Category: LGBTQ

Title: Some Girls Do
Author: Jennifer Dugan
Genre: Young Adult, LGBTQ, Romance, Contemporary
Publisher: G.P. Putnam’s Books for Young Readers
Source: Publisher via NetGalley
Format: Ebook
Release Date: May 18, 2021
Rating: ★★★★★

Goodreads Synopsis:

In this YA contemporary queer romance from the author of Hot Dog Girl , an openly gay track star falls for a closeted, bisexual teen beauty queen with a penchant for fixing up old cars. 

Morgan, an elite track athlete, is forced to transfer high schools late in her senior year after it turns out being queer is against her private Catholic school’s code of conduct. There, she meets Ruby, who has two hobbies: tinkering with her baby blue 1970 Ford Torino and competing in local beauty pageants, the latter to live out the dreams of her overbearing mother. The two are drawn to each other and can’t deny their growing feelings. But while Morgan–out and proud, and determined to have a fresh start–doesn’t want to have to keep their budding relationship a secret, Ruby isn’t ready to come out yet. With each girl on a different path toward living her truth, can they go the distance together?

Review:

Morgan is a track star who had to transfer from her Catholic private school to a public high school after coming out as gay. Being queer was against her school’s code of conduct, so Morgan chose to leave the school so she could be herself. On her first day at the new school, Morgan meets Ruby, a beauty pageant competitor who likes to tinker with cars. Morgan and Ruby are instantly attracted to each other, but Ruby isn’t out of the closet, so she keeps her mysterious feelings for Morgan a secret. As Morgan becomes more comfortable with her queer identity, Ruby gets more scared to show her true self. Both girls have to decide how much they’re willing to risk for their relationship.

This was such a sweet romance. Though Morgan and Ruby had lots of differences, I was rooting for them to be together. They made up for each other’s weaknesses, so they made a really good couple.

This story dealt with some serious issues, such as homophobia, particularly in schools. Some characters mentioned hiding their queer identity until they were finished high school, so they didn’t draw attention to themselves. That’s so heartbreaking, to think that some kids don’t feel comfortable enough in their own school. This was a huge problem at Morgan’s previous school, where she was harassed for being queer to the point where she had to leave the school and jeopardize her future as a track star. Schools need to be a safe place for all students, regardless of their identities.

Some Girls Do is a beautiful queer YA romance!

Thank you Penguin Teen for providing a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

What to read next:

Miss Meteor by Tehlor Kay Mejia and Anna-Marie McLemore

Cool for the Summer by Dahlia Adler

Have you read Some Girls Do? What did you think of it?

Title: The Passing Playbook
Author: Isaac Fitzsimons
Genre: Young Adult, LGBTQ, Contemporary, Romance
Publisher: Penguin Young Readers
Source: Publisher via NetGalley
Format: Ebook
Release Date: June 1, 2020
Rating: ★★★★★

Goodreads Synopsis:

Love, Simon meets Friday Night Lights in this feelgood LGBTQ+ romance about a trans teen torn between standing up for his rights and staying stealth.

‘A sharply observant and vividly drawn debut. I loved every minute I spent in this story’ – Becky Albertalli

Fifteen-year-old Spencer Harris is a proud nerd, an awesome big brother and a Messi-in-training. He’s also transgender. After transitioning at his old school leads to a year of bullying, Spencer gets a fresh start at Oakley, the most liberal private school in Ohio. 

At Oakley, Spencer seems to have it all: more accepting classmates, a decent shot at a starting position on the boy’s soccer team, great new friends, and maybe even something more than friendship with one of his teammates. The problem is, no one at Oakley knows Spencer is trans – he’s passing. 

So when a discriminatory law forces Spencer’s coach to bench him after he discovers the ‘F’ on Spencer’s birth certificate, Spencer has to make a choice: cheer his team on from the sidelines or publicly fight for his right to play, even if it means coming out to everyone – including the guy he’s falling for.

Review:

Spencer Harris starts at a new private high school in his sophomore year after being bullied and receiving death threats at his old school for being transgender. Spencer is starting this school with a fresh start as a boy, without coming out. He had played soccer in middle school, and was excited to play on the high school team. It gets more complicated when he starts to like one of his teammates, Justice. Spencer is one of the best players on the team, until the coach learns that Spencer’s birth certificate lists him as a female, which would disqualify the team from playing in the final tournament. Spencer has to figure out how to continue being himself while also fighting for queer and transgender rights.

This story had such a cute romance. Spencer and Justice were perfect together. There was a lot of tension in their relationship because Spencer wasn’t out as transgender and Justice wasn’t out as gay. They had to hide their relationship from a lot of people but I was rooting for them the entire time.

There were some devastating scenes in this story. Spencer was lucky to have such a supportive family. They were learning along the way with Spencer, but they made an effort to figure everything out to make his life the best it could be. Even though he had his family’s support, Spencer still had to change schools because he was in danger. Justice was from an extremely religious family who didn’t hide their homophobia. Their school also wasn’t that open to making the school as accessible to queer students, even though they were considered progressive. Spencer’s story was uplifting, but there was a lot of homophobia and transphobia around him.

The Passing Playbook is a heartwarming transgender love story.

Thank you Penguin Young Readers for providing a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

What to read next:

May the Best Man Win by Z.R. Ellor

Stay Gold by Tobly McSmith

Have you read The Passing Playbook? What did you think of it?

