REVIEW || HEARTSTOPPER VOLUME 1

Title: Heartstopper (volume #1)
Author: Alice Oseman
Genre: contemporary, young adult
Summary:
Charlie Spring is in Year 10 at Truham Grammar School for Boys. The past year hasn't been too great, but at least he's not being bullied anymore, and he's sort of got a boyfriend, even if he's kind of mean and only wants to meet up in secret.
Nick Nelson is in Year 11 and on the school rugby team. He's heard a little about Charlie - the kid who was outed last year and bullied for a few months - but he's never had the opportunity to talk to him. That is, until the start of January, in which Nick and Charlie are placed in the same form group and made to sit together.
They quickly become friends, and soon Charlie is falling hard for Nick, even though he doesn't think he has a chance. But love works in surprising ways, and sometimes good things are waiting just around the corner...

Plot:
After a rough break-up with his kind-of boyfriend Ben, Charlie seems to have a rough time at school. Though he's not being bullied as much anymore for being gay, it's still not easy and Ben keeps bothering him over and over. Then comes in Nick Nelson, rugby player and assumed straight guy. Over some time, the two boys become friends.
Heartstopper is a story about struggling with your identity and sexuality, featuring a bisexual character who never realised they were bisexual and allows for its characters to develop and grow even in such a "short" limit of pages. It may sound like a simple premise, but it's effective.

Characters:
Our main character is Charlie, a fast runner and a bit of an outcast. He was bullied when it became clear to the school that he was gay and still seems to struggle a little. We learn a lot about Charlie through his interactions with other people but also in what he tells us about what happened between him and Ben.

Because Charlie is a very fast runner, we are soon introduced to rugby player Nicholas (Nick) Nelson. They are seated next to each other in class and, after Nick sees Charlie running, he manages to get Charlie into rugby. Nick is a sweet character, something we see in how he interacts with people but also in how he's drawn at times. Despite his stature and the sport he plays, he's allowed to have several softer moments.

There are a few side characters in the story, the amount probably held back because of the graphic novel format of the story. The most important probably being Ben, Charlie's somewhat ex, about whom we learn a lot just from what Charlie tells us and how Charlie reacts to him.

Art:
The art of this book to me resembles the way the story is being told. Again, it may seem simple but it's effective and allows for a lot of showing rather than telling. We see Charlie and Nick get closer, we see how they behave and react and it allows for the art to speak and add to the characters.

Things I like: 

1. The characters are allowed to breathe and grow and just be who they are.
2. The art fits the narrative and characters so very well
3. It made me giggle, it made me sad, it just made me feel

Things I didn't like:

1. Ben. I kind of get what Alice wants to do with Ben, but I wasn't the biggest fan of how he behaved and treated Nick. I know it can be realistic and people can be like that, I just. . . didn't particularly like it.

Who I'd recommend it to:
If you're looking for a soft, LGBT-focused graphic novel, then this will definitely be something for you.

Rating: 

REVIEW | ALEX IN WONDERLAND

Title: Alex in Wonderland
Author: Simon James Green
Genre: Contemporary, young adult
Summary:
In the town of Newsands, painfully shy Alex is abandoned by his two best friends for the summer. But he unexpectedly lands a part-time job at Wonderland, a run-down amusement arcade on the seafront, where he gets to know the other teen misfits who work there. Alex starts to come out of his shell, and even starts to develop feelings for co-worker Ben... who, as Alex's bad luck would have it, has a girlfriend.
Then as debtors close in on Wonderland and mysterious, threatening notes start to appear, Alex and his new friends take it on themselves to save their declining employer. But, like everything in Wonderland, nothing is quite what it seems...

Plot:

The story of Alex in Wonderland is quite a simple one, which works for a book that's mostly meant as a quick and sweet summer read. Alex is a shy kid who lives with his father and his father's not-so-nice girlfriend, Kendra. During the summer, after a small altercation in the amusement arcade Wonderland, Alex scores a job there.

As he navigates his feelings towards Ben and gains friends in Efia and Maggie, someone starts to threaten the Wonderland and the new home that Alex has found.

Despite the simplicity of the plot, I hadn't guessed the culprit until the very end of the book when it's finally semi-revealed and it makes a lot of sense and it was definitely a moment where I ended up smiling at the revelation of it.

Other than that, there isn't much to say about the plot of this book.

Characters:

Alex, as our main character, works very well. He's an awkward and shy boy who will tug on readers' heartstrings. However, I couldn't help but feel that at points he was just like Simon Spier or other "awkward, shy gay narrators" that we see in LGBT books. There is absolutely nothing wrong with this, it's relatable for many readers, but it also doesn't bring much new to the table. He was a sweet person, you laughed with him and felt for him as you read along. And for a cute summer read, that's fine. It also shows that boys are allowed to be awkward, are allowed to be shy. I just wish he felt a little more like his own character.

Now, there was one character-point that I had a frustration with. I won't go into major details as it's a "spoiler" for the story, but it's an issue I had with Simon vs. the Homo Sapiens Agenda as well.

I dislike the miscommunication or misunderstanding leads to a falling out with friends plot-thread. I understand that this can be realistic, but in Alex in Wonderland it was resolved so quickly it felt more like it was a plot-line that needed to be checked off on the To-Do list rather than it serving the story.

The same, partially, went for Kendra's character. There's nothing wrong with using tropes or clichés and I love myself an evil stepmother/girlfriend, but I never felt like there was a warranted or explained reason for Kendra to be the way she is. In the end, I was somewhat pleasantly surprised by the turn she took. And sometimes we don't get an answer to why people are the way they are. However, it felt like it was serving that idea of evil girlfriend too much at times.

Things I like:

• The ending aka the twist of who-done-it
• The characters, despite my issues, were funny and relatable and well written
• The romance was well done and wasn't always the center of the story

Things I don't like:

• The falling out moment between friends
• Kendra's character
• I wish the ending had more of a resolution

Who I'd recommend it to:

If you like Becky Albertalli's books, you will like Alex in Wonderland. If you're looking for a cute, LGBT summer read, you'll like this book as well.


Rating: