Reviews

All Out: The No-Longer-Secret Stories of Queer Teens Throughout the Ages by Saundra Mitchell

indigo_fox's review against another edition

adventurous emotional hopeful reflective

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? N/A
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? N/A

4.0

Overall, I enjoyed this anthology. It's always nice to see LGBTQ+ characters in stories. It's not something I was able to grow up with so I love being able to read them now. The writing was fantastic for a lot of these stories. I found myself getting lost in the world with quite a few of them, although there were some that I struggled to push through and others that were just meh.

I've rated the individual stories below. 

• Roja (3.5): I loved the magical realism aspect of this story. 
• The Sweet Trade (4): This one was very fun! I was easily pulled into the story! I love this writing style! 
• And They Don't Kiss at the End (4): This was a good one! I love the ace spec rep, it's always hard to find. 
• Burt Umber (4): I love Augustus. I loved the setting for this story too. I've been on an art kick since watching Blue Period XD
• The Dresser and the Chambermaid (3.25): Seemed kinda slow and not my favorite writing style.It did get me to smile a few times tho!
• New Year (3) Writing style didn't draw me in, I kept putting it down to give myself a break before pushing forward. 
• Molly's Lips (4) I might be biased on this one. 
• The Coven (3)
• Every Shade of Red (3.75) I always enjoy a Robin Hood story.
• Willows (2.5) This one was very wordy. It was kind of a drag to read but the ending was nice. 
• The Girl with the Blue Lantern (3.75) This one is giving fairytales. I really enjoyed it but fantasy is my favorite genre. 
• The Secret Life of a Teenage Boy (4.25) Loved this one, especially the end. 
• Walking After Midnight (4.25) I loved this story more than I thought I would when I started it. 
• The End of the World As We Know It (3.75) 
• Three Witches (3) I am confused...other than that it was a good read. 
• The Inferno & The Butterfly (4)
• Healing Rosa (4.5)

 

iloveadamparrish's review

4.0

actual rating: 4.5

there's something strangely cathartic about reading the untold stories of queer people throughout history. i don't normally enjoy short stories because i'm a very character-driven reader. this anthology, however, manages to balance character-based plots with more atmospheric and poetic musings.

the stories that stood out to me were:
1. roja by anna-marie mclemore
2. burnt umber by mackenzi lee
3. every shade of red by elliot wake
4. the girl with the blue lantern by tess sharpe
5. the inferno & the butterfly by shaun david hutchinson
6. healing rosa by tehlor kay mejia

i'm totally checking out everything ever written by the above authors. with the exception of tess sharpe, as of recent, i'd never read any of them prior to this anthology and am very thankful for this lovely introduction.

my only gripe with this book is that every story takes place in europe or america. that isn't inherently a bad thing, but more diverse settings could have been a step up in my opinion.

tl;dr: read it

readabouttheafterlife's review against another edition

fast-paced

3.5

femininomenon's review

4.0

4.5/5

Could've been a 5/5 but some of these didn't click with me. Still an amazing read, would definitely recommend.

readingwithrae's review

4.0

roja by anna-marie mclemore : ★★★★ 1/2

anna-marie mclemore already owns my ass we been knew but this was *chef's kiss* exquisite

the sweet trade by natalie c. parker : ★★

this one... ain't it, chief. it just didn't rouse any emotions in me at all??? and i thought the relationship was so rushed and not explained at all.

and they don't kiss at the end by nilah magruder : ★★★ 1/2

super cute and fluffy! LOVED the ace rep and the way it was handled, just wish there would've been more discussion between the mc and the love interest

burnt umber by mackenzi lee : ★★★★ 1/2

is anyone surprised that i adored this? mackenzi lee knows how to write and that's just the facts

the dresser & the chambermaid by robin talley : ★★★

this was good, but nothing really stood out to me as being spectacular

new year by malinda lo : ★★★ 1/2

really enjoyed this one, though i wish there was more resolution at the end? but overall i loved that it's just about a girl realizing there are people like her in the world who are proud of who they are

molly's lips by dahlia adler : ★★

meh. that's it. just meh.

the coven by kate scelsa : ★★

the potential in this was great but it was so wasted?! idk i just feel like this could've been a lot longer and dug a lot deeper and it just... didn't which is disappointing tbh

every shade of red by elliot wake : ★★★★★

THE FIRST FIVE, FOLKS! damn, this just *gutted* me in the best way. it's basically 'so you know robin hood? what if he was trans' and you know what? i LOVE THAT FOR US AS A SOCIETY

willows by scott tracey : ★

the first five followed by the first 1-star. i'm sorry, but what even was this. nothing was explained, there was talks of curses without any explanation, is the main character reincarnated or has multiple personalities, i don't know! it was just... beyond weird

the girl with the blue lantern by tess sharpe : ★★★★ 1/2

i adooooored this. like who doesn't want to fall in love with a water nymph and then make a home with her in the woods?! it was so beautifully written, too. ugh. i cannot

the secret life of a teenage boy by alex sanchez : ★★

this one wasn't it, either. idk if it was the age gap that bothered me (a 16 year old boy running off with some random college student he's known for like what, an hour?) or the general awkwardness of the story, but nothing was believable and everything felt super rushed

walking after midnight by kody keplinger : ★★★★

ADORABLE. a 1950s movie star falls for the cute small-town waitress over the course of a night?! there are a few other stories in this collection that tried to do the whole '1 day romance' thing and i wasn't convinced, but this one really sold it. i would read a whole book about betsey and laura.

