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ninetalevixen 's review for:
What Kind of Girl
by Alyssa Sheinmel
I received an advance review copy through Netgalley; all opinions are my own and honest.
"What kind of girl stays after her boyfriend hits her? What kind of girl gets hit in the first place?"
At the onset I had a bit of a rough time getting into this, but it all started to come together by the end of part one. As part two unfolded, I found myself reevaluating the situation and my initial impressions; part three went straight for my heart/feels and had me literally tearing up. So it's not at all an exaggeration to say that this book is An Experience in the best possible way.
The prose is very stream-of-consciousness, which won't appeal to all readers but which I found perfectly fitting. It's a messy, confusing situation, and that hits home through the narrators' struggle with what to think and how to react to everything going on. (Some of the parentheticals are a bit much, but otherwise the writing flows almost effortlessly.)
All the portrayed relationships are nuanced and relatable, but I want to point out the parent/child relationships in particular because I so rarely see them done this well. YA lit is full of abusive and absent adults, so it was especially poignant to see flawed but well-meaning parents in this novel. Adolescence is a time when you're in between depending on and wanting to be free of your parents, which makes for a tricky dynamic; and yet each of the parents is a complex, distinct character with a complex, distinct relationship with their child.
Some of the social justice themes are pretty blunt, but it is an integral part of the narrative. Apparently sensitivity and thoughtfulness is "practically in the school catalog", and it shows: the students pride themselves on believing the victim, though they're conflicted on whether that's Mike or his girlfriend. They're not perfect. It's frustrating, and it's completely true to life.
Finally, this really isn't all that important (especially compared to the weightier topics in this book), but the NorCal representation made me so happy! California isn't all beaches and sunshine, especially in the northern part, yet I so rarely see books that acknowledge this.
content warnings:
rep:
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CONVERSION: 13.6 / 15 = 5 stars
Prose: 9 / 10
Characters & Relationships: 10 / 10
Emotional Impact: 10 / 10
Development / Flow: 9 / 10
Setting: 8 / 10
Diversity & Social Themes: 5 / 5
Intellectual Engagement: 4 / 5
Originality / Trope Execution: 4 / 5
Rereadability: 4 / 5
Memorability: 5 / 5
"What kind of girl stays after her boyfriend hits her? What kind of girl gets hit in the first place?"
At the onset I had a bit of a rough time getting into this, but it all started to come together by the end of part one. As part two unfolded, I found myself reevaluating the situation and my initial impressions; part three went straight for my heart/feels and had me literally tearing up. So it's not at all an exaggeration to say that this book is An Experience in the best possible way.
The prose is very stream-of-consciousness, which won't appeal to all readers but which I found perfectly fitting. It's a messy, confusing situation, and that hits home through the narrators' struggle with what to think and how to react to everything going on. (Some of the parentheticals are a bit much, but otherwise the writing flows almost effortlessly.)
All the portrayed relationships are nuanced and relatable, but I want to point out the parent/child relationships in particular because I so rarely see them done this well. YA lit is full of abusive and absent adults, so it was especially poignant to see flawed but well-meaning parents in this novel. Adolescence is a time when you're in between depending on and wanting to be free of your parents, which makes for a tricky dynamic; and yet each of the parents is a complex, distinct character with a complex, distinct relationship with their child.
Some of the social justice themes are pretty blunt, but it is an integral part of the narrative. Apparently sensitivity and thoughtfulness is "practically in the school catalog", and it shows: the students pride themselves on believing the victim, though they're conflicted on whether that's Mike or his girlfriend. They're not perfect. It's frustrating, and it's completely true to life.
Finally, this really isn't all that important (especially compared to the weightier topics in this book), but the NorCal representation made me so happy! California isn't all beaches and sunshine, especially in the northern part, yet I so rarely see books that acknowledge this.
content warnings:
Spoiler
dating/domestic abuse, explicit absence of consent (in relationship), bulimia, internalized body-shaming, descriptions of self-harm (cutting), on-page panic attack, self-medication (marijuana, non-prescription drugs), underage drinking & sex, infidelity, ableist language, slut-shamingrep:
Spoiler
Jewish MC, biracial (Mexican Catholic & Eastern European Jewish) WLW MC with diagnosed anxiety & OCD, F/F relationship, socioeconomic diversity, minor character with unspecified learning disability-----------
CONVERSION: 13.6 / 15 = 5 stars
Prose: 9 / 10
Characters & Relationships: 10 / 10
Emotional Impact: 10 / 10
Development / Flow: 9 / 10
Setting: 8 / 10
Diversity & Social Themes: 5 / 5
Intellectual Engagement: 4 / 5
Originality / Trope Execution: 4 / 5
Rereadability: 4 / 5
Memorability: 5 / 5