reclusivereader's review against another edition
3.0
Oof, I feel pulled in a lot of directions right now, and hope I manage to do an okay job at explaining my thoughts with this one. But I think, not unlike another contemporary I've read this year (likely more than one, actually..) the main issues I had with OFF THE RECORD is that I think it's just trying to do too many things.
While reading this book I had actually forgotten what the main plot point was going to be because I felt like it just took too long to get there. Which naturally made the catch-up, the acceleration of it all, that much more.. frantic. Balancing this whirlwind adventure after having won a write-in contest to interview an upcoming actor, catching feels, making friends, battling anxiety, body issues, slowly realizing said friends had experienced something terrible, being convinced to write about it in addition to the profile on the actor, have a romance, bond with a sister.. there are a lot of spinning plates.
In addition to all that, there's also some good discourse over separating art from artists, which is something I know we all struggle with; more and more each day.
I don't necessarily think anything beyond the romance really suffered for being rushed (Marius was such a soft lovely human but to be honest I wasn't really convinced by the connection) but there's also the suspension of disbelief over how quickly all the pieces fell into place for the big climax.
Sadly I also don't think I liked any of the characters. No one was awful beyond the villain of the piece (though the main sister dynamic was tough for the majority of the story) but I was reading for the story, even oddly paced as it was, more than the characters. I'm not sure why I didn't like anyone; not even Marcus, despite his soft loveliness -- but I definitely felt for them. Josie's anxiety overwhelming her, the mixed feelings about her weight and acceptance of her body, I could connect so well to both. But there was just.. something. I can't put my finger on it.
The subject matter of this story is very relevant and important -- and, of course, trigger warnings surround the whole issue so please be conscious of that -- and despite my mixed overall feelings I definitely recommend people still pick this up.
Also, as always, you should take my review and my rating with a grain of salt. Though none of my criticisms touch on anything non-plot specific, please prioritize #ownvoice reviews over my own.
** I received an ARC from the publisher (thank you!) in exchange for an honest review. **
---
This review can also be found at A Take From Two Cities.
While reading this book I had actually forgotten what the main plot point was going to be because I felt like it just took too long to get there. Which naturally made the catch-up, the acceleration of it all, that much more.. frantic. Balancing this whirlwind adventure after having won a write-in contest to interview an upcoming actor, catching feels, making friends, battling anxiety, body issues, slowly realizing said friends had experienced something terrible, being convinced to write about it in addition to the profile on the actor, have a romance, bond with a sister.. there are a lot of spinning plates.
In addition to all that, there's also some good discourse over separating art from artists, which is something I know we all struggle with; more and more each day.
I don't necessarily think anything beyond the romance really suffered for being rushed (Marius was such a soft lovely human but to be honest I wasn't really convinced by the connection) but there's also the suspension of disbelief over how quickly all the pieces fell into place for the big climax.
Sadly I also don't think I liked any of the characters. No one was awful beyond the villain of the piece (though the main sister dynamic was tough for the majority of the story) but I was reading for the story, even oddly paced as it was, more than the characters. I'm not sure why I didn't like anyone; not even Marcus, despite his soft loveliness -- but I definitely felt for them. Josie's anxiety overwhelming her, the mixed feelings about her weight and acceptance of her body, I could connect so well to both. But there was just.. something. I can't put my finger on it.
The subject matter of this story is very relevant and important -- and, of course, trigger warnings surround the whole issue so please be conscious of that -- and despite my mixed overall feelings I definitely recommend people still pick this up.
Also, as always, you should take my review and my rating with a grain of salt. Though none of my criticisms touch on anything non-plot specific, please prioritize #ownvoice reviews over my own.
** I received an ARC from the publisher (thank you!) in exchange for an honest review. **
---
This review can also be found at A Take From Two Cities.
nyashatarlia's review against another edition
3.0
When reading please acknowledge my grammar is not the best as I am dyslexic.
I don’t know what to say. This book is powerful in so many ways especially with everything that’s been going on in Hollywood and people like Harvey Weinstein, This book is more than needed especially for young And young aspiring actors and actresses who may find themselves in similar situations.
I was more captivated by the main storyline of sexual assaults in the movie industry than the actual story itself as the writing was abit boring.
Their was bit too many storylines at once which made it a bit washed for example: the sexual assault; The body image issues; Romance; anxiety just becoming a bit hard keeping up with them and because there was so many some of them lacked believability. Such as the relationship between Josie and Marius, it just didn’t seem genuine it seemed very forced, Which me the ending a bit dull for me.
