Candy Bunny Reader

  TW: Mention of a toxic relationship and a non-consensual kiss This graphic novel is more proof Alice Oseman is one of my favorite authors ever! The first novel of this webcomic-turned graphic novel series Heartstopper is about a teenage boy named Charlie who is rather unpopular at his school. Charlie is also openly gay, and in the beginning is actively trying to get out of a toxic relationship with another guy named Ben. When the new school year starts, Charlie gets a seat next to a popular guy named Nick in one of his classes. Nick is very friendly to Charlie, and they start to hang out and form a close friendship with each other. They become even better friends after Charlie stands up for himself towards Ben and Nick tells Ben to stay away from Charlie or else. Charlie finds himself slowly falling in love with Nick, but he is not sure if Nick will also like him back the same way. At the same time, Nick is questioning his own romantic orientation. This was such a sweet book! A...

  I also happened to read and finish We Are Okay by Nina LaCour this past week. It's a YA Contemporary novel exploring grief and loneliness.  The main character, Marin, a college freshman living in New York, gets special permission to stay at her dorm room over winter break while everyone else is gone, the only other person in the building being the housekeeper, Tommy. Marin does not want to go back to visit her home in San Francisco for some reason. Marin is forced to face her past when her best friend (and ex-girlfriend) Mabel comes to visit. Mabel wants to know why Marin has avoided her since they graduated high school, to the point of moving across the country and avoiding her texts and calls. Over the course of the book we learn what happened to Marin and the big turning point that made her want to leave everything behind.  The book is written with chapters alternating from the present day to flashbacks of Marin's life in San Francisco. We learn that she was raised ...