A review by lenin_lover_69
According to Yes by Dawn French
funny
lighthearted
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
1.0
Hard not to write this without sounding hyperbolic, but this book is awful and I can't believe it got published - feels like a particularly egregious example of publishers being happy to out out any old tat with a celebrity's name on it knowing it'll do reasonable numbers. And I LOVE Dawn French, so it was especially upsetting - i had to skim the last third as I was sick of it but wanted to know the ending...but then I had to read the scenes:
a) the protagonist takes the 2 young (very rich) boys she nannies to the NY courts to look at all the young black men to teach them a lesson about stealing a pen from a friend at school (!!!)
b) where a character comes out as gay while at lunch
c) the protagonists sexual assault
And wished I'd just put it down and didnt have to think about French writing such laughably offensive tropes.
In addition to that, it's just badly written. The whole book is an example of 'telling not showing' that they should teach in schools. Avoid at all costs!
Spoiler
a) the protagonist takes the 2 young (very rich) boys she nannies to the NY courts to look at all the young black men to teach them a lesson about stealing a pen from a friend at school (!!!)
b) where a character comes out as gay while at lunch
c) the protagonists sexual assault
And wished I'd just put it down and didnt have to think about French writing such laughably offensive tropes.
In addition to that, it's just badly written. The whole book is an example of 'telling not showing' that they should teach in schools. Avoid at all costs!
Content Warnings
Moderate: Sexual assault
Minor: Homophobia and Racism