Reviews

Drama by Raina Telgemeier

Only show reviews with written explanations

kntsunmoonrising's review against another edition

1.0

I’ve been looking for books for my nibling (age 7 and a half) that have positive LGBTQ+ representation and honeys this one is not great lol.

Spoilers ahead:

TL;DR: 1/5 stars. Two queer characters exist only in relation to a cishet main character’s attraction to them. Homophobic comment by a side character is never addressed or resolved. Bi erasure. Plot boring.

The queer people exist in relation only to the main character Callie, a cishet white girl who develops crushes on every boy she meets, including two queer boys, whose joy is repeatedly overshadowed by her dramatic outbursts of “heartbreak”.

If that wasn’t bad enough, at one point a side character tells her “Maybe it’s time you started chasing after REAL men.” and Callie’s response is to ask him if he knows any (supposedly in earnest based on her facial expressions) and then rolls her eyes, and walks away in response. It’s a glaringly aggressive homophobic statement that the main character doesn’t address, and is never addressed in the story. The side character btw goes on to profess his feelings for the main character, in a “i’m only mean to you cause i like you” delivery.

On top of that the storyline is boring. Would not recommend.

hannahlopez's review against another edition

Go to review page

4.0

Such a cute story! I read it because it’s a banned book in a local school district.

favelibrarian's review against another edition

Go to review page

4.0

I really good book that deals with pre-teen sexuality.

vinpauld's review against another edition

Go to review page

4.0

I wish there had been books like this when I was eleven and twelve years old. Of course back in the 1960s, when I was in 6th, 7th and 8th grades, gay kids were invisible. I know this from my own experience. I was one of those invisible kids. At least I tried to remain invisible, scared to death that someone would be able to detect my feelings and discover the truth I was barely able to admit to myself. But I have digressed. This book, about a middle schooler named Callie who loves theater, is sweet and funny and filled with the drama of putting on a show. The story is simple, but the author, Raina Telgemeier does an excellent job of including incidents that ring true. Whether it’s a little brother super-gluing his hands together, a prop that won’t work, mishaps on opening night or temperamental cast members, this book kept me smiling until the end. I found it refreshing that the gay characters were handled in a matter of fact way and were treated the same way as the straight characters. I know that there are parents who will protest this book because of its inclusion of gay characters and I think that’s a shame. Gay kids are present in every school whether you want to believe it or not. Their presence in this book is handled in an innocent and chaste way. It’s not a big deal to the kids in this story and I think it’s sad if parents try and turn it into a big deal. Read the book for yourself, there's a lot to be learned from it.