zquill's review against another edition
5.0
I was surprised at how subtly my fears about being "queer enough" were triggered and how well they were handled in Ramona. Her life is as realistic as it is splendidly portrayed, and all her motivations and desires come organically from her setting, molding her and being molded in turn by her actions. It was a very believable and satisfying read, and I think it's important for people who are trying to figure out exactly where they fit and where they might be going as they grow up.
sanaa912's review
funny
lighthearted
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
Cute young adult romance. One time read.
evybird's review
4.0
3.8 stars. Overall, not bad! In fact, I really really loved most of this book.
However, it had a few unfortunate problems.
----
First of all, it's about 100 pages too long. The middle really super dragged, even on audio, which usually makes slow books enjoyable for me. I don't know why so many contemporary novels these days are 400+ pages, but the vast majority of them that I have read have not needed all that length, this one included.
----
Second of all, the ending did not make all that much sense to me and honestly ruined things a bit. I was looking forward to some kind of big eventful thing that helps Ramona realize, and while she does realize those things, there didn't seem to be any big eventful thing. I didn't really understand what happened that led her to change her mind, her mind which had been very firmly made up for most of the novel. And since her changing her mind seemed like the POINT of the novel, that was a bit of a letdown.
Also,. Did I miss something? The end just felt unexplained.
----
Finally, third of all.
How does a novel with an explicitly demisexual character (Ramona's friend Ruth), also have the following passages in it, completely seriously and without addressing them as being problematic?
and
Now look, I get that these things might seem pretty minor, and you see that I'm not giving the book one or two stars because of them or anything, but really this is not a minor issue. SEXUAL DESIRE AND SEXUAL ATTRACTION ARE NOT UNIVERSAL THINGS. "Human Being" does not equal "thinks about sex."
But sexual desire is presented as universal just about everywhere. It took me until I was in my 20's to realize I was asexual because I thought that "human being" equals "sexual desire." I must have feelings of sexual attraction, right? Everyone thinks about sex. I just had to pin point which of my feelings it was. It didn't even occur to me that I could not experience sexual attraction.
Anyway, so I wanted to point these passages out because I was disappointed to see those sentences and sentiments in a book that, to me, otherwise did so great on the sexual identity side of things.
----
Things about this book that I liked!
- Ramona! And Freddie! And all the characters in general, actually.
- Exploration of bisexuality, or whatever Ramona identifies as. Realizing it's complicated.
- The whole thing with Ramona's mom thinking her liking girls is a phase--which it's not, but if she says she's dating a guy, her mom will think it is. Complicated!
- Ramona's conflicts about money and family and college. There are not that many YA books with extremely poor main characters, that I've come across. Really, this book is about family and Ramona's living situation as much as it's about sexuality.
- The audiobook narration wasn't bad!
Lots to like!
However, it had a few unfortunate problems.
----
First of all, it's about 100 pages too long. The middle really super dragged, even on audio, which usually makes slow books enjoyable for me. I don't know why so many contemporary novels these days are 400+ pages, but the vast majority of them that I have read have not needed all that length, this one included.
----
Second of all, the ending did not make all that much sense to me and honestly ruined things a bit. I was looking forward to some kind of big eventful thing that helps Ramona realize
Spoiler
she can go to college and doesn't need to only think about her sister and not herselfAlso,
Spoiler
how did all the money troubles kind of just go away at the end there, without any help? Even after their trailer got destroyed!----
Finally, third of all.
How does a novel with an explicitly demisexual character (Ramona's friend Ruth), also have the following passages in it, completely seriously and without addressing them as being problematic?
“Anyone who pretends they don’t send nudes, or partial nudes, are either celibate, still use flip phones, or lying.”
and
“I’m not a sex-crazed maniac or anything but I’m a human being. I think about sex.”
Now look, I get that these things might seem pretty minor, and you see that I'm not giving the book one or two stars because of them or anything, but really this is not a minor issue. SEXUAL DESIRE AND SEXUAL ATTRACTION ARE NOT UNIVERSAL THINGS. "Human Being" does not equal "thinks about sex."
But sexual desire is presented as universal just about everywhere. It took me until I was in my 20's to realize I was asexual because I thought that "human being" equals "sexual desire." I must have feelings of sexual attraction, right? Everyone thinks about sex. I just had to pin point which of my feelings it was. It didn't even occur to me that I could not experience sexual attraction.
Anyway, so I wanted to point these passages out because I was disappointed to see those sentences and sentiments in a book that, to me, otherwise did so great on the sexual identity side of things.