However as stated at the beginning of this with you I would recommend this book because of the topics at hand.
I don’t know what to say. This book is powerful in so many ways especially with everything that’s been going on in Hollywood and people like Harvey Weinstein, This book is more than needed especially for young And young aspiring actors and actresses who may find themselves in similar situations.
I was more captivated by the main storyline of sexual assaults in the movie industry than the actual story itself as the writing was abit boring.
Their was bit too many storylines at once which made it a bit washed for example: the sexual assault; The body image issues; Romance; anxiety just becoming a bit hard keeping up with them and because there was so many some of them lacked believability. Such as the relationship between Josie and Marius, it just didn’t seem genuine it seemed very forced, Which me the ending a bit dull for me.
However as stated at the beginning of this with you I would recommend this book because of the topics at hand.
irma_lonnqvist's review against another edition
4.0
4,5⭐️ this book was amazing, I love a feminist book with women who fight the patriarch. I really loved this book and did really connect with the MC and I thought it brought up very important themes and handle them very well.
zinelib's review against another edition
5.0
Josie is a high school student journalist, who has already begun her career, writing for Essence. Then she wins a contest with a mainstream magazine and gets to cover a film premier and write a cover profile of the film's young star, Marius, who is one of two Black members of the cast. Marius, like Josie, is queer, as is his character, a boy who endures conversion therapy. The film's director and headliners are straight white guys, and right away Josie, along with some other Black critics have questions the press junket organizers didn't expect.
It turns out there's a bigger story, though, an abusive director of another film who has assaulted or otherwise harassed an untold number of actors and film staff. Reporting on the abuse is scary for Josie, who herself has survived assault, not that she recognized it as assault at the time. Josie is on the tour with her older sister, Alice, who Josie doesn't get along with as well as her oldest sister, but the experience brings them closer.
Each chapter is headed by a sharp, funny, or vulnerable tweet. There's also a love story and Josie working through feelings of anxiety and concerns about her size. She's fat, unlike her sisters and all the movie stars she finds herself among.
I really loved this book and hated for it to end.
It turns out there's a bigger story, though, an abusive director of another film who has assaulted or otherwise harassed an untold number of actors and film staff. Reporting on the abuse is scary for Josie, who herself has survived assault, not that she recognized it as assault at the time. Josie is on the tour with her older sister, Alice, who Josie doesn't get along with as well as her oldest sister, but the experience brings them closer.
Each chapter is headed by a sharp, funny, or vulnerable tweet. There's also a love story and Josie working through feelings of anxiety and concerns about her size. She's fat, unlike her sisters and all the movie stars she finds herself among.
I really loved this book and hated for it to end.
lanaprice's review against another edition
5.0
Trigger warning: Sexual assault and sexual harassment.
I. Love. This. Book.
I was so surprised when I picked up this book. I got into it pretty quickly, and I fell in love with Josie quickly. She's a 17-year-old fat, queer, black girl. There is so much representation in this book, and I am so glad it will be out there for young people to read.
Josie is a high schooler who is also a journalist. She write movie reviews for magazines and freelances articles in her spare time when she is not working on school. Josie wins a contest to write a profile on Marius, a 19-year-old actor in movie about teens in a conversion camp. She quickly becomes friends with both Marius and Penny whoa are cast members of the movie. The three of them spend a lot of time together and become friends. In the course of writing the profile on Marius, Josie learns some disturbing things about the movie industry. She and Penny dig up some information that leads to a separate piece and embark on some investigative journalism.
This contest ends up changing Josie's life in so many ways. She blooms as a writer and as a person. Josie is a certified bad***, and I can't wait for more people to meet her!
I. Love. This. Book.
I was so surprised when I picked up this book. I got into it pretty quickly, and I fell in love with Josie quickly. She's a 17-year-old fat, queer, black girl. There is so much representation in this book, and I am so glad it will be out there for young people to read.
Josie is a high schooler who is also a journalist. She write movie reviews for magazines and freelances articles in her spare time when she is not working on school. Josie wins a contest to write a profile on Marius, a 19-year-old actor in movie about teens in a conversion camp. She quickly becomes friends with both Marius and Penny whoa are cast members of the movie. The three of them spend a lot of time together and become friends. In the course of writing the profile on Marius, Josie learns some disturbing things about the movie industry. She and Penny dig up some information that leads to a separate piece and embark on some investigative journalism.
