Nate Expectations--"Sometimes you do have to say goodbye to someone before you can say hello to yourself. To your Nate."

Title: Nate Expectations (sequel to Better Nate Than Ever and Five, Six, Seven, Nate!)

Author: Tim Federle


LGBTQ+ Representation: Main character and a couple of supporting characters are gay


What it’s about (in 75 words or fewer): Nate's Broadway show closes, and Jordan moves on to another acting job without him, and Nate has to return home to his biggest challenge yet: high school. Surprisingly, Nate is not bullied as much as he had been before he left. As an English class project, Nate (with help from BFF Libby) is directing a musical version of Great Expectations. Will it be a success . . . and could a new romance be in his future?


First, a story: One of the many reasons I love Nate is because in high school, I was Libby and my friend Nathan was, well, Nate. We sang Broadway show songs for hours together while driving around in circles in Indianapolis; we drove to all the Sam Goody music stores in the surrounding area to make sure that we could BOTH buy the CDs to whatever show we were obsessed with at the time (The Secret Garden, Tommy, Phantom, Les Mis, Rent, Kiss of the Spider Woman, La Cage Aux Folles, Jesus Christ Superstar and How to Succeed in Business are the ones I can remember offhand).

Dumplin' and Puddin'--"All of the best things in my life have started with a Dolly Parton song"

Titles: Dumplin' and Puddin'

Author: Julie Murphy


LGBTQ+ Representation: Minor characters are drag queens in m/m relationship. Supporting character is a lesbian; another supporting character comes out as asexual.

What each book is about (in 75 words or fewer):

Dumplin'--Willowdean has always felt confident in her plus-size body but experiences some insecurity when the cute private school jock, Bo, becomes attracted to her. Will can't understand why Bo likes her. In order to regain her confidence, Will (and a group of other girls) decides to enter the Miss Clover City beauty pageant, which is run by her former-beauty-queen mother. Will is determined to prove that beauty comes in all sizes.

Puddin'--In order to please her parents, Millie goes to fat camp every summer. But this summer, she is determined to stick up for herself and attend journalism camp instead. Meanwhile, Callie is the mean-girl dance team member, next in line for captain, with the hot boyfriend. When Millie and Callie end up having to work together at Millie's uncle's gym, they form a surprising friendship.


What I think: I decided to review these books together for a couple of reasons. First of all, they are companion novels, written by the fabulous Julie Murphy. Each book can stand alone, but many of the same characters appear in both stories. Second, many of the same topics and themes are addressed in both stories making them easy to write about together. Finally, Dumplin' the movie premiered on Netflix months ago. I still haven't seen it since I have no one who is willing to loan me their Netflix password 😉, but I have obviously read the book. Everyone on my Facebook and Twitter who raved about the movie got this reply from me:

Dumplin' is a great YA book; I highly recommend it. The companion book, Puddin,' is EVEN BETTER than Dumplin.' Seriously, read them both. 

The Whispers--"I don't see any harm in praying to the Whispers. Maybe they're listening."

Title: The Whispers

Author: Greg Howard


LGBTQ+ Representation: Male main character is gay (does not explicitly describe himself as such, but claims he has "a condition," kisses boys, and is not interested in girls)


What it’s about (in 75 words or fewer): Eleven-year-old Riley's mother disappeared four months ago, and he is determined to find her. She used to tell Riley bedtime stories about the "Whispers" that lived in the woods and granted wishes--could the Whispers be real? And could they help Riley find his mother? Riley is determined to find out, but what if his "condition" is what caused his mother to disappear?


What I think (in 250 words or fewer): Three years ago, my kids and I moved from Indiana to North Carolina. My two older children reacted in a way that I had not anticipated: acting strangely around my father, accusing him of doing and saying things he never would.

So I got to meet Bill Konigsberg!

So I got to meet Bill Konigsberg at the Greensboro Bound 2019 Literary Festival a couple of days ago. I was so excited to hear him talk about The Music of What Happens and answer some audience questions. 

He was taller in person, but everyone seems taller in person for me:

Why thank you, I also think we're adorable.

If you are scratching your head and saying "Who's that?" then for shame. Read the following reviews and then come back to this post:

• The Music of What Happens
• The Porcupine of Truth, Part 1 and Part 2
• Out of the Pocket
• Honestly, Ben
• Openly Straight

The Music of What Happens--"This was Different. This was Real."

Title: The Music of What Happens

Author: Bill Konigsberg


LGBTQ+ Representation: Both main characters are gay.


What it’s about (in 75 words or fewer): Max and Jordan couldn't be more different: Max plays sports and hangs out with "his dude bros" while Jordan writes poetry and shops with "his wives." Max agrees to help Jordan run his late father's food truck for the summer, and their friendship turns into something more. However, both boys are keeping secrets (Max was raped recently; Jordan's mother's gambling is becoming more problematic) that threaten their newfound relationship.


What I think: Every time I read a Konigsberg book, I am always inspired to write a lot about it. 

I think this is a compliment to his books--plus, I am a former English teacher who analyzes books and runs book clubs for fun. So for this review, I am going to discuss what I found fun and sweet, and reasons that I want to hug both Max and Jordan.