Title: Cool for the Summer
Author: Dahlia Adler
Genre: Young Adult, Contemporary, Romance, LGBT
Publisher: Wednesday Books
Source: Publisher via NetGalley
Format: Ebook
Release Date: May 11, 2021
Rating: ★★★★★

Goodreads Synopsis:

Lara’s had eyes for exactly one person throughout her three years of high school: Chase Harding. He’s tall, strong, sweet, a football star, and frankly, stupid hot. Oh, and he’s talking to her now. On purpose and everything. Maybe…flirting, even? No, wait, he’s definitely flirting, which is pretty much the sum of everything Lara’s wanted out of life.

Except she’s haunted by a memory. A memory of a confusing, romantic, strangely perfect summer spent with a girl named Jasmine. A memory that becomes a confusing, disorienting present when Jasmine herself walks through the front doors of the school to see Lara and Chase chatting it up in front of the lockers.

Lara has everything she ever wanted: a tight-knit group of friends, a job that borders on cool, and Chase, the boy of her literal dreams. But if she’s finally got the guy, why can’t she stop thinking about the girl?

Cool for the Summer is a story of self-discovery and new love. It’s about the things we want and the things we need. And it’s about the people who will let us be who we are.

Review:

Lara has had a crush on Chase Harding, the star quarterback at her school, for six years. When she starts her senior year, Chase finally notices her and starts flirting with her immediately. However, Lara isn’t the same girl she used to be. She spent the summer with her mom at her mom’s boss’s summer house where she met Jasmine, the daughter of her mom’s boss. Lara and Jasmine had a summer romance that Lara thought was in the past since Jasmine was going back to her home with her mom. Now that Jasmine has moved to Lara’s school, she is a constant reminder of their summer fling. Lara has to wonder if it was just a fling and she should enjoy the attention from Chase, or if she has deeper feelings for Jasmine.

This was such a fun story. It would be perfect for summer because there were many scenes from Lara and Jasmine’s summer spent at the beach. There were also lots of feelings in this book. Lara was experiencing so many emotions, with her surprise feelings for Jasmine and her dreams of dating Chase coming true. This was a heart pounding story about figuring out your teenage romantic feelings.

This story explored what it means to identify as bisexual. In other novels that I’ve read with bi characters, they have a hard time defining their feelings. Lara had always had a crush on Chase so she assumed she was straight. When those feelings were finally recognized by him, she thought she had to be with him since that was her dream. However, she started to question her sexuality after having a relationship with a girl. For some reason, it’s sometimes difficult for people to accept that people can like both girls and boys, including the person experiencing those feelings themself. It’s possible to identify as bisexual and be in a relationship with someone of the opposite sex or the same sex, without being identified as straight or gay. Lara had to come to terms with her feelings before she could become her true self.

Cool for the Summer is the perfect summer read!

Thank you Wednesday Books for providing a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

What to read next:

Perfect on Paper by Sophie Gonzales

Leah on the Offbeat by Becky Albertalli

Have you read Cool for the Summer? What did you think of it?

Title: Kate in Waiting
Author: Becky Albertalli
Genre: Young Adult, Contemporary, Romance, LGBT
Publisher: Balzer + Bray
Source: Purchased
Format: Hardcover
Release Date: April 20, 2021
Rating: ★★★★★

Goodreads Synopsis:

Contrary to popular belief, best friends Kate Garfield and Anderson Walker are not codependent. Carpooling to and from theater rehearsals? Environmentally sound and efficient. Consulting each other on every single life decision? Basic good judgment. Pining for the same guys from afar? Shared crushes are more fun anyway.

But when Kate and Andy’s latest long-distance crush shows up at their school, everything goes off script. Matt Olsson is talented and sweet, and Kate likes him. She really likes him. The only problem? So does Anderson.

Turns out, communal crushes aren’t so fun when real feelings are involved. This one might even bring the curtains down on Kate and Anderson’s friendship.

Review:

Kate Garfield and her best friend Anderson Walker have always shared crushes. They also share a love of theatre. At their summer camp, they both crushed on Matt Olsson, who didn’t seem to know they existed. However, when they start their junior year of high school, they’re shocked to see Matt Olsson has moved to their school. Kate really likes Matt, but Anderson really likes him too. Their feelings are stronger than their usual communal crushes. They each spend time with Matt in different situations, but eventually someone will get the guy and the other will get their heart broken.

This story was such an emotional rollercoaster. Kate and Andy experienced the whirlwind of first love and first heartbreak. I loved both Kate and Andy, but I knew that only one of them could win Matt’s affection in the end. I was rooting for them both to win, even though that couldn’t happen. I will say that the ending was perfect!

This story had great diversity. Kate’s friends were gender diverse. Andy was gay and their friend Raina was trans. They didn’t know the sexual orientation of their other friend Brandie, but they were okay with that and didn’t force her to tell them. Kate was Jewish, which I don’t see a lot in YA novels. Even though there are many Jewish YA authors, they don’t necessarily put that into their stories, so I was glad to see this aspect of Becky’s life in this story.

This was a beautiful story about first love in high school!

What to read next:

The Love Curse of Melody McIntyre by Robin Talley

Perfect on Paper by Sophie Gonzales

Have you read Kate in Waiting? What did you think of it?