This contest ends up changing Josie's life in so many ways. She blooms as a writer and as a person. Josie is a certified bad***, and I can't wait for more people to meet her!
nodaybutoday05's review against another edition
5.0
Camryn Garrett writes amazing and REAL books. I loved the first one and I also loved this one! She covets real and tough topics so flawlessly, and makes me really think about things. Can't wait for more books from this lovely author!
cowmingo's review against another edition
4.0
3.5 stars. I think it was 4 stars until the last chapter. I just wished for a different ending. Content warnings for talk of sexual assault. Definitely a great read with tough subject matter. And man oh man, as a fat woman, did I feel the main character's struggles with every fiber of my being.
haynoelle96's review against another edition
3.0
In terms of enjoyment, Off the Record is probably more of a 3.5 star than a 3, but I'm rounding down based on the amount of "suspense of disbelief" that is required when reading this book. I liked what was covered in this book and how the author did it: feminism, sexual assault, thoughts about the future, and the confrontation of people who abuse their power and those under them. Though it was relatively short (which is another reason why I rounded down) I felt like it covered the topics well with the page count that it had.
Our main character really sold me on this book. I've never read anything by Camryn Garrett, but her writing of Josie totally convinced me to read anything else she writes. You can practically feel Josie leaping off the page with how realistic and relatable she feels. She's a fat, anxious, lovable, morally good journalist that just wants to find her place in the world and I loved it. Josie's interactions with the other character were also super interesting and fun to read. I will say that I didn't like Josie's siter AT ALL and though there was a discussion on how sometimes the way she says makes Josie feel bad about herself, I felt like there wasn't true catharsis for how Josie's sister interacted with her. All of the other side characters are a little flat, but I had such a fun time reading this book that I didn't mind all that much.
You really get into Josie's head while reading this book and that made it go by all the faster. It was super interesting and cool to read where Josie's head was at while she was trying to write an article on a young up and coming actor and also trying to gather information about a huge Hollywood producer that was and had sexually assaulted multiple people in the industry. The pacing was on point and I never felt like the book was boring or was super rushed at any point, except maybe the end.
There was a bit of suspension of disbelief that was required for this book, but it was a little too high for my taste. I'm not going to get into specifics because 'spoilers' but if you read it you'll get it. The suspension of disbelief didn't make the book less enjoyable to read, but if this irritates you, you might have an issue with Off the Record. Having the ending end the way that it did was an interesting choice, but I was left a little unsatisfied. Felt like the author could've added a prologue or something to show us a bit of Josie's future but that's just me.
And that's pretty much all I have to say on it!! If you read the synopsis and that intrigues you, then give this book a try!! You'll fall in love with Josie and her story and you root for her the entire time. I really hope everybody enjoys this book as much as I did or more!! Happy Reading!!!
And the romance?! For heaven's sake, there didn't really need to be one in this book, but I understand the YA genre so I get it. It wasn't really developed and felt super shallow. Both characters separate were great!! But the ending with them meeting up at the premiere or theater or wherever it was was weird and reminded me of the ending of that Disney movie Starstruck?
Also!!! How did their relationship turn out?? How is Josie handling the press?? The paparazzi??
The world may never know.
And the pacing of the book WAS good, but it still felt weirdly rushed with the story that Josie was writing about the sexual assault. IDK how to explain it.
Our main character really sold me on this book. I've never read anything by Camryn Garrett, but her writing of Josie totally convinced me to read anything else she writes. You can practically feel Josie leaping off the page with how realistic and relatable she feels. She's a fat, anxious, lovable, morally good journalist that just wants to find her place in the world and I loved it. Josie's interactions with the other character were also super interesting and fun to read. I will say that I didn't like Josie's siter AT ALL and though there was a discussion on how sometimes the way she says makes Josie feel bad about herself, I felt like there wasn't true catharsis for how Josie's sister interacted with her. All of the other side characters are a little flat, but I had such a fun time reading this book that I didn't mind all that much.
You really get into Josie's head while reading this book and that made it go by all the faster. It was super interesting and cool to read where Josie's head was at while she was trying to write an article on a young up and coming actor and also trying to gather information about a huge Hollywood producer that was and had sexually assaulted multiple people in the industry. The pacing was on point and I never felt like the book was boring or was super rushed at any point, except maybe the end.
