The first book I read by Becky Albertalli was The Upside of Unrequited Love. It was included in an OwlCrate and I didn’t want to read it. I was coming out of a YA funk so I put it on my bookshelf and left it there for about six months. One night insomnia struck and I cracked it open and consumed it whole. I love that book and, for me, this is the guidepost by which all Albertalli’s shall be measured. Sadly, I lent it to a friend who appears to be keeping it.
When Simon vs. The Homo Sapiens Agenda was published I purchased it and shelved it because I was keeping it for a special time. When I read that she had new books I knew it was safe to use up my lone Albertalli and so Simon went with me to Canada. And, happily, Albertalli has done it for me again.
For most of us, the teenage years are filled with turmoil because we are swimming in hormone-infused water (made from concentrate). It is the deep end of drama. There are venti sized vendettas and crushes as wide as the Grand Canyon. For Simon, his family is extra and his friends are steady so his life is as stable as it can be for a high schooler. Except he has a crush on a boy that he has been e-mailing. And now there is blackmail afoot.
If this book had been published five to ten years ago it would be the disclosure of Simon’s crush that would push the narrative of this book. But, and thank the good Lord for this, it is 2018 and things are finally different. So, while Simon is not sure how to disclose his sexual identity it is Blue, the pen name for the boy he has been writing, that is the impetus for change that Simon resists.
I do not typically enjoy books set in high school. Those were not my favorite years and they remain that way for so many young people. In many books high school characters seem self centered because this is the age where you are beginning to really form your own identity. But a great author takes you through the moment of self-discovery that is so poignant in high school with characters who are sandwiched between self discovery and social pressure. Watching Simon navigate those decisions reminded me that no one really knows what they are doing, especially in high school but watching people develop, change and challenge themselves is a privilege.
Tell me, please!
Does the film hold up to the book?
Are there settings you avoid because they remind you of painful moments in life?
I love the Klise sisters and I read this while I exercised. This book, like all of theirs, is thoroughly enjoyable. I love the format the Klise sister’s employ of using letters, drawn newspaper clippings and so very many puns and hilarious names. When the children finally figure out where the water in Dry Creek had gone I was finished with my biking (God bless recumbent bicycles) and ready to move on to my next book.
Trollhunters begins during The Milk Carton Epidemic of 1969. Almost 200 children have gone missing without a trace all summer and brothers Jack and Jim Sturgess know they are supposed to be in before dark. But on September 21, 1969 it was Jack’s thirteenth birthday and they lost track of time. In a single moment, Jack was gone. Jim tried to find him but all he found was a monster.
There is also a Netflix show based on the book which I watched binge-style for the whole first season. There are some differences – aren’t there always? – but overall I enjoyed the show and the book for completely different reasons and recommend them for a fun early-high school and onward reader.
Angela Duckworth is fascinated by the unique quality in human beings that separate the successful from the unsuccessful. Her theory? It is “Grit.” In fact, she attributes her own grit for carrying her through life and changing her from the child her own father described as “…no genius.” to a recipient of the MacArthur Genius Award.
