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jenny_librarian's review against another edition
emotional
hopeful
informative
inspiring
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
4.75
I will protect Carey Parker with my life. That kid is so precious. From the very first chapter I was 100% rooting for them.
While the beginning is pretty cute, it’s not an easy read. There’s a lot of queer pain and queerphobia in this book, which made it a bit harder for me to get through. I am very much a reader of queer joy and – while the ending was worth it – it was rough getting there.
I’m not a Mariah fan, but I recognize the fangirling (term used as genderneutral here) and obsession of a specific artist that you feel understands you better than you sometimes understand yourself.
There is one mention of HP that completely took me out the story, and that I find extremely disappointing, especially coming from a genderqueer author who has to know how harmful that woman is. It was a tiny thing, a single word used as a comparison, and I wish it had been changed before publishing.
As a whole, it is a hard but inspiring story of standing up for yourself, of friends having your back and of fighting for those who can’t use their voice yet.
While the beginning is pretty cute, it’s not an easy read. There’s a lot of queer pain and queerphobia in this book, which made it a bit harder for me to get through. I am very much a reader of queer joy and – while the ending was worth it – it was rough getting there.
I’m not a Mariah fan, but I recognize the fangirling (term used as genderneutral here) and obsession of a specific artist that you feel understands you better than you sometimes understand yourself.
There is one mention of HP that completely took me out the story, and that I find extremely disappointing, especially coming from a genderqueer author who has to know how harmful that woman is. It was a tiny thing, a single word used as a comparison, and I wish it had been changed before publishing.
As a whole, it is a hard but inspiring story of standing up for yourself, of friends having your back and of fighting for those who can’t use their voice yet.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Biphobia, Hate crime, Homophobia, Physical abuse, Sexism, Terminal illness, and Transphobia
Moderate: Death, Panic attacks/disorders, Grief, and Death of parent
Minor: Sexual violence, Suicidal thoughts, Religious bigotry, and Acephobia/Arophobia
seawarrior's review against another edition
emotional
hopeful
inspiring
reflective
sad
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? Yes
4.0
There's a lot of ways I feel about this story and how I relate to it, but I'll try not to go on too long. I sincerely hope this book was as validating an experience to write as it surely will be for the genderqueer people who read it.
I began this story feeling that I couldn't see much of myself in Carey and was somewhat at odds with their melodramatic perspective of the world. Yet after reading further, I quickly became invested in their life and their dreams. Their wish to just exist authentically without having to make a political statement to do so is painfully close to my heart. I loved that as Carey grew kinder to themselves, they learned to apply similar kindness and understanding towards the people they were close to. It's very rewarding to watch a character who's a self-described diva learn to de-center themselves and prioritize their loved ones, along with those they have the power to inspire. Carey's love towards themselves and their friends and family made me love and respect them too as a reader. The supporting characters don't feel like props in Carey's play of life. Instead they are written with their own dreams, and anxieties they learn to overcome over the course of the story.
Really my only significant criticism of this story was that some of the character's speeches read more like a well-plotted lecture than organic dialogue that would realistically occur between people. However, I understand how difficult these moments must be to create as a writer, especially when your character is representing a piece of yourself. For the most part I felt this story was refreshing and inspiring, and the characters' voices will likely stick with me for a long time.
I began this story feeling that I couldn't see much of myself in Carey and was somewhat at odds with their melodramatic perspective of the world. Yet after reading further, I quickly became invested in their life and their dreams. Their wish to just exist authentically without having to make a political statement to do so is painfully close to my heart. I loved that as Carey grew kinder to themselves, they learned to apply similar kindness and understanding towards the people they were close to. It's very rewarding to watch a character who's a self-described diva learn to de-center themselves and prioritize their loved ones, along with those they have the power to inspire. Carey's love towards themselves and their friends and family made me love and respect them too as a reader. The supporting characters don't feel like props in Carey's play of life. Instead they are written with their own dreams, and anxieties they learn to overcome over the course of the story.
Really my only significant criticism of this story was that some of the character's speeches read more like a well-plotted lecture than organic dialogue that would realistically occur between people. However, I understand how difficult these moments must be to create as a writer, especially when your character is representing a piece of yourself. For the most part I felt this story was refreshing and inspiring, and the characters' voices will likely stick with me for a long time.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Biphobia, Bullying, Hate crime, Homophobia, Panic attacks/disorders, Suicidal thoughts, Transphobia, Dementia, Grief, Suicide attempt, Death of parent, and Outing
Moderate: Racism, Vomit, and Religious bigotry
imstephtacular's review against another edition
dark
emotional
hopeful
inspiring
reflective
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
5.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Bullying, Emotional abuse, Hate crime, and Homophobia
Moderate: Cursing, Mental illness, Panic attacks/disorders, Suicidal thoughts, Grief, Religious bigotry, and Suicide attempt
Minor: Death
thiscubed's review against another edition
emotional
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
so I'm super glad I stopped rating books because I have no idea how to rate this book. our main character has to go through so much trauma (suicidal ideation, misgendering, bullying, and family death to name a few) and so much of it is displayed right on the page that it doesn't necessarily feel all that uplifting, even when good shit does happen. however, you know I'm all about genderqueer characters and I really thought this was great representation, but it begs the question of it is all the trauma really worth it? like for a book that says it's an uplifting and empowering story, I didn't find it that uplifting or empowering? it was great to see a genderqueer character be unapologetically themself but idk if that alone is worth the trauma. my feelings are very conflicted.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Mental illness, Panic attacks/disorders, Suicidal thoughts, Terminal illness, Transphobia, and Dementia
Moderate: Death, Hate crime, and Religious bigotry