Reviews tagging 'Lesbophobia'

The Lesbiana's Guide to Catholic School by Sonora Reyes

181 reviews

lesliermonk's review against another edition

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funny hopeful lighthearted reflective fast-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Character
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.75


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cats_and_rabbits's review against another edition

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emotional funny inspiring reflective 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? It's complicated

4.75

I thoroughly enjoyed this book and its twists and turns.  I began to feel so attached to both siblings and each of their journeys, and felt wistful when I completed the book. I am hoping for a spinoff that features the narrator’s brother.

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alyal's review against another edition

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adventurous emotional funny hopeful inspiring 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? Yes

5.0

I loved this book, the characters and the way the author writes the character, even the small ones, is so realistic and authentic.
I was just kind of sad that her mom ended up accepting her and her brother
but that's only because it doesn't line up with my life experience, which is something I shouldn't expect from these kinds of books lol. 

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jachnax's review against another edition

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emotional funny informative inspiring sad 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? It's complicated

4.75


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izzyreads13's review against another edition

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challenging emotional funny hopeful inspiring lighthearted reflective 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? Yes

3.0

So I, enjoyed this book, I had a few things that I didn’t quite love, but the overall story it was trying to tell did speak to me and the characters felt very very real. They were relatable to those of the LGBTQ community and I can see why people enjoyed this book so much. But here are a few things that really threw me off while reading 

-> the mentions of modern day things didn’t do it for me. This book mentions tik tok, Etsy, fortnite and a bunch of modern day things that I personally didn’t enjoy. I feel like these mentions limits the books ability to last a long time just because as the internet grows some of these things are bound to be forgotten or just seen to be cringy and as someone who likes to get lost in a book and not really think of real life things, the mentions of these social media related things didn’t help that. I felt as though it kind of pulled you out of the story at times and it just wasn’t my favorite 

-> while a lot of the feelings in this book feels real some of the scenarios don’t, such as the last thing that occurs in this book, it feels very book-y, as in I couldn’t imagine it happening in real life especially in a book that mentions so many real world things.

On the contrary there are a few things I did like about this book such as how LGBTQ members feel about certain things and navigating the world, the feeling you get when you’re worried of making friends uncomfortable, not knowing how to navigate your feelings, those sorts of things. There were a lot of things I found myself relating to and some of the quotes really hit close to home. However my “lower” rating for this book simply comes from the fact that I don’t see it being a book I often thing about or care for. I did enjoy reading it when I did, I did finish it rather quickly, I did like the book more then I didn’t, however it felt more like a very mild pallet cleanser and I think that’s all it was for me. Was a cute simple romance story navigating struggles, very real struggles, but I’m a reader who enjoys getting lost in more fantastical things and I think that’s why this book didn’t quite do it for me.

I do still recommend it for any member of the LGBTQ community who wants to feel heard to some extent and just wants a cute simply story that they’re going to fly by and relate to. If you do decide to read this book, happy reading!

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therainbowshelf's review against another edition

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challenging emotional reflective tense 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

Yamilet doesn't feel comfortable at her catholic school for many reasons, from being low-income to navigating her queerness. An excellent, complex read that really delves into the characters' feelings and explores a lot of issues that intersect in people's lives. I loved Yamilet and enjoyed seeing all of the directions her story takes. 

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bmceleney's review against another edition

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emotional funny hopeful reflective sad 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

4.0


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unhingedbookbitch's review against another edition

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emotional funny hopeful inspiring 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

This audiobook just left me soooo happy. Like I loved the beginning and momentarily lost interest around 25% but then 30% it did a 180 for me and I GOT SUCKED IN. Like it took me 10 to listen to the first 25% then I finished the remaining 75% in one sitting. I got so into it that I downloaded the ebook of it from my library so I could finish the last 2 chapters while watching a movie. The writing felt so authentic and just easy to read and the characters were all likeable yet flawed (like they felt like real people) and the just seeing my Latine heritage celebrated in a book (especially involving a Catholic school which traumatized my high school years) was UGHH SOOOO DELICIOUS. 

