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hannah_reads_2020's review against another edition
4.0
A sciency, superhero, girl power book.
Nadia is The Wasp, she is also a teenager and scientist. This book pulled a lot of references from the Marvel cinematic universe is a good way. Whilst slow to start, it definitely picked up.
This book is diverse, and handles some tough subjects well. It’s portrayal of mental health is healthy - it doesn’t romanticise or demonise it. It has strong female friendships, LQBTQ+ and BIPOC representation and some kick ass superheroes.
Fans of the MCU and superheroes will enjoy this, especially teenage girls.
Thank you to @scholastic for my #freegift copy in exchange for an honest review.
Nadia is The Wasp, she is also a teenager and scientist. This book pulled a lot of references from the Marvel cinematic universe is a good way. Whilst slow to start, it definitely picked up.
This book is diverse, and handles some tough subjects well. It’s portrayal of mental health is healthy - it doesn’t romanticise or demonise it. It has strong female friendships, LQBTQ+ and BIPOC representation and some kick ass superheroes.
Fans of the MCU and superheroes will enjoy this, especially teenage girls.
Thank you to @scholastic for my #freegift copy in exchange for an honest review.
lillanaa's review against another edition
4.0
This book was received as an ARC in exchange for an honest review.
I'll admit I'm a little behind on my comics lore, the last time I caught a current issue back in 2016, but Nadia's backstory is one I'd never heard before but am definitely interested in continuing with it. This was fun, the action packed book I was expecting it to be with an underlying really good energy about mental health. That being said, though, I'm not sure of the age group this is posed to after reading it. The book itself reads solidly middle teen, a 16 year old protagonist and everything, but the interstitial parts of "Nadia's Science Facts" reads younger to me, and I feel as though it hits more of a 13-15 year old range. That's the only thing that keeps it from hitting 5 stars for me, if this is really aimed at that 16-17 audience, it feels almost childish to have these interstitials included. The characters are awesome, though, and the story itself is definitely what I'd expect from a Marvel book! I loved it!
I'll admit I'm a little behind on my comics lore, the last time I caught a current issue back in 2016, but Nadia's backstory is one I'd never heard before but am definitely interested in continuing with it. This was fun, the action packed book I was expecting it to be with an underlying really good energy about mental health. That being said, though, I'm not sure of the age group this is posed to after reading it. The book itself reads solidly middle teen, a 16 year old protagonist and everything, but the interstitial parts of "Nadia's Science Facts" reads younger to me, and I feel as though it hits more of a 13-15 year old range. That's the only thing that keeps it from hitting 5 stars for me, if this is really aimed at that 16-17 audience, it feels almost childish to have these interstitials included. The characters are awesome, though, and the story itself is definitely what I'd expect from a Marvel book! I loved it!
misfitmoxie's review against another edition
adventurous
inspiring
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
rakoerose's review against another edition
3.0
This book was a perfectly pleasant experience with great themes and a very focused demographic of early to mid teens.
"I’m working very hard on myself. Even if it is not always easy. Which it isn’t."
In this novel, we see Nadia overworking herself to juggle all the great ideas and things she wants to do, while also trying to stay in contact with those she loves, and also promoting the sciences as a field girls and women can thrive in. Her being bipolar was an unexpected addition that I found really refreshing and I hope Nadia can be a way for upcoming youths to see themselves on the page! She really hammers home the importance of her meds, therapy, and plans, which is always great to see those things get more destigmatized. Nadia also asexual and that really is something young me would have gushed over. Honestly there's a lot of great representation within this book, with girls of color, Tai with her cerebral palsy, and a sapphic couple! It's just wonderful. I wish these were the types of books I could read as a young girl.
I do wish the plot had been a little less one-note, but at the same time it fits the demographic perfectly so I'm not all too mad about it. It's a tad predictable, but I still enjoyed the ways Nadia has found herself a new family of her own choosing. Janet makes a wonderful step-mother in this scenario and I can see this dynamic honestly working well for an animated series! It's just different enough from the MCU that I think it could capture new viewers hearts if it did so.
