Reviews with content warning for Homophobia - The Music of What Happens

Reviews tagging 'Homophobia'

The Music of What Happens, by Bill Konigsberg

24 reviews

mengzhenreads's review against another edition

emotional lighthearted slow-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

3.75

My favorite part about this was the personal growth that the two main characters showed. Honestly it was really beautiful to see how these characters really blossomed, and by the end of it I was 100% on board.

Max was the golden star of this book for sure, I just loved reading about his character and thought that he was wonderfully complex and super endearing. Jordan was also very well written, but something about him just vaguely annoyed by me for absolutely no reason (probably the fact that his narrator in the audiobook had an irritating voice). But, the fact that he was unlikeable in the beginning really showed his growth, as by the end of the book I genuinely felt him maturing.

Initially a bit basic, but really hooks you in and becomes really addicting and heartfelt.

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dlrosebyh's review against another edition

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emotional 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

1.5

Although it's not the worst book ever, it's also not the best. I thought the representation was fantastic. But aside from that, the book felt uninteresting. First of all, this book is advertised as being for young adults. While it's true that a young adult book can address issues like rape, sexual assault, and abuse, this one did so while using extremely disturbing and descriptive language.

Second, I detested the majority of the characters. Most of them weren't even all that unlikeable. Reading the dialogue between the characters makes me think a lot of 2013 Wattpad, and not in a good way. The characters enjoy helping one another out. It's possible to kill someone and then explain that you have to because you're depressed. I get why the author decided to incorporate a ride-or-die friendship, but if they keep giving one other the benefit of the controversy rather than calling each other out on their nasty behaviors, it isn't a true friendship.

Thirdly, I believe the writing of the characters was really problematic. Jordan and his friends have a "inside joke" where they hand out passes to one another. One can get away with anything, for instance, because they are cisgender and white, whereas the other can because they are gay and it would be homophobic not to. The jokes about skin tones and equating max's skin tone with food persisted among Max's friends. It's repulsive.

Additionally, the conflict was not adequately addressed, which raised the suspicion that these two wouldn't be together for very long. What makes a successful rom-com? A happy conclusion! Even though the conclusion was undoubtedly joyous, it raised some issues. Without giving anything away, the conclusion was really disappointing. The storylines involving Jordan's mother, Max's PTSD, and Max's baseball team are all left open-ended. Only the romance between Jordan and Max remained as the "completely solved" problem in this situation; everything else was left out.

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rayne_1906's review against another edition

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emotional 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

3.75

Audiobook - 4 hours 36 minutes - This wasn't quite what I was expecting - it was a lot heavier than it seemed in the synopsis, exploring darker themes than a book just about a summer romance would. I liked Max's character - it took me a little longer to like Jordan. There were some elements I didn't like at first but I realised towards the end of the novel that a fair few of these were intentional and specifically commented on as part of the conclusion. There were parts of this book that were extremely hard for me to read - Max's story in particular hit far too close for home and upset me a lot, but that is on me for choosing this audiobook at random without researching the content warnings. But overall, I liked the structure of this book - it diverted from the 'automatically happy ending' that I've come to expect from YA novels, and it was a refreshing change, that made sense within the context of the book.

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piperclover's review against another edition

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I don't think there's anything wrong with this book exactly but I just had a really hard time connecting with anyone with anyone. The characterizations were always slightly off for me and I never could like any of the friends. I feel like I spent more time hearing that these boys like each other then I did hearing how they know each other and why they would like each other.

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alyxinthestars's review against another edition

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emotional hopeful sad slow-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

3.75

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davidbythebay's review against another edition

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emotional funny hopeful inspiring reflective medium-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

An emotional story touching upon several difficult topics, this was a beautiful exploration of youth, coming of age, and being gay. When two gay boys take over a food truck for the summer, the story looks likes its going to be a sweet unknown/enemies to lovers trope. And it sort of is. But it's more about realizing what our boundaries are, how to communicate, the strength in speaking your truth and in supporting others' truths, and coping with significant trauma. It's about speaking what you want and having someone listen to it and abide by it. Boundaries are the key theme of this book and it handles them beautifully. Really, a sweet read that spoke volumes in a matter of pages.

TW: parent death, grief, addiction, gambling, rape, sexual assault, gaslighting, bullying

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amandalorianxo's review against another edition

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emotional slow-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? It's complicated

3.0

If you are a fan of reading more books centered around boys falling for boys, consider checking this out. Located in Arizona, Jordan and his mom are struggling to keep a food truck running (it belonged to Jordan’s deceased father) In a panic, Jordan’s mom spots a lone person aka Max and enlists his help with the food truck. There were some elements that I liked that were presented such as the Mexican American rep, the discussion of sexuality as well as the discussion of mental illness. However, Jordan was too manipulative for me to enjoy seeing him in the story for more than a few seconds. I understand there are people who are insecure, especially in their younger years but this was too much. In addition, Jordan’s mom was also written in a way that showed only the awful sides of mental illness.

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bitsandbobsdivination's review against another edition

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adventurous challenging dark emotional reflective tense medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? It's complicated
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

2.75

I really enjoyed Openly Straight and it’s Sequel but this one just didn’t hit right.

Spoiler

The friend groups I felt really uncomfortable with right from the beginning and they never really redeemed themselves by the end. The “wives” especially as they felt so over the top and stereotyped. I know it was to make a point of GBF’s but one tiny mention at the end that it changed and suddenly all was good now was weird.

That being said, most of the plot if this book felt so strange and out of order at times too. Especially since there were a ton of plots mixing together for a climax that never really got solved… It just kinda did an after school special introspection about the title for a moment and then ended?? Plus the mom clearly needed help the whole time and then just got shoved under the bus? It could have been handled so much better!

That all being said, the way in which rape, dissociation, toxic masculinity, and self-esteem were covered were done much better but still, kinda clunky, like it could have been expanded upon in less choppy ways.

I’m sure I could go on about how Jordan and Max’s relationship was built up without any real chemistry, or how we had random chapters that were full on filler, but I’m gonna end it here by saying it wasn’t all bad, but I don’t plan on reading it again…

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kcbookshelf's review against another edition

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adventurous challenging emotional funny hopeful inspiring reflective relaxing sad 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? It's complicated

5.0

I read this at least once a year and still love it!

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ranjanireviewsreads's review against another edition

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emotional lighthearted 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? It's complicated

5.0

Ever wondered what it feels like to grow up? During, it's difficult to differentiate one moment from another. In hindsight, it might be easy to merge memories.

The Music of What Happens is what I would recommend if you want the answer to that question. Bill Konigsberg uses witty, snappy language with hidden heartfelt moments to authentically portray the joy, misery, loneliness, and connection felt in the late teen years. Growing up gay, biracial, lonely; it's not something everyone can understand, much less wonder about.

Heartfelt, real, and incredibly beautiful; The Music of What Happens is a reflection of the teenage experience of coming of age, falling in love, and figuring out how to be your own person. A must read for the young adult contemporary reader.

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