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thenovelmaura's review against another edition
emotional
medium-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? Yes
2.0
Thank you to Penguin Teen for an eARC of this book! I'm sad to report that I really disliked it because the premise sounded so fun. You all know I love diverse, contemporary YA stories, but this read like an unfinished first draft. It seemed like the author had a lot of things that he wanted Sunny and Mindii to do, so he mashed them all together into one night with only the thinnest string of plot holding it all together. And I've never been to Fresno, but can someone explain to me why there were at least 4 cosplay events/parties happening there on the same night, for a fictional book series that is a thinly-veiled cover for Harry Potter (Jamie Snollygoster)? Unless San Diego Comic Con was magically transported to Fresno for one night only, this seemed unrealistic. There were tons of discrepancies like this (like how much food they managed to eat in 5 hours) that really took me out of the story.
Look, I love that Sunny was Sikh and Mindii was Hmong. But most of the dialogue in this book was cultural info-dumping with absolutely no subtlety and no relation to how teenagers actually talk to each other. This is an actual excerpt from the book (keep in mind that I have an eARC and some bits could have changed prior to publication):
Look, I love that Sunny was Sikh and Mindii was Hmong. But most of the dialogue in this book was cultural info-dumping with absolutely no subtlety and no relation to how teenagers actually talk to each other. This is an actual excerpt from the book (keep in mind that I have an eARC and some bits could have changed prior to publication):
"Yeah," Mindii says. "Fantastic documentary. The Donut King, by Alice Gu. Plays on a loop here so at least people can get a bit of a history lesson. Ted Bun Tek Ngoy escapes a genocide in Cambodia, learns about the donut business, buys a ton of donut stores across California, and sponsors hundreds of families who now do the same thing. And it wasn't even to get rich, it was literally just to survive in a country that creates all of these messes in other countries, then is all 'why are all these brown people here?'"
Two paragraphs later, Sunny responded:
"It's like those rags-to-riches stories of the first Punjabi immigrants who came to the US in the early 1900s. They worked on railroads and lumber mills and as farm laborers, and had to deal with so many openly racist laws made just so Asians couldn't make it. And still they took their shot, buying up things through white people they hoped they could trust.... Like how is the Alien Land Law not taught in history classes. Or the fact the Ghadar Party-the revolutionary movement to end colonial rule in British India-was started by steel and lumber workers in Astoria, Oregon, in 1913."
Yes, what a totally normal conversation to be having at a donut shop. What regular, unstilted dialogue from two teenagers who are supposedly flirting with each other. I could maybe forgive this if it was the only time it happened, but this social justice info-dumping occurred roughly once per chapter. Even though I agree with the points made, they were so jarring, so distracting, and made the reading experience super unenjoyable.
I do want to give credit to the author for his efforts to celebrate such a diverse array of cultures while exploring the heavy topic of grief, which is why I rated it two stars. This story had heart but was seriously lacking in execution.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Ableism, Alcoholism, and Death
Moderate: Addiction, Bullying, and Grief
amberinpieces's review
emotional
funny
lighthearted
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
3.0
Content Warnings
Moderate: Addiction, Alcoholism, Cursing, and Grief
Minor: Body shaming, Bullying, Death, Racial slurs, Racism, and Alcohol
foreverinastory's review against another edition
emotional
hopeful
reflective
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? Yes
5.0
Thank you to Penguin Teen and Netgalley for an eARC in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own.
This was such a great story, very heartwarming. Sunny G's Series of Rash Decisions takes place in the course of one 24 hour ish period. Sunny has decided to reinvent himself after the death of his brother. The only thing he has left is his brother's notebook and he decides he needs to be more like him. To do this he's determined to make several rash decisions since his brother was always more impulsive than him.
He kicks this off by showing up to his high school Prom instead of going to the big fandom event with his best friend Ngozi and playing in their band. But when Mindii steals his notebook, he has to go after her. The two end up on a whirlwind all night adventure.
Y'all this book was so fun. Sunny and Mindii were so cute and so fun together. I loved seeing them get to know each other past the friendly school acquaintances. This was such a fast past book and the time frame of ~24 hours only added to it. This was such a love letter to all things nerd and specifically Avatar: the Last Airbender. Oh my god there were so many references to ATLA and I was living for it!
The ending of this is more open than I normally would prefer, but it really worked for this book. Sunny is still processing his grief, and learning to deal with his brother's alcoholism. He's also stressed because most of his friends are leaving while he still has another year of high school.
I loved this one so much. Between the disability rep and the relationships that develop in this book, it had my whole heart. Also seeing Ngozi make heart eyes at cute girls was such a damn mood. Definitely excited to see what Dhillon writes next.
Rep: Sikh Indian-American cishet male MC with a stutter, Hmong cishet female love interest, Sikh Indian-American gay male alcoholic side character (deceased), Sikh Indian-American gay male side character, multiple Sikh Indian immigrant side characters, Nigerian-British sapphic female side character.
CWs: Alcoholism/Alcohol discussion and consumption, ableism, addiction to alcohol (side characters), bullying, child death, death, death of grandparent, grief, racial slurs, racism, xenophobia.
This was such a great story, very heartwarming. Sunny G's Series of Rash Decisions takes place in the course of one 24 hour ish period. Sunny has decided to reinvent himself after the death of his brother. The only thing he has left is his brother's notebook and he decides he needs to be more like him. To do this he's determined to make several rash decisions since his brother was always more impulsive than him.
He kicks this off by showing up to his high school Prom instead of going to the big fandom event with his best friend Ngozi and playing in their band. But when Mindii steals his notebook, he has to go after her. The two end up on a whirlwind all night adventure.
Y'all this book was so fun. Sunny and Mindii were so cute and so fun together. I loved seeing them get to know each other past the friendly school acquaintances. This was such a fast past book and the time frame of ~24 hours only added to it. This was such a love letter to all things nerd and specifically Avatar: the Last Airbender. Oh my god there were so many references to ATLA and I was living for it!
The ending of this is more open than I normally would prefer, but it really worked for this book. Sunny is still processing his grief, and learning to deal with his brother's alcoholism. He's also stressed because most of his friends are leaving while he still has another year of high school.
I loved this one so much. Between the disability rep and the relationships that develop in this book, it had my whole heart. Also seeing Ngozi make heart eyes at cute girls was such a damn mood. Definitely excited to see what Dhillon writes next.
Rep: Sikh Indian-American cishet male MC with a stutter, Hmong cishet female love interest, Sikh Indian-American gay male alcoholic side character (deceased), Sikh Indian-American gay male side character, multiple Sikh Indian immigrant side characters, Nigerian-British sapphic female side character.
CWs: Alcoholism/Alcohol discussion and consumption, ableism, addiction to alcohol (side characters), bullying, child death, death, death of grandparent, grief, racial slurs, racism, xenophobia.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Ableism, Addiction, Alcoholism, Bullying, Child death, Death, Racial slurs, Racism, Xenophobia, Grief, Death of parent, and Alcohol