not good either. It kinda feels like an after school special with the dumbed-down definition of trans, the disabled brother who could be a cardboard cutout for all the time they spend talking about him like he’s furniture, and the author hitting you over the head with life lessons.
I liked some of the humour (Lewis and Clark vs Lois and Clark; Joey’s mind-movie of God, Moses and Jesus trying to tell Christians they actually don’t mind gay folks; the William Shatner Online Institute), but other jokes fell incredibly flat, if not downright offensive (“I always wanted a gay best friend” 🤢).
I wanted to read the Land of Stories, since it’s so popular, but if this book is a faithful representation of Chris Colfer’s writing, I think I’ll pass.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Ableism, Bullying, Cancer, Deadnaming, Death, Drug use, Terminal illness, Transphobia, Medical content, Religious bigotry, Outing, Alcohol, and Colonisation
Moderate: Addiction, Mental illness, Racism, Stalking, Cultural appropriation, Gaslighting, and Abandonment
Minor: Child abuse and Homophobia