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A review by jackiehorne
A Totally Awkward Love Story by Tom Ellen, Lucy Ivison
3.0
A dual-narrative tale about two just-graduated high school students who find themselves attracted to one another, but who cannot quite bungle their way into actually sleeping together until the very end of the novel. The story, then, is less a romance and more a depiction of the dynamics of adolescent single-sex friendship groups among the not-very-introspective, a crowd that isn't often depicted in more serious YA fiction. I myself wasn't that fond of the characters, being more of an introspective-kind myself; they struck me as rather emotionally immature for 18 year olds, and deeply unaware of their privilege, too. But the book's snarky, and often physical, British humor definitely made it worth a read ("She was at that lively, fiery stage of drunkenness that usually comes just before vomiting or falling over, or both" [Loc 859]; "And, in the end, losing your virginity isn't really about you—it's about everyone else. It's about telling everyone else that you've done it so you can get on with doing it again. Properly this time" [1476]).
Not sure I completely buy the "sex-positive" billing of the book; yes, it depicts teens hooking up and engaging in sex with partners whom they know are not their "lobsters" (the book's heroine, Hannah, mistakenly believes that lobsters mate for life), and there is no shaming of either young men or women for so-doing. But we don't ever really see a positive depiction of a sexual relationship, or even a tryst; since both of the book's protagonists are virgins, and they end up spending very little time together before finally overcoming embarrassment, confusion, plot twists, and adolescent fumbling, we only see them having sex once.
The biggest problem I had with the book was with the portrayal of Hannah's best friend, Stella, and the dynamics of Hannah's relationship with her. Perhaps because I've grown up with YA books that insist that secrets are bad, and telling the truth is the most important thing about growing up, I had a hard time with the book basically endorsing Hannah's refusal to challenge Stella about her lying and her passive-aggressive behavior towards her best friend. And Hannah's decision to lie to Stella in turn at book's end was precisely the opposite of what I would have chosen to do. So I'm not convinced that their relationship is one I would hold up as a positive model.
Not sure I completely buy the "sex-positive" billing of the book; yes, it depicts teens hooking up and engaging in sex with partners whom they know are not their "lobsters" (the book's heroine, Hannah, mistakenly believes that lobsters mate for life), and there is no shaming of either young men or women for so-doing. But we don't ever really see a positive depiction of a sexual relationship, or even a tryst; since both of the book's protagonists are virgins, and they end up spending very little time together before finally overcoming embarrassment, confusion, plot twists, and adolescent fumbling, we only see them having sex once.
The biggest problem I had with the book was with the portrayal of Hannah's best friend, Stella, and the dynamics of Hannah's relationship with her. Perhaps because I've grown up with YA books that insist that secrets are bad, and telling the truth is the most important thing about growing up, I had a hard time with the book basically endorsing Hannah's refusal to challenge Stella about her lying and her passive-aggressive behavior towards her best friend. And Hannah's decision to lie to Stella in turn at book's end was precisely the opposite of what I would have chosen to do. So I'm not convinced that their relationship is one I would hold up as a positive model.