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sweaterwitch16's review against another edition
emotional
funny
lighthearted
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
5.0
I just got into the series and I absolutely LOVED it!! It’s so wholesome I’m just in love 🥰
Content Warnings
Graphic: Domestic abuse and Violence
smolivreads's review against another edition
emotional
funny
inspiring
reflective
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? N/A
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
5.0
Oh crap. I love this story. 😭
I loved how real this story felt. Charlie and Nick are sweet baby angels and I want to give them both the biggest hugs. Being a teenager is really the worst, but at least your friends make it bearable. 💕 I really hope these two guys can make it through all the messiness that exists in their world. And yay for more queer stories! I love the representation the queer youth are getting these days. 🌈
I’m so ready to tear through all available volumes and then binge the show. 🥹
Content Warnings
Moderate: Homophobia
Minor: Sexual assault and Violence
anni_swanilda's review against another edition
emotional
funny
lighthearted
relaxing
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
4.75
Content Warnings
Graphic: Bullying, Homophobia, and Toxic friendship
Moderate: Sexual assault and Sexual harassment
Minor: Violence
glitterenby's review against another edition
emotional
funny
hopeful
inspiring
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? No
5.0
British high school students Charlie and Nick meet in class and quickly become friends, even though they are very different. Charlie is a nervous, soft-spoken drummer; Nick is a confident, popular, rugby player. Charlie is gay, and the whole school knows it; Nick kissed a girl in eighth grade, so obviously he’s straight. But as Saturdays spent hanging out at each other houses, lunch periods spent laughing together, and adversity deepen their friendship, they start to notice that something else is happening between them too. What to do about that, however, they have no idea.
As a bisexual person who didn’t recognize their queerness until they were in their early thirties thanks, in part, to growing up in a homophobic religious environment, I had an intense time with this book. It was healing watching these two characters get to do what I should have gotten to do when I was a teen – learn about myself, including my queerness, and learn about what friendship and love can be like. The existence of a very popular book about teens doing just that gives me hope that the world really is getting better for queer people. At the same time, this book hurt because it reminded me of how much I missed; it triggered a grief that I wasn’t expecting.
I love this graphic novel, however, for being the depiction of queer joy that I didn’t have access to when I was growing up. After so many decades of mainstream media that punishes queer people for their “deviance” by breaking up their relationships, subjecting them to dramatic insanity, or even killing them (I blame the Hayes Code for creating the “bury your gays” trope.), it’s wonderful to see pieces like this that give their characters joy and hope. While there certainly is intensity and pain in this book, we see joy in almost every moment that Charlie and Nick spend together. We especially see it in the adorable star-crossed facial expressions that the boys hide from each other but that Oseman highlights for us. We also see hope for a happy future in the growing relationship between the two.
Oseman also does a fantastic job of using Charlie and Nick’s friendship to depict healthy masculinity. While Nick’s other friends are notable for their tendencies toward homophobia and bullying (all earmarks of toxic masculinity), Charlie, an already caring and gentle character, brings out in Nick a sort of vulnerability and compassion that seems to have been hidden by his previous friendships. Together, the two, rather than competing with each other to be stronger, smarter, etc., come together to support each other emotionally and introduce each other to things that they enjoy. (One of the cutest scenes happens when Charlie shows Nick how to play the drums.) That is not to say that the boys give up all traditional markers of masculinity, however. They both turn out to be skilled athletes, enjoy videogames, and like to roughhouse.
One of the things that impresses me the most about this graphic novel, though, is how it handles the topics of domestic violence and sexual assault among boys/men in queer relationships. Domestic violence and sexual assault are often (inaccurately) depicted as something that only girls/women experience and as only existing in heterosexual relationships. Heartstopper Vol. 1 destroys all of these myths, while also signaling to the reader that these assaults are destructive and unacceptable and that boys/men who have experienced them have the right to talk about it.
My one frustration with this book is that it ends on a cliffhanger, which I think is unnecessary. Maybe I’m old-school, and maybe my two degrees in English making me too traditional, but I think that each volume in a series should include a full story arc, even as it contributes to the overall story arc of the series.
Overall, I thought this graphic novel was fantastic, and I’m looking forward to reading the next volume.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Bullying and Violence
Moderate: Domestic abuse, Homophobia, Sexual assault, and Sexual violence
aloteda's review against another edition
fast-paced
4.25
This fast-paced, queer, coming-of-age graphic book may have pulled me out of my reading slump. Heartstopper Volume 1 has over 250 pages, though one can get through them in one or two sittings. The book has very easy-to-understand writing, and some pages only contain images; the latter helps one understand the emotions of the characters better and immerses the reader in the story. I found Heartstopper Volume 1 entertaining enough to keep me reading on, with every page urging me to find out more about the two main characters who're trying to figure things out as young queer people in a hetero-normative world. I've never gotten through so many pages so quickly in my life! I'm looking forward to reading Volume 2.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Bullying, Homophobia, Sexual assault, and Violence
Concerning homophobia, the book contained the f slur.devynreadsnovels's review against another edition
emotional
funny
inspiring
lighthearted
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Bullying, Cursing, Emotional abuse, Homophobia, Mental illness, Sexual assault, Violence, Outing, Toxic friendship, and Sexual harassment
Minor: Biphobia, Panic attacks/disorders, Physical abuse, Abandonment, Alcohol, and Classism
proza's review against another edition
inspiring
lighthearted
relaxing
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
Content Warnings
Graphic: Bullying, Cursing, Homophobia, Sexual assault, and Toxic relationship
Moderate: Violence
Minor: Gaslighting
From Alice Oseman's website: Emotionally abusive relationship, One incident of a non-consensual kiss, Brief references to past homophobia, including uses of homophobic slurs, Brief references to past bullyingphoebees's review against another edition
hopeful
lighthearted
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Content Warnings
Moderate: Homophobia and Violence
aely's review against another edition
emotional
hopeful
inspiring
lighthearted
relaxing
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
This book was so flipping cute!!! It's a quick read that is absolutely adorable and I would recommend it to anyone who likes lighthearted romances without all the sex stuff.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Homophobia, Sexual assault, Toxic relationship, and Sexual harassment
Moderate: Biphobia and Toxic friendship
Minor: Body shaming, Bullying, Cursing, Sexual content, Sexual violence, and Violence
maddiearthur's review against another edition
emotional
funny
sad
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.25
Content Warnings
Graphic: Domestic abuse, Emotional abuse, Homophobia, Toxic relationship, and Violence
Moderate: Cursing
Minor: Outing