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jessicohen15's review against another edition
adventurous
reflective
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.25
I could listen to Kurt from Glee read any book aloud to me, audiobook 5/5. Content was so PC and YA sometimes it felt like he was doing too much but given the target audience I get it. Very feel good meets coming of age:)
Content Warnings
Graphic: Cancer, Homophobia, Transphobia, and Islamophobia
besotted's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
reflective
sad
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
5.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Deadnaming, Drug use, Transphobia, and Religious bigotry
Moderate: Ableism, Cancer, Death, Drug abuse, Homophobia, Terminal illness, Islamophobia, and Stalking
Minor: Addiction, Bullying, Sexual content, Medical content, Alcohol, and Dysphoria
martyna_m's review against another edition
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.5
Content Warnings
Graphic: Cancer, Death, and Dysphoria
Moderate: Terminal illness and Transphobia
Minor: Homophobia
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
kj468's review against another edition
adventurous
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
1.5
Despite being published in 2017, this book very much had "2003, we haven't yet had a culture reckoning about what's not okay to say" vibes. There were lots of jokes that were rather cringe and one of the main characters has a disabled younger brother who seems to only exist to further the narrative of the able-bodied character (and includes language like "confined to a wheelchair"; they stay at a hotel called the "Teepee Inn" and while one of the characters acknowledges that it's "not very politically correct", the author could have just not used culturally appropriation as a hotel name). One of the main characters is trans masc and one is a gay guy, and both are closeted for most of the book; overall, these characters are handled well enough.
At times, the book felt a bit like D.A.R.E. propaganda, showing teenagers using drugs and alcohol in not particularly realistic fashions and with not particularly realistic effects (ie two of the characters seem to do approximately five shots while having a serious conversation, and one of the characters was already drunk before those shots; the characters smoke weed that the more experienced smoker of the group decides is "laced with some shit" but there's not much of an explanation for why the character thinks that).
Ultimately, I mainly read this book because I was on the beach and it was the book I had with me, and also to confirm my suspicions about the foreshadowed plot twist. The plot twist at the end felt fairly obvious to me, given the anvil-sized hints laced throughout the book, but I did like that part. If I read it in a different setting, I likely would have DNF'd it due to the general insensitivity throughout the book.
At times, the book felt a bit like D.A.R.E. propaganda, showing teenagers using drugs and alcohol in not particularly realistic fashions and with not particularly realistic effects (ie two of the characters seem to do approximately five shots while having a serious conversation, and one of the characters was already drunk before those shots; the characters smoke weed that the more experienced smoker of the group decides is "laced with some shit" but there's not much of an explanation for why the character thinks that).
Ultimately, I mainly read this book because I was on the beach and it was the book I had with me, and also to confirm my suspicions about the foreshadowed plot twist. The plot twist at the end felt fairly obvious to me, given the anvil-sized hints laced throughout the book, but I did like that part. If I read it in a different setting, I likely would have DNF'd it due to the general insensitivity throughout the book.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Ableism, Drug use, Homophobia, Transphobia, Religious bigotry, and Outing
Minor: Cultural appropriation
additional cw (plot twist spoilers):wenwanzhao's review against another edition
4.25
I must admit that I went into this book expecting a mess. The title itself implies a story "stranger than fanfiction". What I received was very close to what I expected, but it affected me more than I thought it would.
As wild as Chris Colfer's writing style is, it is definitely one that I feel comfortable reading. The plot of this novel was very relatable to me. As someone who participates in fandom culture myself, it was a bit odd to see the lifestyle written into a novel. Even so, it worked well as a premise, and did indeed drag me in to the story.
The characters of this novel were not the best I had ever read. They were easily compressed into a few words. Each of them had characteristics that were obviously there to drive the plot. Though they were obviously written to fit a certain mold, I found myself being attached to them and their lives.
The plot of this book was rather basic in design. It seemed to follow a set formula throughout the middle of the story. I did appreciate the diversity in the different characters and scenarios though. LGBT+ representation is my friend.
I expected finishing with a three star rating, but the ending truly threw me in for a loop. It was sweet and sentimental. I felt something stir in my heart. As cliché as that may be. It gave me hope for the world, even if it was only for ten minutes.
As wild as Chris Colfer's writing style is, it is definitely one that I feel comfortable reading. The plot of this novel was very relatable to me. As someone who participates in fandom culture myself, it was a bit odd to see the lifestyle written into a novel. Even so, it worked well as a premise, and did indeed drag me in to the story.
The characters of this novel were not the best I had ever read. They were easily compressed into a few words. Each of them had characteristics that were obviously there to drive the plot. Though they were obviously written to fit a certain mold, I found myself being attached to them and their lives.
The plot of this book was rather basic in design. It seemed to follow a set formula throughout the middle of the story. I did appreciate the diversity in the different characters and scenarios though. LGBT+ representation is my friend.
I expected finishing with a three star rating, but the ending truly threw me in for a loop. It was sweet and sentimental. I felt something stir in my heart. As cliché as that may be. It gave me hope for the world, even if it was only for ten minutes.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Terminal illness and Transphobia