Phil Stamper

"I'm so starry-eyed for this wise, romantic gem of a book." - Becky Albertalli, bestselling author of Simon vs. the Homo Sapiens Agenda In this smart, heart-warming YA debut perfect for fans of Becky Albertalli and Adam Silvera, two teens find love when their lives are uprooted for their parents' involvement in a NASA mission to Mars. Cal wants to be a journalist, and he's already well underway with almost half a million followers on his FlashFame app and an upcoming internship at Buzzfeed. But his plans are derailed when his pilot father is selected for a highly-publicized NASA mission to Mars. Within days, Cal and his parents leave Brooklyn for hot and humid Houston. With the entire nation desperate for any new information about the astronauts, Cal finds himself thrust in the middle of a media circus. Suddenly his life is more like a reality TV show, with his constantly bickering parents struggling with their roles as the "perfect American family." And then Cal meets Leon, whose mother is another astronaut on the mission, and he finds himself falling head over heels--and fast. They become an oasis for each other amid the craziness of this whole experience. As their relationship grows, so does the frenzy surrounding the Mars mission, and when secrets are revealed about ulterior motives of the program, Cal must find a way to get to the truth without hurting the people who have become most important to him.

The Gravity of Us

ephe

the gravity of us by phil stamper - 
review by @ethereallxver one twitter 
topics: queer love, depression, relationship with "broken family", relationship with other people, social media, journalism, space mission, understanding other's feelings, reflexion about reality shows. 
representation: gay / bi guys, mentally ill characters (mostly anxiety disorder and depression), poc main character, (i spotted a lesbian couple).
trigger warning for this novel: death, grief, anxiety, depression (i'll add more if i can think of something else)
the gravity of us in brief: this novel - first phil stamper's release - could look like a cute gay love story. but there's so much more going behind the romantic stuff, this book is about understanding how difficult relationships (every kind) with mentally ill people can be, a huge part of the book is about the space mission of the sixties and how social media (more focused on reality shows) can affect your life and how social media can make you believe things look that way but the reality is so much different. 
quick review: 5/5 ⭐, as i said this novel is a cute gay love story but it's so much more than just that, the topics are important and the way the author approached them feels right because it fits perfectly with the love story going on, things feel right. i feel like the cute soulmate thing was just what i Needed these days, this is just cute and not too overwhelming even if this book point out important stuff. of course one of the most important topic is journalism and i love how this book treats this subject, i really learned a lot about this job, how it actually seems to really work, how reality shows (which i never really watched) are made up. i felt like everything was so interesting and so well explained in a so simple way like its not a "hard" reading with lot of stuff to get at the same time, it's chill, cute and interesting in every ways. i loved that book. and one of the thing i loved the most is the fact nobody's making a big deal out of a gay relationship, it feels normal and sometimes i think i need that cute love story, not about a coming out and how hard it is to be lgbt and all that stuff (even if i still think that a rlly important topic).
when you can read this book: this book is such a cute novel you can pick whenever you want, i think that's the kind of book you can read when you're down - not feeling well -.

Julia Moran 

I've read like 60% of the book and not even gonna waste my time finishing this, like it just isn't it for me, everything feels so fake. I was truly excited to read this book, my expectations were too high and they were brutally crushed. I'm really thankful that I read this on my kindle and I didn't buy the physical copy because it would have felt like a waste of money.

Dustin

I’ve had to stop reading this book halfway through. I though I could make it but it just wasn’t for me. Characters behaviour is erratic and the dialogue are so all over the place. It feels like the writing stopped and was started by a different person mid dialogue.

"I'm so starry-eyed for this wise, romantic gem of a book." - Becky Albertalli, bestselling author of Simon vs. the Homo Sapiens Agenda Cal wants to be a journalist, and he's already well underway with almost half a million followers on his FlashFame app and an upcoming internship at Buzzfeed. But his plans are derailed when his pilot father is selected for a highly-publicized NASA mission to Mars. Within days, Cal and his parents leave Brooklyn for hot and humid Houston. With the entire nation desperate for any new information about the astronauts, Cal finds himself thrust in the middle of a media circus. Suddenly his life is more like a reality TV show, with his constantly bickering parents struggling with their roles as the "perfect American family." And then Cal meets Leon, whose mother is another astronaut on the mission, and he finds himself falling head over heels--and fast. They become an oasis for each other amid the craziness of this whole experience. As their relationship grows, so does the frenzy surrounding the Mars mission, and when secrets are revealed about ulterior motives of the program, Cal must find a way to get to the truth without hurting the people who have become most important to him.

mc was kind of unbearable at times but overall? cute spacey queer book!