There was a bit of suspension of disbelief that was required for this book, but it was a little too high for my taste. I'm not going to get into specifics because 'spoilers' but if you read it you'll get it. The suspension of disbelief didn't make the book less enjoyable to read, but if this irritates you, you might have an issue with Off the Record. Having the ending end the way that it did was an interesting choice, but I was left a little unsatisfied. Felt like the author could've added a prologue or something to show us a bit of Josie's future but that's just me.
And that's pretty much all I have to say on it!! If you read the synopsis and that intrigues you, then give this book a try!! You'll fall in love with Josie and her story and you root for her the entire time. I really hope everybody enjoys this book as much as I did or more!! Happy Reading!!!
Spoiler
It could be a family dynamic that I'm not quite understanding, but I thought the relationship between Josie and her sister needed to be discussed or handled more but because the book was so short there was no time. Sure, she was there when Josie needed her at times, but other times she was a little ungrateful and mean. Again, this was just my opinion.And the romance?! For heaven's sake, there didn't really need to be one in this book, but I understand the YA genre so I get it. It wasn't really developed and felt super shallow. Both characters separate were great!! But the ending with them meeting up at the premiere or theater or wherever it was was weird and reminded me of the ending of that Disney movie Starstruck?
Also!!! How did their relationship turn out?? How is Josie handling the press?? The paparazzi??
The world may never know.
And the pacing of the book WAS good, but it still felt weirdly rushed with the story that Josie was writing about the sexual assault. IDK how to explain it.
anyaemilie's review against another edition
5.0
Thank you to Knopf Books for Young Readers (via NetGalley) for the ARC!
Content warnings:
Some vague spoilery things below? Kinda? Proceed at your own risk. I didn't want to block out the whole review but I couldn't find a good place to block out spoilers
I am still very wound up from the last 25% of this book, but I am going to try to write a cohesive review!
Josie Wright is in her last year of high school, and the one thing she’s sure about in her life is her writing. She has anxiety, she’s fat (which she has made her peace with), and she doesn’t have any close friends. But damn, she knows she’s a good writer. She’s only 17, but she’s already had articles published, and this contest to write a profile for an up-and-coming actor for a major magazine is just the next step in what promises to be a prolific journalistic career. Josie is invited on a press tour to write a profile for Marius Canet, a young actor who is about to make it big, hopefully with the help of Josie’s in-depth reporting. However, while on the tour, Josie is approached by one of Marius’ costars, Penny, about Roy Lennox, a renowned and beloved Hollywood director. Marius has just signed on to be in Lennox’s next movie and Penny reveals to Josie that Lennox sexually harassed her on the set of an earlier film at the beginning of Penny’s career. Josie is floored by this news, and now she has to decide whether she can take on Penny’s story, and the stories of the countless other women Lennox has abused, and if she can even do that while doing justice to her original assignment.
There is a lot going on in this book! There was a point when I was about 70% of the way through that I wasn’t sure how all the different plot threads were going to be wrapped up, but I thought it ended strongly.
I really liked the anxiety rep in this book. Josie has anxiety, and it manifests itself in many ways throughout the book. She is aware of it, and she tries to handle it, but sometimes she lets it get in the way of things. There was an especially poignant scene with her sister Alice that I liked: she reminded Josie that just because she has anxiety doesn’t mean she isn’t allowed to be emotional. Josie spent a lot of the time trying to hide her anxiety or to not let it get in the way or bother those around her, but Alice reminded her that so many people have it, and that Josie shouldn’t think of it as being a burden. It shouldn't be something you have to carry on your own or something to be ashamed of, which I thought was a powerful message.
Josie’s fatness is also an important part of her character and of her development. She says at the beginning of the book she knows she is fat, and she doesn’t want people to dance around that fact, or be afraid to use the word. But she still suffers from some insecurities around it. She looks at her sisters and is envious of how beautiful and thin they are. She makes sure to vocalize to herself that she is beautiful as well, but with so much of society telling us fat people are not and cannot be beautiful, it’s hard! So being 17 and already being that self-aware is an achievement. It’s impossible not to fall back into the trap of idolizing the thin (and let’s be real, mostly white) bodies that we are told are the epitome of beauty. Josie finds herself beautiful, but still worries about what other people think of her. As a fat Black girl, she knows she’s not put forth as the standard of beauty, no matter what she thinks of herself, so a little insecurity about other people’s opinions is natural! I think this is handled gracefully and realistically throughout the book, and I couldn’t help but empathize with Josie on this particular subject.
