miajakobsen's Reviews (152)

This is a phenomenal book! The character of Evelyn Hugo is brilliantly written and I loved her so much. She's far from perfect but that's how all humans are: flawed and complex. I loved hearing her reflections and how unapologetic she was as she told her life story. The storytelling is incredible, and my heart dropped when it was revealed how Evelyn's story connected to Monique. Evelyn and Celia have a beautiful love story, and reading this really made me wonder how many queer love stories we'll never know of because it wasn't safe to be out.

I really wanted to like this. So badly. But I just couldn't. The plot just moved so slowly—not necessarily a bad thing—and suddenly everything happened within the last like 10 pages. The ending was so compelling and so relatable to me as a queer Asian woman, and I really wish that the pacing was evened out so readers would've actually been able to enjoy the ending.

James Baldwin's prose is gorgeous. David's internalized homophobia, and the way it impacted him and his relationships was so raw and truthful. The way his sexuality conflicts with his idea of what masculinity and being a man is is still an incredibly relevant conversation today. Such a powerful book.