Here’s my review of the newest collection of original short stories with the theme of coming to age short stories that revolve around love, school, angst, and everything in between. I honestly enjoyed the majority of the stories, and only really didn’t really gel with one.
Safe Harbor by Nicola Yoon and David Yoon (5 stars)-I thought the first story in the collection was great. We follow teen Isabel who has been sent to a group therapy appointment by her parents to help her get over their divorce. Isabel meets a group of teens who understand what she’s going through and she also meets a boy who may be what she needs to believe in love again. I honestly wish this story had been longer since I was really enjoying all of the characters so much.
Julia at the Drive-in by Rainbow Rowell (5 stars)-We follow teen Julia who is the proverbial third wheel out and about at a drive-in with her best friend and her best friend’s boyfriend. She ends up escaping the car and then finds herself making eye contact with a boy that she didn’t even know had any idea who she was.
Winter Breakage by David Levithan (3 stars)-This story follows Eric who is dealing with completing his first semester at college. He ends up meeting up with people he considers friends in New York City. This was my least favorite of the collection because I didn’t know what Eric’s deal was. The character was all over the place and just pushed out angst, but it seemed to be just some free floating thing that he then was upset if people don’t show or say enough to him to make him feel as if he matters. I don’t know. I just found him annoying.
The Price of Admission by Dustin Thao (5 stars)-This story follows Evan who attends a prestigious private school after the death of his mother. Evan finds himself struggling to fit in, until the school’s most popular boy, Dalton notices him. Evan finds himself doing whatever he can to keep Dalton in his life even when it means him ignoring all the red flags about him. I really enjoyed this one and just loved the ending. Definitely going to check out Thao in the future.
Three of Hearts by Katie Cotugno (3.5 stars)-Not bad, but I think the ending was a bit of a letdown after the main character, Ellery seems to get an epiphany about the two boys she’s become best friends (Camp and Danny) with and something more.
Back to You by Ann Liang (5 stars)-The only story with a science fiction/fantasy bent and a strong ending to the collection. Allison Yang is burned out and doesn’t remember what day it is or if she’s eaten. She’s at a job she hates, but doesn’t know what to do. Well death takes over and she gets tossed back to college where she can either decided to choose differently or just go down the same path that left her unhappy before. I loved the story and Liang managed to pack a lot in a short story. I thought the ending was loving.