I want to talk a little bit about the plot here before I wrap things up. It took me longer to read this book than my usual rate (10 days as opposed to my usual 2 or 3 for YA contemporary). The beginning was a tad slow for me, but things started picking up around the halfway point. The last quarter of the book was so fast and furious, and it felt like I was living the action right alongside Josie! I don’t want to spoil anything, but Garrett really brings you right in the middle of all the action of the last act of the book, and it is super engaging, and honestly a big part of why I gave this book 5 stars.
Overall, a really great sophomore effort from Camryn Garrett, and a super timely addition to the YA contemporary genre! I really hope it resonates with teen readers because it has an important message while not being preachy at all. And a cute romance thrown in for a bonus!
Content warnings:
Spoiler
sexual assault (multiple instances mentioned, one described on page in memory), body imageSome vague spoilery things below? Kinda? Proceed at your own risk. I didn't want to block out the whole review but I couldn't find a good place to block out spoilers
I am still very wound up from the last 25% of this book, but I am going to try to write a cohesive review!
Josie Wright is in her last year of high school, and the one thing she’s sure about in her life is her writing. She has anxiety, she’s fat (which she has made her peace with), and she doesn’t have any close friends. But damn, she knows she’s a good writer. She’s only 17, but she’s already had articles published, and this contest to write a profile for an up-and-coming actor for a major magazine is just the next step in what promises to be a prolific journalistic career. Josie is invited on a press tour to write a profile for Marius Canet, a young actor who is about to make it big, hopefully with the help of Josie’s in-depth reporting. However, while on the tour, Josie is approached by one of Marius’ costars, Penny, about Roy Lennox, a renowned and beloved Hollywood director. Marius has just signed on to be in Lennox’s next movie and Penny reveals to Josie that Lennox sexually harassed her on the set of an earlier film at the beginning of Penny’s career. Josie is floored by this news, and now she has to decide whether she can take on Penny’s story, and the stories of the countless other women Lennox has abused, and if she can even do that while doing justice to her original assignment.
There is a lot going on in this book! There was a point when I was about 70% of the way through that I wasn’t sure how all the different plot threads were going to be wrapped up, but I thought it ended strongly.
I really liked the anxiety rep in this book. Josie has anxiety, and it manifests itself in many ways throughout the book. She is aware of it, and she tries to handle it, but sometimes she lets it get in the way of things. There was an especially poignant scene with her sister Alice that I liked: she reminded Josie that just because she has anxiety doesn’t mean she isn’t allowed to be emotional. Josie spent a lot of the time trying to hide her anxiety or to not let it get in the way or bother those around her, but Alice reminded her that so many people have it, and that Josie shouldn’t think of it as being a burden. It shouldn't be something you have to carry on your own or something to be ashamed of, which I thought was a powerful message.
Josie’s fatness is also an important part of her character and of her development. She says at the beginning of the book she knows she is fat, and she doesn’t want people to dance around that fact, or be afraid to use the word. But she still suffers from some insecurities around it. She looks at her sisters and is envious of how beautiful and thin they are. She makes sure to vocalize to herself that she is beautiful as well, but with so much of society telling us fat people are not and cannot be beautiful, it’s hard! So being 17 and already being that self-aware is an achievement. It’s impossible not to fall back into the trap of idolizing the thin (and let’s be real, mostly white) bodies that we are told are the epitome of beauty. Josie finds herself beautiful, but still worries about what other people think of her. As a fat Black girl, she knows she’s not put forth as the standard of beauty, no matter what she thinks of herself, so a little insecurity about other people’s opinions is natural! I think this is handled gracefully and realistically throughout the book, and I couldn’t help but empathize with Josie on this particular subject.
I want to talk a little bit about the plot here before I wrap things up. It took me longer to read this book than my usual rate (10 days as opposed to my usual 2 or 3 for YA contemporary). The beginning was a tad slow for me, but things started picking up around the halfway point. The last quarter of the book was so fast and furious, and it felt like I was living the action right alongside Josie! I don’t want to spoil anything, but Garrett really brings you right in the middle of all the action of the last act of the book, and it is super engaging, and honestly a big part of why I gave this book 5 stars.
Overall, a really great sophomore effort from Camryn Garrett, and a super timely addition to the YA contemporary genre! I really hope it resonates with teen readers because it has an important message while not being preachy at all. And a cute romance thrown in for a bonus!