deadgirlwalking23's review against another edition
3.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death of parent, Homophobia, and Infidelity
Moderate: Drug use, Racism, and Cancer
Minor: Death, Transphobia, and Sexual content
luananki's review
emotional
hopeful
reflective
fast-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
i don’t know how to rate only on the weekends. i enjoyed most of the story but it hurt and made me angry in so many ways to see mack causing so much pain.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death of parent, Homophobia, and Toxic friendship
Moderate: Racism, Cancer, Alcohol, Fatphobia, Drug use, and Infidelity
Minor: Transphobia, Death, Sexual content, and Terminal illness
bookish_afrolatina's review against another edition
hopeful
reflective
sad
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.0
Only on the Weekends by Dean Atta is about gay Black teen boy named Mack going through some of the typical feelings one might in high school. He has crushes and acts silly with his crew. Mack befriends a classmate named Maz who happens to be the cousin of Mack’s crush, “K” (Karim). Mack and K grow closer and admit their feelings for one another but their bond is put to the test when Mack’s dad insists that his son join him in Scotland as he directs his latest film. On top of these usual challenges, Mack is immediately attracted to the star of the project, an actor named Fin (Finlay). Fin is generous and open with his affection towards Mack, unlike K. Mack is unsure of how to handle this new development after he thought he was happy with K.
Review:
I gave this book 3 stars because I can see how the representation on the page may positively impact queer teens today. Unfortunately, the plot dragged quite a bit and couldn’t keep my attention. It took me quite some time to finish this book despite it being in verse. While I can remember making dumb mistakes like Mack as a teen, reading about it was a bit annoying because I couldn’t connect with Mack. It seemed like his entire personality was focused on crushes, his dad/parents, and his friends. He didn’t have anything he really liked aside from wearing make up from time to time. It would have been nice to see him have something he’s passionate about. If that was make-up, maybe writing about Mack watching tutorials online a lot or doing his own. It just seemed like everyone else had a hobby or passion aside from him.
This book was just okay.
Review:
I gave this book 3 stars because I can see how the representation on the page may positively impact queer teens today. Unfortunately, the plot dragged quite a bit and couldn’t keep my attention. It took me quite some time to finish this book despite it being in verse. While I can remember making dumb mistakes like Mack as a teen, reading about it was a bit annoying because I couldn’t connect with Mack. It seemed like his entire personality was focused on crushes, his dad/parents, and his friends. He didn’t have anything he really liked aside from wearing make up from time to time. It would have been nice to see him have something he’s passionate about. If that was make-up, maybe writing about Mack watching tutorials online a lot or doing his own. It just seemed like everyone else had a hobby or passion aside from him.
This book was just okay.
Content Warnings
Minor: Death of parent, Infidelity, and Homophobia
leonormsousa's review
emotional
inspiring
lighthearted
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? No
3.5
Content Warnings
Moderate: Bullying, Cancer, Death of parent, Infidelity, Dysphoria, Homophobia, Racism, and Terminal illness
cwatson1234's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
emotional
funny
hopeful
fast-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? Yes
4.25
Content Warnings
Graphic: Homophobia
utopiastateofmind's review against another edition
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
4.0
(Disclaimer: I received this book from the publisher. This has not impacted my review which is unbiased and honest.)
Only on the Weekends is a story where I just allowed myself to be swept away. So many times I wasn't sure where it was going, but Atta always lead us in the right direction. It's one of those books where the messiness of life, mistakes, and love are on display. For Mack, he has these expectations of what love will be like. What it will feel like for his crush to notice him. That when it happens, things don't feel real or like he expected. And that's the thing with expectations. They never happen like what we suspect.
In this world, for a black gay teen it is dangerous for them to exist. To have the racism of people following their movements in stores, or the homophobia which haunts their decisions. And everyone is at different stages of their own journey. Of life altering decisions we make and things about us we didn't want to see. We can think we are being honest, and we can be trying to, but when we hide things also from ourselves, transparency becomes clouded.
Only on the Weekends is a story where I just allowed myself to be swept away. So many times I wasn't sure where it was going, but Atta always lead us in the right direction. It's one of those books where the messiness of life, mistakes, and love are on display. For Mack, he has these expectations of what love will be like. What it will feel like for his crush to notice him. That when it happens, things don't feel real or like he expected. And that's the thing with expectations. They never happen like what we suspect.
In this world, for a black gay teen it is dangerous for them to exist. To have the racism of people following their movements in stores, or the homophobia which haunts their decisions. And everyone is at different stages of their own journey. Of life altering decisions we make and things about us we didn't want to see. We can think we are being honest, and we can be trying to, but when we hide things also from ourselves, transparency becomes clouded.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Racism and Homophobia
antonique_reads's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
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? Yes
4.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Racism
Minor: Homophobia
agathecadieux's review against another edition
emotional
slow-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
ARC from Netgalley, Harper Collins Canada.
This was a beautiful read, as always with Dean Atta. The writing is incredible and the characters are lovely. I didn't connect as much with the story as I did with Black flamingo, and I didn't really liked the relationships, even though I think this was the goal of the book. I still liked this story and recommand it!
Ce livre était une lecture magnifique, comme toujours avec Dean Atta. L'écriture est incroyable, et les personnages attachants. Je n'ai toutefois pas autant connecté avec l'histoire comme ça avait été le cas avec Black Flamingo, et je n'ai pas vraiment aimé les relations amoureuses, bien que je pense que cela était un peu le but du livre. J'ai tout de même aimé l'histoire et je la recommande!
Thank you to the publishers for allowing me to review this book!
This was a beautiful read, as always with Dean Atta. The writing is incredible and the characters are lovely. I didn't connect as much with the story as I did with Black flamingo, and I didn't really liked the relationships, even though I think this was the goal of the book. I still liked this story and recommand it!
Ce livre était une lecture magnifique, comme toujours avec Dean Atta. L'écriture est incroyable, et les personnages attachants. Je n'ai toutefois pas autant connecté avec l'histoire comme ça avait été le cas avec Black Flamingo, et je n'ai pas vraiment aimé les relations amoureuses, bien que je pense que cela était un peu le but du livre. J'ai tout de même aimé l'histoire et je la recommande!
Thank you to the publishers for allowing me to review this book!
Content Warnings
Moderate: Homophobia, Death of parent, Drug use, Fatphobia, Death, Grief, Body shaming, Chronic illness, Terminal illness, and Toxic relationship
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