Good idea, but no chemistry between the main character and his love interest. Felt very insta-love. Love the NASA bits though

Abigail Chapman

Julia

3.5/5. Didn’t love the writing style or the main character for most of the story. This book had its ups and downs, but ultimately I did enjoy it.

okay, when i started reading the first page, i was like yeah this is cringey and too young adult for me. let’s keep in mind that i LITERALLY am a teenager and should enjoy this, but i just couldn’t. once in a while i like a bit of an easy read but this just didn’t do it for me. first of all, there was no character development and zero depth. throughout the book i really disliked the main character, which was definitely not the goal of the book, so i think it was a fault of the author. the mc was selfish and controlling and just nothing was interesting about him, such a pick me person too. what do u mean when u say “i listen to old bands and music on cassettes” and then u name the most famous and pivotal music creators of our time??” that doesn’t make you interesting but just tone deaf..

i am a fan of writing that has depth and is a bit poetical or one that just plays with words and feelings. so tired of someone depicting anxiety and depression as “an emptiness in your chest” or “i feel so sad,” which is what this book did. plus the romance of the book?? it happened  so fast, with zero chemistry and shallow, superficial feelings and conversation exchanges.. you don’t fall in love and build a connection with someone in one day and you definitely don’t “see the fire and cynicism” in someone’s eyes through a pap pic??

the story line was so confusing. the depiction of some characters and scenes made you more confused because you just can’t tell what vibe is one supposed to give off. and i don’t mean in a way that josh farrow guy was so fake, which the reader got right away, but in a way where a normal conversation that was supposed to give you a hint on someone’s personality gave in fact you nothing but confusion. the whole nasa thing was weird as well too. there was so much information missing.. oh you want to be diverse and put a black guy on the cover and throughout the whole book you don’t even mention anything about his looks/skin or freaking struggle that is definitely connected to his depression?? that is not right. plus why do Americans think everything is about America?? what do you mean you made a plea to the whole world, PLEASE. and that part with Russia and America collaborating, excuse me? this book was published after Russia made the invasion towards Krym, literally the act preceding the war. really don’t think there’d be time for AMERICA TO FLY TO THE MARS AND COLLABORATE W RUSSIA..

predectiable story line and ending. I have more to point out but I don’t want to spend my energy on this anymore. 

what I though would be just a cringe easy read, turned into a stupid stupid anger trigger. I think we as queer people also deserve some witty and heartwarming books. but this really wasn’t it. the aim to make it diverse and “woke” and amusing just failed. I didn’t want to be mean, but the more I read, the more I got mad. the writing was superficial and not believable at all, that happens. but the story line and things mentioned just made it worse.

let me go read some good literature now and maybe the author of this book should stick to listening to “such underground bands” like nirvana and to being a gay New York kind of hipster who is “open” to everything but admitting they could use their privilege to something much better than writing books.

eve 

okay, when i started reading the first page, i was like yeah this is cringey and too young adult for me. let’s keep in mind that i LITERALLY am a teenager and should enjoy this, but i just couldn’t. once in a while i like a bit of an easy read but this just didn’t do it for me. first of all, there was no character development and zero depth. throughout the book i really disliked the main character, which was definitely not the goal of the book, so i think it was a fault of the author. the mc was selfish and controlling and just nothing was interesting about him, such a pick me person too. what do u mean when u say “i listen to old bands and music on cassettes” and then u name the most famous and pivotal music creators of our time??” that doesn’t make you interesting but just tone deaf..

i am a fan of writing that has depth and is a bit poetical or one that just plays with words and feelings. so tired of someone depicting anxiety and depression as “an emptiness in your chest” or “i feel so sad,” which is what this book did. plus the romance of the book?? it happened  so fast, with zero chemistry and shallow, superficial feelings and conversation exchanges.. you don’t fall in love and build a connection with someone in one day and you definitely don’t “see the fire and cynicism” in someone’s eyes through a pap pic??

