I’d been in a reading slump. Few things caught my interest, and an overwhelmingly churlish fog dissuaded me from the more enthusiastically underlined titles on my extensive TBR. (I didn’t get a literature degree just to pompously say “I was being too big of a jackass to read a book I might love”, but theRead More
This YA Take On Thelma and Louise Misses the Mark: Run Away With Me by J.L. Simmonds
Run Away With Me by J.L. Simmonds is a realistic YA novel about two teenage girls, classmates but not friends, who end up together on a desperate road trip filled with secrets and hidden dangers. The main character, Jessie, is quiet, uncertain, and on the run from her abusive stepfather’s corpse. Brooke is self-assured, outgoing, andRead More
Escaping the Lab to Become a Barista: Steam by Shaenon K. Gerrity and Emily Holden
Steam is a quick, cute read about Ruby, a genetically engineered girl created to solve problems. She’s escaped the lab!—She’s on the loose!—She’s playing cupid in a coffee shop! Determined to make people happy, she learns about humans and strives to use her scientific mind and improbable aiming skills to improve their lives. If she encountersRead More
Life in a Walled Garden: Where Lost Girls Go by Kody Keplinger Review
Last month, I read a sapphic YA book involving a cult and reflected that I was disappointed it didn’t explore realistic matters, like why people are drawn to and stay in high-control situations. This month, I chanced upon a sapphic YA book that explored exactly those questions. Where Lost Girls Go by Kody Keplinger (out JulyRead More
A Disappointing Folk Horror Story: Hollow by Taylor Grothe Review
Hollow by Taylor Grothe is a book with a lot of potential. The main character, Cassie, has recently moved back to her home town and reconnected with her childhood best friends—but the past few years have been tough for all of them, and they just don’t fit the way they used to. When they go onRead More
A Queer Coming-of-Age Story Told From the Margins (Literally): The Secret Astronomers by Jessica Walker Review
I tend to take a traditional approach to fiction. I learned the three elements of a story—plot, setting, character—pretty early, and it stuck because is made sense. The Secret Astronomers by Jessica Walker is an exception. Before genre or protagonist, above theme or prose, this book’s most remarkable feature is its format. It’s a tale told inRead More
A Rabble-Rousing Girl Reporter: Renegade Girls by Nora Neus Review
Renegade Girls tells the story of Nell, a girl from Chicago who spends summers with her aunt and uncle in New York. This year, at 17, Nell is eligible to marry… and more importantly, she’s working as a reporter! The story explores life as a late-nineteenth-century “stunt girl”, an undercover reporter, alongside a sweet story ofRead More
The Redemption of Daya Keane by Gia Gordon Review
This book is so delightfully, perfectly messy. Titular character Daya lives in a small, conservative town in Arizona, surrounded by small-minded, conservative classmates and a small-minded, conservative mom. It’s a tough place to be queer. When Daya begins a friendship that turns to something more with megachurch poster-girl Beckett Wild, she might be making moreRead More
A Sweet Middle Grade Fantasy Adventure: Juniper Harvey and the Vanishing Kingdom by Nina Varela
Juniper Harvey and the Vanishing Kingdom by Nina Varela is a middle grade adventure novel about two girls, a crown, and a kingdom crumbling away. June is the new kid in town, lonely and homesick and definitely not expecting to meet the princess of fantasy realm! But Galatea must find a way home to save herRead More
A Memoir of Anxiety, Queerness, and Figure Skating: On Top of Glass by Karina Manta Review
On Top of Glass by Karina Manta is a memoir of the author’s experiences growing up—equal parts a story about sports, queer identity, and anxiety.
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