I Kissed Shara Wheeler by Casey McQuiston
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Web ID: 14352549Just as good as I was hoping
RWRB is one of my favorite books of all time and OLS was one of my favorite books of last year, so it's safe to say my expectations for I Kissed Shara Wheeler were incredibly high. And while I didn't love it quite as much as either RWRB or OLS, it was so, so great. It's also worth noting that my love of the other two books increased dramatically upon reread, so I'm looking forward to revisiting this one and probably loving it even more. I didn't know quite what to expect with this book when I started it. Somehow I had missed that it was being marketed as a romance, so I wasn't even sure if I was looking for a romance to root for or if it was more of a coming of age YA. And even though it wasn't supposed to be a surprise, I really enjoyed discovering the kind of story it was and being unsure about what relationships might develop. This is also Casey McQuiston's first YA, so I was very curious to see how their writing would translate to a younger audience. Very well, it turns out. It feels like their other books in writing style, tone, and humor, but with teen voices and issues. Like all Casey McQuiston books, the characters are the highlight of this book. I love how complex, and at times unlikable, they're allowed to be. Chloe and Shara are both difficult characters to like sometimes, but they both feel so vibrant and real and understandable. They don't have to be nice all time or likable to be worth their own story, and I think that's a great thing to show in a book for teens. They're figuring out how to be good people and how to be themselves, and that's a messy experience. I also absolutely adored Smith and Rory and the journeys that they go on throughout the book. This is a beautiful story about being queer, specifically in a small religious town in the south. It's about shame and pride and community and survival and self-discovery. Chloe thinks that she has this whole town figured out; she thinks that she doesn't fit into it. But this is a story about realizing that you don't really know people and shouldn't assume things based on appearances or stereotypes. The perfect Christian girl might be gay. The jock might be nonbinary. The person who seems like they have it all together might be struggling as much as anyone else. There's just so much going on beneath people's surfaces. This book was hilarious, it was thoughtful, it was moving and emotional. There's such a focus on queer community and love, which always makes me so happy. There were parts that were frustrating and hard to read, for sure, but overall it made me feel this deep sense of joy and hope. I think it will provide the same feeling for others, especially teens who can relate to the characters. I would highly recommend.
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Customer review from barnesandnoble.com
A fun read!
I enjoyed this YA debut from Casey McQuiston, which has such a fun plot: Chloe Green is just doing her best to survive senior year of high school while keeping her grades a notch above Shara Wheeler, who is the absolute worst and her only true competition for valedictorian. So, when Shara disappears at prom, leaving behind a trail of kisses and cryptic clues, Chloe is determined to find her and make her own up to all of her wrongs. As with each of McQuiston’s previous books, this one had me smiling, laughing, and tearing up, while adoring each of the characters (yes, some sooner than others). It’s a fun ride, while still capturing all the messy, weird, uncomfortable parts of coming of age—especially in a conservative atmosphere where not everyone will be supportive of being your true self (the author provides content warnings in the book/on their website). Thank you so much to NetGalley and St. Martin’s Press, Wednesday Books for this e-ARC in exchange for an honest review.
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Customer review from barnesandnoble.com
Perfect YA Debut
I feel like I can’t even begin to put into words how much I loved this book. There’s something about the way Casey writes her stories and her characters that makes me feels so connected to them and makes me feel seen in a way I don’t always feel with other books. I think that’s what makes RW&RB so special to me, because I can see parts of myself in the characters and often easily relate to things they go through, and it’s exactly the same with the IKSW characters. I had so much fun reading everything that Chloe, Smith and Rory got into while trying to figure out why Shara mysteriously disappeared after kissing both Chloe and Rory. It was so entertaining to see just how invested Chloe got in finding Shara, even after Smith and Rory stopped being as involved. And I thought the mystery aspect was so much fun. I loved the obviousness that finding Shara was never just about who was going to be valedictorian to Chloe. Nobody works that hard to find a missing person just so the chances of winning valedictorian were truly fair, right? I thought Casey did an excellent job at finding the right balance of deeper and more emotional content as well as the fun lighthearted content. It made the story flow really nicely and kept me interested the entire time. I can’t do this review without mentioning two of my most favourite moments from the book. The first one was mid-book when one of the character asks another character about being nonbinary which sparks a whole conversation about it between the two, and I absolutely LOVE the way the character explains being nonbinary. I also loved seeing the shift in one of the characters as they began to process things they hadn’t let themselves think about before. The other moment was the speech that Chloe’s mom gives one of the characters about it being okay to leave your hometown and that the place you grow up isn’t the whole world. She explains that it’s okay to leave if you have to be something besides who you really want to be. “You’re allowed to exist” is honestly one of my favourite quotes ever. I couldn’t have asked for a better YA debut from Casey, and I’m honestly just so glad this book exist. Thank you to St. Martin’s Press and Netgalley for the arc
