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citrus_seasalt 's review for:
Like a Love Story
by Abdi Nazemian
Maybe 3.5 stars, if I feel like it? I’m most likely settling on just three, though. For the first half of this book, I really wasn’t vibing with it. Judy irked me as a POV (she was well-meaning but said some iffy things as a straight ally, also she kind of had “not like other girls” vibes lol), the writing style felt a little too juvenile for my liking, and being anxious about Reza and him hiding his gayness certainly didn’t help. And then the big argument between Art and Judy happened, which made me hate both of them for 50 pages or so because they were both acting so terrible???
But I feel like after that, once the emotional parts of the story kind of force everyone to get their shit together, I liked it a lot more. I got a little teary-eyed at two points, even if I didn’t full-on cry or sob. (Reading anything about AIDS will always make me hurt, as a queer person.) I’m far too young to have lived during that time period, but I liked how different notable protests and activist groups were involved in the plot. The community amongst the gay activists, along with the social stigma surrounding queerness during the AIDS epidemic and the fear of being out, was captured effortlessly in my opinion. Reza’s POV was the most emotionally raw, putting *both* of those aforementioned themes on full display, and sometimes leaving lines that felt like a gut punch. (I was already emotional when he came out, but then there was “There is no word for coming out. In the language my mother speaks, I literally don’t exist”??! OOF…) Even during times where the other two POVs would get on my nerves, I felt for him.
Besides Reza, I liked Stephen the most. I thought his relationships with Art and Judy were the most thought-out. Outside of those three, though, some of the character dynamics/relationships drive me nuts, but there was a level of complexity—specifically in the friendships—that I could appreciate at times.
I’m still keeping this at 3 stars because there’s a lot I took issue with, though. The side characters fell flat for me(except for Tara), the diversity in gay/queer voices centered was kind of lacking(not a single trans character, Reza was the only fleshed-out nonwhite one), and I wish some of the drama had been resolved in a better way.
I see the importance of this story, but overall, my feelings are mixed.
But I feel like after that, once the emotional parts of the story kind of force everyone to get their shit together, I liked it a lot more. I got a little teary-eyed at two points, even if I didn’t full-on cry or sob. (Reading anything about AIDS will always make me hurt, as a queer person.) I’m far too young to have lived during that time period, but I liked how different notable protests and activist groups were involved in the plot. The community amongst the gay activists, along with the social stigma surrounding queerness during the AIDS epidemic and the fear of being out, was captured effortlessly in my opinion. Reza’s POV was the most emotionally raw, putting *both* of those aforementioned themes on full display, and sometimes leaving lines that felt like a gut punch. (I was already emotional when he came out, but then there was “There is no word for coming out. In the language my mother speaks, I literally don’t exist”??! OOF…) Even during times where the other two POVs would get on my nerves, I felt for him.
Besides Reza, I liked Stephen the most. I thought his relationships with Art and Judy were the most thought-out. Outside of those three, though, some of the character dynamics/relationships drive me nuts, but there was a level of complexity—specifically in the friendships—that I could appreciate at times.
I’m still keeping this at 3 stars because there’s a lot I took issue with, though. The side characters fell flat for me(except for Tara), the diversity in gay/queer voices centered was kind of lacking(not a single trans character, Reza was the only fleshed-out nonwhite one), and I wish some of the drama had been resolved in a better way.
I see the importance of this story, but overall, my feelings are mixed.