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desiree930 's review for:
Looking for Group
by Rory Harrison
This book is difficult for me to rate, and difficult for me to review. There are so many things going on in this book: online gaming, LGBTQIA+ relationships, discussions of class/socio-economic differences, neglectful and abusive parents...plus the main character is a cancer survivor. And it's a road trip book. It was a lot, and at times it was pretty intense. This is not a light and fluffy read. However, there was something compelling about this book that kept me hooked.
I can't speak to the LBGTQIA+ representation, but it did seem to be handled in a respectful and not exploitative or patronizing way. I've read reviews from people who identify as LBGTQIA+ and they seem to be mostly positive about the way the author wrote these diverse characters. Also, I believe this is an own voices novel, so I would hope that the representation would be good.
One aspect I thought was really interesting and something that many can relate to is the difference between being friends with someone strictly in an online fashion as opposed to actually knowing a person in the context of the real world. Arden and Dylan have 'known' each other for years, through their mutual love for World of Warcraft. They've spent countless hours playing and talking with only the other person. But then they meet in real life and it's awkward. There are long, drawn-out silences that wouldn't happen online. It's very interesting, and it rings authentic to me.
One minor annoyance for me was the visual structure of this book. Instead of being written in a traditional format with indented paragraphs flowing from one thought/comment to the next in the course of a scene, every paragraph is followed by a kind of line break. Now, these are common at the end of scenes within the same chapter, but this was every single paragraph, which took some getting used to, as I'm accustomed to a break in text signifying the end of a scene. I guess it just messed with the pacing a bit for me. Again, this is minor, but I just thought I'd throw it out there.
I'm curious to check out more from this author. This book was unlike any YA I've ever read. It was sarcastic, funny, sad, uncomfortable, and bittersweet.
I can't speak to the LBGTQIA+ representation, but it did seem to be handled in a respectful and not exploitative or patronizing way. I've read reviews from people who identify as LBGTQIA+ and they seem to be mostly positive about the way the author wrote these diverse characters. Also, I believe this is an own voices novel, so I would hope that the representation would be good.
One aspect I thought was really interesting and something that many can relate to is the difference between being friends with someone strictly in an online fashion as opposed to actually knowing a person in the context of the real world. Arden and Dylan have 'known' each other for years, through their mutual love for World of Warcraft. They've spent countless hours playing and talking with only the other person. But then they meet in real life and it's awkward. There are long, drawn-out silences that wouldn't happen online. It's very interesting, and it rings authentic to me.
One minor annoyance for me was the visual structure of this book. Instead of being written in a traditional format with indented paragraphs flowing from one thought/comment to the next in the course of a scene, every paragraph is followed by a kind of line break. Now, these are common at the end of scenes within the same chapter, but this was every single paragraph, which took some getting used to, as I'm accustomed to a break in text signifying the end of a scene. I guess it just messed with the pacing a bit for me. Again, this is minor, but I just thought I'd throw it out there.
I'm curious to check out more from this author. This book was unlike any YA I've ever read. It was sarcastic, funny, sad, uncomfortable, and bittersweet.