Perfect on Paper

Product Information

ANYWAY, Darcy is our main character, and I honestly enjoyed her so much. She’s relatable for me in so many ways and the fact that she screws up and makes some selfish decisions, but then learns from them... yes, we love a personal growth plot. There is a tonne of rep in the book (aside from the mindblowingly perfect bisexual rep) including: trans, non-binary, lesbian, gay, fat.

Perfect on Paper had me squealing with delight and I couldn’t help but smile as I finished. This novel is everything I want in a young adult book - young love, sweet sibling relationships, school drama. The reader gets a taste of the struggles in mother/teenage daughter relationship, the closeness between two sisters, the confusing feelings of love unrequited, and the yearning of a budding new love. Darcy is not perfect (hence the title) yet she gives everything her heart. And as she discovers more about herself, she begins to realize it’s okay to make mistakes, because the people you choose around you are what is important. Gonzales is incredible at creating such authentic, fun characters. I truly was rooting for all of these characters even through all of their silly, and sometimes infuriating, mistakes! I absolutely recommend this book, and I, personally, cannot wait to see more from the author! One of my favorite parts of this book was the solid relationship advice that Darcy provides to (most of) her clients. This information will actually help readers to better navigate the sometimes turbulent ocean of relationships. This novel also has great representation of the LGBTQIA+ community where the characters are members of the community but are not suffering because of this part of their identities. Darcy's reflections on being bisexual are also incredibly vulnerable and authentic.If you couldn’t tell, I really loved this book. I cannot say enough good things about it. I can’t wait until it releases so I can get my physical copy. I know this will be a book I reread anytime I need a happy read. I encourage everyone to read Perfect on Paper! Perfect on Paper had so much LGBTQ+ representation but it didn’t feel gratuitous. I love how normalized it was. This didn’t feel like an exposé about LGBTQ+, it was just a story about teens.

I also found the relationship with all the parents portrayed very well. Quite often our relationships with our parents are a strong mix between loving them and hating them and feeling grateful and feeling unsupported and so on and so on. Sophie definitely hit the spot in portraying this. I really enjoyed the read and it will hopefully because an immediate hit. From the author of The Matzah Ball comes a pitch-perfect romcom following a third-generation Jewish matchmaker who unwittingly finds her own search for love thrust into the spotlight... Only Mostly Devastated was one of my favorite romances of 2020, so when I found out Sophie was releasing a new novel, I know I had to get my hands on it. And I was right - this book was the definition of CUTE. Has maybe not the best judgement when it comes to her best friend, Brooke...who is in love with someone else. I feel like I could write an entire love letter to this book and it still wouldn’t be enough. Was this book perfect? Not necessarily. But did it perfectly pair some of my favorite things together? Absolutely.

RANDOM MOVIE QUOTE

In her second novel, following THE MATZAH BALL, Jean Meltzer continues writing about something that she's rather an expert on: Jewish life. MR. PERFECT ON PAPER is a charming tale of finding love where you least expect it. While a romance, it's also a glimpse into the lives of people who are struggling but keep their problems private. The evolution from frenemies to lovers between Darcy and Brougham really worked and I appreciated how the author showcased those tender moments as things started to shift, but also didn't rush them along. That uncertainty and vulnerability is one of the things I love most about the YA genre. The cast of secondary characters was delightful (Finn! LOL) and I also liked the focus on familial relationships (and how positive and negative they can be). The typical YA angst and drama do pop up in their own unique ways, but I thought it was handled and presented really well. Darcy and Brougham's character arcs were done so well and I was rooting for these two to find themselves (and each other) along the way. I really enjoyed Sophie Gonzales' last book, Only Mostly Devastated, but I loved Perfect on Paper even more than I expected. She's taken some classic tropes and a couple of familiar premises and blended them together with all the queerness I could hope for. Yes, the bisexual female protagonist does end up with a cis boy. And that doesn't make her less queer, dammit. I don't think I have enough words to describe how PERFECT* this book is. *You appreciated the pun and you know it* Perfect on Paper really gives a voice and mimics the thoughts of anyone who has struggled with their sexuality, relationship, identity, consent, etc. The topic of biphobia is brought up and I thought it was handled very well. It’s not something that I think of often (as a heterosexual woman) but I can recognize the problems bisexual people face.

Audio Notes: The narrator, Barrie Kreinik, is prolific so I'd listened to another book by her just a week or so before this one. I ended up not enjoying that book, but I loved this one. That tells me only one thing: this narrator doesn't magically save boring material. She is, however, a capable narrator. As mentioned above, this protagonist is messy but I still rooted for her. A narrator has to be able to convey that internal struggle in single POV and make it compelling and Kreinik is successful here. There were multiple times when just reading Darcy's thoughts made me burst into tears out of recognition. I genuinely don't think I've read anything that explains internalised biphobia as well as this book did- some of the conversation was putting to words feelings I have never even managed to give coherent thoughts to. But this? This wasn’t so threatening. Maybe it was going to be okay. I swallowed hard in an attempt to shove the lump in my throat down closer to my thudding heart. “Help with what?” So let me channel my inner Darcy Phillips for a moment and offer you some advice: don’t miss this book!The story faces sexual identity issues head on, especially internalized biphobia, as Darcy realizes she doesn't feel "queer enough". It offers representation from all over the sexual identity spectrum and shows young adults exploring their identity and navigating their internal and external challenges, learning to love themselves as they are and to believe they are enough. (Plus, Gonzales/Phillips gives some sound relationship advice!) The romance was impressively written. Perfect on Paper somehow managed to combine my love of the fake dating trop a lá To All the Boys I’ve Loved Before with the sweet, slow-burn that starts as friendship that made me love If I’m Being Honest so much. I love watching a romance unfold through characters’ thoughts and actions and not just being told, and that’s exactly what we are given in Perfect on Paper. In short, it was spectacular.