"Picture me madly in love with this moving, tender, unapologetically honest book." —Becky Albertalli, William C. Morris Award winning author of Simon Vs. the Homo Sapiens Agenda Danny Cheng has always known his parents have secrets. But when he discovers a taped-up box in his father's closet filled with old letters and a file on a powerful Silicon Valley family, he realizes there's much more to his family's past than he ever imagined. Danny has been an artist for as long as he can remember and it seems his path is set, with a scholarship to RISD and his family's blessing to pursue the career he's always dreamed of. Still, contemplating a future without his best friend, Harry Wong, by his side makes Danny feel a panic he can barely put into words. Harry and Danny's lives are deeply intertwined and as they approach the one-year anniversary of a tragedy that shook their friend group to its core, Danny can't stop asking himself if Harry is truly in love with his girlfriend, Regina Chan. When Danny digs deeper into his parents' past, he uncovers a secret that disturbs the foundations of his family history and the carefully constructed façade his parents have maintained begins to crumble. With everything he loves in danger of being stripped away, Danny must face the ghosts of the past in order to build a future that belongs to him.
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3
bennett_the_ceo
(Grade: C) A hard book to judge, as Gilbert hits on some poignant messages and sets up plenty of intrigue only to return to sloppy storytelling in chapter after chapter. Kudos to her for not building the entire plot around the young protagonist's sexuality, but given it's a first-person perspective, the book could stand to be a little more direct. The parental figures begin as background actors but quickly become the key drivers. Their mystery is odd, not very plausible, and serves mainly as distraction.
(Grade: C) A hard book to judge, as Gilbert hits on some poignant messages and sets up plenty of intrigue only to return to sloppy storytelling in chapter after chapter. Kudos to her for not building the entire plot around the young protagonist's sexuality, but given it's a first-person perspective, the book could stand to be a little more direct. The parental figures begin as background actors but quickly become the key drivers. Their mystery is odd, not very plausible, and serves mainly as distraction.(Rated on Mar 3, 2019)
2
HeathersCorner
(Grade: B+) This book left me with a lot a conflicting feelings. It’s so captivating that despite its length, I finished it in one weekend. I really liked the narrator’s voice and his friend group felt very genuine. The story seemed realistic and well-crafted. The author does a great job making an authentic first person perspective. However there sometimes seemed to be too many things going on at once, some of the metaphors didn’t work for me, and the ending is a bit too abrupt to be completely satisfying.
(Grade: B+) This book left me with a lot a conflicting feelings. It’s so captivating that despite its length, I finished it in one weekend. I really liked the narrator’s voice and his friend group felt very genuine. The story seemed realistic and well-crafted. The author does a great job making an authentic first person perspective. However there sometimes seemed to be too many things going on at once, some of the metaphors didn’t work for me, and the ending is a bit too abrupt to be completely satisfying. (Rated on Nov 21, 2018)