the end of the world as we know it by sara farizan : ★★★

i think the biggest issue with this one was that the relationship between the two main characters was not fleshed out at all? why did katie drop ezgi? because she liked her and was afraid to admit it? that is what is implied, but it wasn't explicit enough and the random kiss at midnight had me going ??? because it was out of nowhere. overall, not a big fan but still i loved ezgi so it gets three stars overall

three witches by tessa gratton : ★★★★

oof. this was beautiful? basically a girl gets locked away in a medieval conversion camp run by nuns because she was found kissing a girl, but guess what? SHE AND ONE OF THE NUNS FALL IN LOVE. galaxy brain

the inferno and the butterfly by shaun david hutchinson : ★★★★

amazing gorgeous never been done

healing rosa by tehlor kay mejia : ★★★★★

THIS IS SUCH A GREAT ONE it portrays trauma as a demon that sits inside us and needs to be chased out by the light and it's so so beautiful

lilac_moon125's review

4.0

yay there were so many good stories in this! probably the best anthology i've read tbh? however i did feel like there were a lot of queer identities missing and i don't know why the editor couldn't have included a wider variety of authors
also there were a few stories that probs could have done with some more editing they were a bit questionable in terms of plot and dialogue etc. anyway!
favourite stories:
- three witches
- healing rosa
- the coven
- every shade of red

emleemay's review

4.0

Rosa was a summer girl, and I was a winter girl, but that fall we made magic.

You know, back when I was in my early teens, I once heard this old guy say “there weren’t all these queers around when I was younger”. Oh, but there were, sir. And long long before that, too.

[b:All Out|35140599|All Out The No-Longer-Secret Stories of Queer Teens Throughout the Ages|Saundra Mitchell|https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1514494195s/35140599.jpg|53278915] is a great fictional companion to last year's [b:Queer, There and Everywhere|35046241|Queer, There and Everywhere 23 People Who Changed the World|Sarah Prager|https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1493677118s/35046241.jpg|50463455]. While the latter works to uncover the real queer - gay, bi, trans, genderqueer, nonconforming, intersex, asexual - people who have been erased throughout history, [b:All Out|35140599|All Out The No-Longer-Secret Stories of Queer Teens Throughout the Ages|Saundra Mitchell|https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1514494195s/35140599.jpg|53278915] is a collection of fictional stories that puts queer people into the Middle Ages, Victorian era, Gold Rush-era and more, where of course they were all along.

Most of these are adventure stories with positive representation. Adversity does rear its head, and some of the stories are a little bloody and unfair, but they nearly all leave us with a sense of hope. Though romance is a common theme throughout, not all the stories are love stories. The authors explore young adults coming to understand and accept themselves, or others, and some who still haven't quite worked it out.

"All I'm saying," said Vince, "is we don't need to have ourselves figured out in one night. You know?"

The anthology begins and ends with two of my favourites, each with especially lush, evocative writing. [a:Anna-Marie McLemore|6434877|Anna-Marie McLemore|https://images.gr-assets.com/authors/1516319453p2/6434877.jpg] retells Red Riding Hood with a transgender spin and a 19th-century Mexican setting. As expected from the author of [b:When the Moon Was Ours: A Novel|34964957|When the Moon Was Ours|Anna-Marie McLemore|https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1516375193s/34964957.jpg|48249481], the writing is gorgeous and the story beautifully-imagined. The last story is by an author I was previously unfamiliar with - [a:Tehlor Kay Mejia|16305520|Tehlor Kay Mejia|https://images.gr-assets.com/authors/1517803467p2/16305520.jpg] - and she writes a dreamy gay romance between two women in 1930s New Mexico.

I also particularly enjoyed [a:Elliot Wake|15254487|Elliot Wake|https://images.gr-assets.com/authors/1480863996p2/15254487.jpg]'s "Every Shade of Red" about a transgender Robin Hood, and "The Inferno & the Butterfly" by [a:Shaun David Hutchinson|3130410|Shaun David Hutchinson|https://images.gr-assets.com/authors/1387295428p2/3130410.jpg] in which two gay magicians' assistants fall in love, though all of the stories had something important to offer. [a:Nilah Magruder|8349969|Nilah Magruder|https://images.gr-assets.com/authors/1448441766p2/8349969.jpg]'s "And They Don’t Kiss at the End", about a black teenager coming to terms with her asexuality, was another highlight.

If anything, I wish the stories could have been a bit more geographically diverse. The vast majority take place in the United States, and there are no stories set outside of North America and Europe. This is not a criticism of any individual story, but rather what I would have liked to see from the anthology as a whole. Still, with so much great writing and imagination in one collection, it is difficult to complain too much.

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capyval's review against another edition

3.0

I loved some stories, disliked others.

I think more than half of the stories had fantasy on it, which is alright but I wasn't expecting that, if not more historical fiction.

My favourite stories were And They Don't Kiss at the End and Walking After Midnight.

summerinohio79's review

1.0

I just didn't enjoy this. All of the stories felt half-hearted and the time periods didn't feel antithetic or interesting.

summerinohio's review

1.0

I just didn't enjoy this. All of the stories felt half-hearted and the time periods didn't feel antithetic or interesting.