I definitely recommend this book for those within the demographic, but for adults who are well-versed in the world of Marvel and Nadia/Hope, it may be too far a step backwards to be as enjoyable. I still had a lot of fun with it, but the word choice in particular could be potentially grating! I think this would be a great method for introducing the character you love to someone you love who's younger.
"I’m working very hard on myself. Even if it is not always easy. Which it isn’t."
In this novel, we see Nadia overworking herself to juggle all the great ideas and things she wants to do, while also trying to stay in contact with those she loves, and also promoting the sciences as a field girls and women can thrive in. Her being bipolar was an unexpected addition that I found really refreshing and I hope Nadia can be a way for upcoming youths to see themselves on the page! She really hammers home the importance of her meds, therapy, and plans, which is always great to see those things get more destigmatized. Nadia also asexual and that really is something young me would have gushed over. Honestly there's a lot of great representation within this book, with girls of color, Tai with her cerebral palsy, and a sapphic couple! It's just wonderful. I wish these were the types of books I could read as a young girl.
I do wish the plot had been a little less one-note, but at the same time it fits the demographic perfectly so I'm not all too mad about it. It's a tad predictable, but I still enjoyed the ways Nadia has found herself a new family of her own choosing. Janet makes a wonderful step-mother in this scenario and I can see this dynamic honestly working well for an animated series! It's just different enough from the MCU that I think it could capture new viewers hearts if it did so.
I definitely recommend this book for those within the demographic, but for adults who are well-versed in the world of Marvel and Nadia/Hope, it may be too far a step backwards to be as enjoyable. I still had a lot of fun with it, but the word choice in particular could be potentially grating! I think this would be a great method for introducing the character you love to someone you love who's younger.
charlmax's review against another edition
adventurous
inspiring
lighthearted
mysterious
sad
tense
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? No
3.5
pantsreads's review against another edition
3.0
2.5/5
A bit hard to follow if you're not familiar with the comics, and the plot was pretty predictable. The secondary characters were great, though—I want to see more from G.I.R.L.!
Check out my full review at Forever Young Adult.
A bit hard to follow if you're not familiar with the comics, and the plot was pretty predictable. The secondary characters were great, though—I want to see more from G.I.R.L.!
Check out my full review at Forever Young Adult.
kharereads's review against another edition
2.0
The Unstoppable Wasp relies too heavily on exposition and references to prior Marvel canon. The reader has to get 50+ pages in before there's much explanation about exactly who the main character is or her connection to the Pym family. The storyline of this book doesn't agree with some of the characterizations and plot lines of the MCU that most fans are already familiar with.
The positives are the snippets of scientific facts throughout the book, the diversity of the characters, and the inclusion of a character with a diagnosed mental illness. This book may be a good fit for another reader, but I found it difficult to read.
The positives are the snippets of scientific facts throughout the book, the diversity of the characters, and the inclusion of a character with a diagnosed mental illness. This book may be a good fit for another reader, but I found it difficult to read.
lawbooks600's review against another edition
3.0
6/10, I really didn't like this one despite its interesting premise and I think this is the first Marvel novel in prose that I read and it was just a shame that it underwhelmed me so badly. The story begins with Nadia Van Dyne and 4 other girls in an organisation called, guess what, G.I.R.L. The pacing of this book is sluggish considering that this book is less than 300 pages mainly due to the prose that just goes on and on without stopping and should've been cut down for a more action packed novel but this is not the case here. Then she discovers an A.I. called VERA but looking there's a lot of books mentioning A.I. and now it's prevalent in the form of ChatGPT and DALLE so it feels really uncanny looking at it now since it looks like unintended foreshadowing due to this book being published in 2020. Anyways, VERA controls Nadia's mind and makes her all annoying and focused on her project which was a massive reason why I didn't like this book but in the end the other girls broke in to the headquarters of the person who made VERA and saved the day and that is it but another aspect I didn't like was that Nadia liked to explain things. A lot, so much so that she really got on my nerves and I almost put the book down. If you like Marvel books this one is for you but if you want a better sci-fi novel try Legend by Marie Lu.