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A review by hjhynson
You Bet Your Heart by Danielle Parker
emotional
funny
hopeful
inspiring
lighthearted
reflective
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
“You Bet Your Heart” by Danielle Parker is a sweet YA coming-of-age novel that sees two former best friends overcome their differences and challenge one another to step outside of their comfort zones. Sasha Johnson-Sun (lovingly known to very few as SJ) and Ezra Davis-Goldberg become friends in elementary school, bonding over their long last names, being biracial (SJ Black & Korean, Ezra Black & Jewish) , and their shared nerdy interests. The pair suffered a pretty harsh falling out, and don’t reconnect until they find out that they’re tied for valedictorian and a $30k scholarship from their high school, Skyline. Sasha has worked incredibly hard to be the best of the best in school to honor her late father and her mother who cleans houses for families in much more privileged positions than they are. Ezra deals with pressure to succeed, and does so almost effortlessly, but lacks the drive and dedication to his future that Sasha boasts. Instead of leaving the results up to the principal’s discretion or letting themselves just run the rest of their high school courses as normal, Sasha and Ezra set up a bet system on their final big assignments and placed the stakes that with the best two out of three, the winner would take all.
The story follows Sasha as she is on a journey to have a deeper understanding of the meanings of life and what legacy really is. Her passion for success is admirable and awe-inspiring, but she struggles to find herself in any other aspects of her life. When Ezra re-enters her life, she begins to buff up against her usual rigid and strategic ways and starts to let loose and enjoy herself and her youth.
The bets get a little messy, and the both of them do petty things in the name of competition, but the time they spend together forces them both to come clean with themselves about the reasons they fell out in the first place and confront them with one another. I do wish that one particular thing that Sasha mentions that Ezra said to her out of anger was addressed outright because it needed acknowledgment and a more explicit apology, in my opinion. But the story is adorable, well-crafted, and feels pretty true to a high school experience (aside from the scholarship size, maybe I’m not hip to high schools that can roll like that, but wow). Grief is handled with delicate care, and the ways that both Sasha and her mom deal with their feelings show just some aspects of the range of expression one can have when going through an intense loss. I really enjoyed this read and rate it a solid 4 stars.
The story follows Sasha as she is on a journey to have a deeper understanding of the meanings of life and what legacy really is. Her passion for success is admirable and awe-inspiring, but she struggles to find herself in any other aspects of her life. When Ezra re-enters her life, she begins to buff up against her usual rigid and strategic ways and starts to let loose and enjoy herself and her youth.
The bets get a little messy, and the both of them do petty things in the name of competition, but the time they spend together forces them both to come clean with themselves about the reasons they fell out in the first place and confront them with one another. I do wish that one particular thing that Sasha mentions that Ezra said to her out of anger was addressed outright because it needed acknowledgment and a more explicit apology, in my opinion. But the story is adorable, well-crafted, and feels pretty true to a high school experience (aside from the scholarship size, maybe I’m not hip to high schools that can roll like that, but wow). Grief is handled with delicate care, and the ways that both Sasha and her mom deal with their feelings show just some aspects of the range of expression one can have when going through an intense loss. I really enjoyed this read and rate it a solid 4 stars.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Death of parent