Just like 10s across the board - good story, lovable characters, diverse representation, and all the emotions. Just call her Inside Out 3: My Gay Awakening. 

Another thing I think the author did sooo well was portray multiple life lessons and reflective situations without it being preachy or overwhelming or messy. I feel like coming of age novels try to do so much sometimes and pack a million situations that teach lessons into one book but lose the point along the way. This book was able to tackle like difficult and deep shit like religion, r@cism (especially deportation and police brutality towards POC), social classes, hømophobia, and more. It can be hard to juggle all the messages you want to send in a book without it becoming jumbled up and I just think this author did that so well with that while still making a great story. 

So I can’t speak on the lesbian representation accuracy, but I can say (as a Latina myself) that the Latine rep was so accurate. Especially as an eldest daughter in a Latine family cause like that’s a whole other level my dude. I know Reyes (the author) is latine but idk if they’re an eldest child cause so much of what was placed upon Yami from her family (and expectations and responsibilities she placed on herself) and thoughts and feels she had as an eldest Latina daughter hit the nail on the head for me. 

The romance UGHHHH I WAS TEEHEE GIGGLING!!! I WAS HOLDING MY BREATH!!! I WAS CRYING!!!! Such a sweet and genuine blossoming romance with a love that helped a little Latina girl stand up for herself GOD SO GOOD😫 

This has easily become one of my fave reads this year. So much heart and thoughtfulness throughout this story GET ME A SPECIAL EDITON HARDCOVER VERSION TO PUT ON MY SHELF NOW!!!!

Ok this last part is a bit spoilery & discusses sųicide so proceed with caution or don’t proceed at all:

So I had a feeling someone was going to be sųicidal before I read this book based on what some people told me. I always get a little hesitant to read anything relating to sųicide cause I was sųicidal not that long ago. I’m not going to get into it but just understand that I’m healing and I could feel fine one day then the next I’m very depressed so I just tend to stay away from the subject just in case. Honestly that could’ve been why I hit a momentary lull 25% in, because I could see Cesar start displaying signs. But I continued reading this anyway and I’m glad I did. The book was able to tackle this heavy subject with grace and honesty. It actually made a small portion of the book but left an impact in a positive way. I think Reyes especially handled the aftermath of hospitalization and the start of the healing journey sooo well. It’s a bit awkward but (with the right kind of support) it slowly starts. And some days are dark days even if the day started out well. I just really appreciated the honesty, rawness, and compassion toward the subject. 

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nenaveenstra's review against another edition

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lighthearted 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

3.0

I think this book has the potential to change the lives of a lot of teens, but only if they don’t get to Adam Silvera’s and Becky Albertalli’s work first. 

It took a while for me to get into this book. For the first three quarters, it felt like an nth iteration of a book I’d read before: closeted queer kid doesn’t communicate with anyone, jumps to all the wrong conclusions and is surprised when things turn out differently than expected. I found the plot/character beats highly predictable, the lack of communication incredibly irritating, and the characters very flat. Especially the main character - I found myself thinking multiple times that I was much more interested in Cesar’s perspective than his sister, Yami’s. 

I think my main gripe with this book is that it’s inconsistent. There’s a lot of loose ends here; story arcs that never get resolved, characters that get introduced but never get their on-screen moment, and character relationships that don’t really make sense.
Like the fact that Yami didn’t see how much Cesar was struggling, when they’re supposedly such close siblings. What happened to telepathy?
The book started off with a job hunt, the significance of which was unclear by the end of the book. Yami’s ex-best friend came to visit a couple of times, but they never got the chance to talk. Stuff like that. 

That being said, the last 25% of this book was really cute.
I like that Yami obviously grew as a person, being able to stand up for herself and Bo, and that she got to have her happy ending. I’m glad she opened up to Bo about everything that happened with Bianca, and Cesar’s suicide attempt.
I wouldn’t tell anyone not to read this book, but I just don’t think it adds much to the literary landscape of queer YA. 

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ruthiedr89's review against another edition

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challenging emotional funny hopeful inspiring sad tense 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

4.25


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