Does My Body Offend You? is a novel that brings together two very different teenage girls in the context of a discriminatory dress code. 

Malena is a recent transplant to North Florida after Hurricane Maria destroyed much of Puerto Rico. She is living with her mom, abuela, and extended family. Malena’s family is Catholic and socially conservative. Malena gets a bad sunburn and goes to school without a bra, and she is sent to the principal’s office. 

While in the bathroom crying about the situation, she meets Ruby, a sassy affluent white girl from a liberal family. Ruby is passionate about social change and encourages Malena to stand up to the biased dress code. 

As the story continues, we see the flaws and strengths of these characters and their friends. At first I was annoyed when the story focused more on typical teenage issues like romance and crashes and navigating new experiences like drinking. As the story went on I saw this as a positive, because when teenagers are facing these challenges in the real world it doesn’t occur in a vacuum from the rest of their life. 

At times I was also frustrated with the characters as they made mistakes and messed things up, but this is also realistic and I enjoyed reading about flawed characters in a Y a novel that have to learn from their mistakes. This also brought up issues of intersectionality in a real way, something I think many teenagers and adults could learn from. 

If you’re looking for a YA read that is not only culturally diverse and sensitive but also speaks to what it’s really like to make an impact, I think this is a great choice.