----
Things about this book that I liked!
- Ramona! And Freddie! And all the characters in general, actually.
- Exploration of bisexuality, or whatever Ramona identifies as. Realizing it's complicated.
- The whole thing with Ramona's mom thinking her liking girls is a phase--which it's not, but if she says she's dating a guy, her mom will think it is. Complicated!
- Ramona's conflicts about money and family and college. There are not that many YA books with extremely poor main characters, that I've come across. Really, this book is about family and Ramona's living situation as much as it's about sexuality.
- The audiobook narration wasn't bad!
Lots to like!
gspitz's review
emotional
reflective
medium-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
4.0
starswereenough's review
3.0
Wow, okay. I have kind of mixed feelings about this one.
Pros:
- Saul and Ruthie were pretty great.
- BLUE HAIR
- lots of rep. There were some POC, several lgbtq characters/couples (which I was not really expecting), and it had characters from lots of different family backgrounds.
- I quite liked the prom scene and the ending.
- All the threads were wrapped up nicely at the end.
- #ownvoices
- I liked the idea of the book that it was okay to still be figuring things out. At the beginning, she felt like she knew who she was and what she liked, but by the end she was still exploring and I think that’s a really valuable lesson.
Cons:
- It was kind of slow moving. It was so long and I felt like there were several scenes that were repetitive and/or not really needed.
- I felt like Freddie was actually slightly creepy at times? Like, “hey, I know you said you’re gay, but I’m going to kiss you anyway without your consent because I feel like it” creepy. Um, what now???
- Lots of angst. That’s definitely not uncommon for YA, but for whatever reason I struggled with it in this particular book.
- I had trouble connecting with Ramona and the storyline. I’m not completely sure why. Usually I read books much more quickly (this one took me almost a month as opposed to a few days) and so I’m unsure if that partly took me out of the story, or if I didn’t read it as quickly because I had trouble connecting.
If you liked Ramona Blue, I suggest:
Little and Lion by Brandy Colbert
Pros:
- Saul and Ruthie were pretty great.
- BLUE HAIR
- lots of rep. There were some POC, several lgbtq characters/couples (which I was not really expecting), and it had characters from lots of different family backgrounds.
- I quite liked the prom scene and the ending.
- All the threads were wrapped up nicely at the end.
- #ownvoices
- I liked the idea of the book that it was okay to still be figuring things out. At the beginning, she felt like she knew who she was and what she liked, but by the end she was still exploring and I think that’s a really valuable lesson.
Cons:
- It was kind of slow moving. It was so long and I felt like there were several scenes that were repetitive and/or not really needed.
- I felt like Freddie was actually slightly creepy at times? Like, “hey, I know you said you’re gay, but I’m going to kiss you anyway without your consent because I feel like it” creepy. Um, what now???
- Lots of angst. That’s definitely not uncommon for YA, but for whatever reason I struggled with it in this particular book.
- I had trouble connecting with Ramona and the storyline. I’m not completely sure why. Usually I read books much more quickly (this one took me almost a month as opposed to a few days) and so I’m unsure if that partly took me out of the story, or if I didn’t read it as quickly because I had trouble connecting.
If you liked Ramona Blue, I suggest:
Little and Lion by Brandy Colbert
mela_b24's review
hopeful
lighthearted
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? N/A
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? N/A
2.75
yearofbluewater's review
3.0
Ramona Blue was refreshingly average in almost every way. There were no particularly complex themes and nothing philosophical or memorable. It's going to take this book approximately three days to completely delete itself from my memory.
To paraphrase in two words: mostly harmless.
To paraphrase in two words: mostly harmless.
zoepagereader's review
4.0
The dialogue in this book saved it from a so-so. The plot felt a bit boring, except for a few parts.
Overall a good book, but it doesn’t stand out. 4⭐️
Overall a good book, but it doesn’t stand out. 4⭐️
thebookmagpie's review against another edition
emotional
funny
hopeful
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
renacuajo's review against another edition
4.0
4.5/5 stars
What a beautiful book this was! I’m not usually one for contemporary YA, but if they were all like this I would always have one ready to read.
This great novel deals with everything going wrong and right in Ramona Leroux’s life: family, money, sexuality/identity. Absolutely wonderful book.
What a beautiful book this was! I’m not usually one for contemporary YA, but if they were all like this I would always have one ready to read.
This great novel deals with everything going wrong and right in Ramona Leroux’s life: family, money, sexuality/identity. Absolutely wonderful book.