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Customer review from barnesandnoble.com
love is a battlefield
Chloe Green grew up in southern California. She knows sushi and Boba tea and open-mindedness. That is where she lived with her two moms. But then her grandmother got sick and needed help, and her mothers decide to move to Alabama (back to Alabama for one of them) to care for her. And that’s how Chloe came to be enrolled in Willowgrove Christian Academy. Willowgrove is the best school in the area. It’s a stepping stone to the SEC for athletes and to the Ivy League for the academically ambitious. And Chloe is ambitious. She had her eye on that valedictorian spot since she walked in the door as a freshman. But Willowgrove is looking for a particular kind of student, and Chloe doesn’t quite fit the bill. The school’s rules are puritanical and more than a little judgmental, and Chloe likes to push against the rules form time to time. But then Shara Wheeler kissed her. Shara Wheeler is the quintessential Willowgrove student. She is smart (she’s Chloe’s top competition for valedictorian). She is beautiful. She is dating the quarterback, Smith Parker. And she’s the daughter of the principal. Everyone loves Shara. Except for Chloe. But then Shara kissed her. Shara kissed Chloe, and then Shara disappeared. It was the prom, and Shara was about to be crowned the queen, and then she just left. No one knew where she went. But Chloe knew that something was up with her, so the next morning, she broke into the Wheeler’s house and went to Shara’s bedroom to try to find her or find some clue as to where she’s gone. And she does find something—Rory. Rory is literally the boy next door, and he tells Chloe that Shara had kissed him too. And then they find the note. Shara had left a note in a pink envelope. It was addressed to Rory, but it’s a clue for Chloe, Smith, and Rory. They will have to work together to figure out where she’s gone, and why. Chloe assumes that they won’t want to help her, but they will to find Shara. But as she spends time with Smith and Rory, Chloe realizes that they’re not who she thought they were. And maybe Shara wasn’t who she thought either. And if Shara isn’t the perfect Christian student, and she kissed Chloe, what does that really mean to her? I Kissed Shara Wheeler is a fun romp, teenagers sent on a scavenger hunt by a young woman who is smarter than anyone expected. But it’s also a look at the areas of our culture that judge those who are different and teach fear and shame around that. Bestselling author Casey McQuiston once again takes what could be a simple love story and turns it into so much more. I Kissed Shara Wheeler is a study of community, of acceptance, and of finding your true self in the culture of control. I thought I Kissed Shara Wheeler was sublime. I loved every part of this story, from the hunt for the missing prom queen to the way the kids came together, finding their own voices as their senior year winded down. I do know how confining that Christian school culture can be, and I was so happy to see the students finding ways to express their individuality within it. And the ending was amazing, but you’re going to have to read this yourself to find out any more than that. Just know that it’s worth the trip. I Kissed Shara Wheeler is the high school story that today’s world needs, and I hope everyone who needs this book finds it and loves it. This is the kind of book that could find a lonely teenager and help turn their life around, just because someone sees them and understands. Egalleys for I Kissed Shara Wheeler were provided by Wednesday Books through NetGalley, with many thanks.
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Customer review from barnesandnoble.com
Stunning and wonderful
This book was stunning and delightful. CMQ is a genius. I absolutely loved Chloe, Smith, Rory, and all of their friends. It reminded me of reading John Green (particularly Paper Towns and Looking for Alaska) as a teenager and it hilariously had a John Green reference. I do not even have words to explain how wonderful I found this book. Thank you so much to Wednesday Books/St. Martin’s Press for the copy!
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Customer review from barnesandnoble.com
Perfect for All Teens!
I love the way Casey McQuinston can write a difficult topic in a way that doesn't make me feel like I'm drowning in life's darkness. Chloe's hilarious and hair-pulling adventures while trying to discover the secrets of The Most Popular Girl in Town kept me on the edge of my seat, while also leaving me clutching my heart and sighing at these sweet babies discovering their identities. This book has a fantastic message about being true to yourself and allowing yourself what you need in order to grow, while also understanding that even the worst years of your life can leave you with a few positive moments and nostalgia. The author treats the topics of Christianity and sexuality as something that's not inherently opposed, but that can and should be reconciled in an accepting way. It's a story for queer kids, straight kids, and anyone who ever felt like staging a coup in their high school.
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Customer review from barnesandnoble.com