Nothing queer about being gay

I think it’s about time for us Filipino adults to stop the pretense and give our kids the credit they deserve: they are reading and they are ready, maybe even more than us. It wouldn’t hurt to have something like this story, told from the point-of-view of 16-year old Steven who is struggling with the idea that just because he seems to be attracted to male people and likes square-dancing, people might consider him gay. And he is absolutely, positively not gay.

Chalk it up: mysteries and thrills between the Lines

But much like the rest of the book, Joel redeems himself as a bankable lead towards the end of this book, which is where Sanderson decides to release the torrent of excitement and mayhem he had been unnecessarily keeping at bay throughout the story. Primary a mystery novel, where Joel’s assistance is needed to uncover a series of student disappearances, the book (and Joel) spent too much time dwelling and building on the mystery.

Not Romeo and Juliet, where Shakespeare makes fun of love

Nelson Mandela said, “If you talk to a man in a language he understands, that goes to his head. If you talk to him in his own language, that goes to his heart.” I feel so strongly about Eleanor & Park that I have to plan this review around 3 hard-to-translate-into-English Pinoy terms.

Min Green, I can’t stop thinking about you.

Making use of the outcast and popular kid archetypes, Why We Broke Up finds a solid foundation in the opposites-attract template and reminds us that clichés only became stale because when they work, THEY WORK.