Thoughts on : Leah on the Offbeat by Becky Albertalli

Posted by Kay on July 27, 2018 3:09 pm in 4 stars reads | 4 comments

Leah on the Offbeat by Becky Albertalli
Genre : YA, Romance, Lgbt
Series : Stand alone (part of the Creekwood series, but can be read as stand alone)

About the Book  :

When it comes to drumming, Leah Burke is usually on beat—but real life isn’t always so rhythmic. An anomaly in her friend group, she’s the only child of a young, single mom, and her life is decidedly less privileged. She loves to draw but is too self-conscious to show it. And even though her mom knows she’s bisexual, she hasn’t mustered the courage to tell her friends—not even her openly gay BFF, Simon.

So Leah really doesn’t know what to do when her rock-solid friend group starts to fracture in unexpected ways. With prom and college on the horizon, tensions are running high. It’s hard for Leah to strike the right note while the people she loves are fighting—especially when she realizes she might love one of them more than she ever intended.

My Thoughts :

I read Simon vs. the Homo Sapiens Agenda last year and really enjoyed it (still have to see the movie though!) It was cute and made me smile and I thought it was well worth the hype.

Then I read the author’s second novel, The Upside of Unrequited, and had a really hard time connecting with it. It did some things well (talk about a diverse book!), but sadly I can’t say I enjoyed it.

So when Leah on the Offbeat appeared on the shelves, I felt very hesitant. At first I planned on skipping it, but the positive reviews from readers who had felt similarly about the two previous books were encouraging, so I decided to give it a chance.

And I’m so glad I did!

Leah was such a fun character. She was certainly unpleasant in a very teenager way at times, but that just felt realistic to me. She was witty and stubborn and entertaining all at once. I think my teenage self would have related to her much more than to the typical bookworm we’ve been seeing again and again in YA literature in the past decade (though I feel that might be changing a little).

And I loved the dialogues. I don’t know that teens would talk exactly like that, but it was generally clever and entertaining, and not overpolished, so I really enjoyed it.

This book was so uplifting. There are some serious and important topics being discussed, but the book’s general outlook is so optimistic and heartwarming. While it’s important to talk about the struggles teens might be facing when coming out, I feel it’s equally important to have stories where things go well. To have have a supportive, positive example.

I always love giving authors a second chance, and this book is exactly why. It was a very cute girl-girl romance that brightened my days and it was a pure joy to read. Now I’ll certainly want to read Becky Albertalli’s next book!