the story line was so confusing. the depiction of some characters and scenes made you more confused because you just can’t tell what vibe is one supposed to give off. and i don’t mean in a way that josh farrow guy was so fake, which the reader got right away, but in a way where a normal conversation that was supposed to give you a hint on someone’s personality gave in fact you nothing but confusion. the whole nasa thing was weird as well too. there was so much information missing.. oh you want to be diverse and put a black guy on the cover and throughout the whole book you don’t even mention anything about his looks/skin or freaking struggle that is definitely connected to his depression?? that is not right. plus why do Americans think everything is about America?? what do you mean you made a plea to the whole world, PLEASE. and that part with Russia and America collaborating, excuse me? this book was published after Russia made the invasion towards Krym, literally the act preceding the war. really don’t think there’d be time for AMERICA TO FLY TO THE MARS AND COLLABORATE W RUSSIA..

predectiable story line and ending. I have more to point out but I don’t want to spend my energy on this anymore. 

what I though would be just a cringe easy read, turned into a stupid stupid anger trigger. I think we as queer people also deserve some witty and heartwarming books. but this really wasn’t it. the aim to make it diverse and “woke” and amusing just failed. I didn’t want to be mean, but the more I read, the more I got mad. the writing was superficial and not believable at all, that happens. but the story line and things mentioned just made it worse.

let me go read some good literature now and maybe the author of this book should stick to listening to “such underground bands” like nirvana and to being a gay New York kind of hipster who is “open” to everything but admitting they could use their privilege to something much better than writing books.

fizzy

first of all, i learnt a lot of new things. real life things. it was so fascinating. this book was so fascinating. while reading it, i was being motivated to build a public persona, and maybe got a little bit interested in space and all that stuff. also, the title is so good ??? like after finishing it i absolutely loved the title.

amber baardsen

I don’t really know what to say….and not in a good way. 
Or i do, but you know. 
The plot was a little bit confusing, i didn’t really get the whole astronauts/mars-landing/NASA-thing. 
I didn’t really like that they got together so early and i have to add they didn’t really have any chemistry. The relationship between Cal and Leon, and characters are very underdeveloped. They didn’t really have any personality? Yeah, so that kinda annoyed me. 
Not really for me, but i won’t discourage people from reading it if they want a quick, easy read:)
2,5⭐️

I really wanted to enjoy this book, however I just couldn’t. It as a good plot, although it did feel a little forced all the time and cringe but not I a good way

Alex

Very good very gay. I liked how the drama didn't feel so stretched out but at the same time it also went by an bit to quickly?? Nu but seriously still very good and I love how the chatacters are really their own person

Michelle Noveak

Isabela H 

Adorable!!
Also, I've been reading a lot of LGBT YA books, and this was a pretty refreshing change. It was different enough from others that I really enjoyed the change, but it was also the same comforting cuteness that I appreciate.

This book was so ME… it’s a cute story of two boys falling in love, but also has to do with space and NASA. It’s such a feel good book and a really simple read! Also really relatable to our time and age since it takes place in Houston around this time! Would for sure read it again!! 

Jonah Watts 

Ben Bastow

Solid 3.5 stars!!

Hella cute, loved the whole space aspect of it!! 🙈 just a lil bit too much going on 😅 full review soon!

Wendy Stonegood

First of all, this isn’t a sci-fi book and the main characters don’t go to Space. (I just wanted to clarify because I have noticed a little confusion in the book-world!)

This is a burgeoning love story, a realistic take on family, and a bestowal of admiration to NASA and the entirety of the Space industry - not just the illustrious astronauts.

Stamper creates a realistic, queer love story between two of the main characters. I appreciated how he didn’t have his character define his sexuality and just let him be himself. It’s innate for humans to want to put things into categories or boxes, but sometimes you just can’t and I liked seeing a representation of that.

This isn’t a spoiler, but I also wanted to say how much I appreciated the portrayal of the mom’s anxiety throughout the story. I felt very seen in the way that Stamper described the anxiety. It wasn’t a character flaw for her, it was just a part of her. You got to see the mom’s thinking processes relating to her anxiety, how the family made accommodations for it, and how she still pushed herself to work with her feelings. There was also frequent mentions of various characters utilizing therapy and that is so important for all of us to read about and help alleviate the stigma.

If you like a low-angst, queer love, and all-around-great story, please pick up this book!

Hanna peterson

Magda Silva

This is a really good book. Loved the plot, the story and the characters. The main couple is so adorable. So good

3.5 stars

It was good but not really necessary.

Elizabeth Neill

This was a cute quick read and the characters felt really well written. The only thing I really didn't understand was the insta love but I know about love at first sight. I will be reading more from Phil Stamper in the future.

Flavia Louise

I really like this type of genre.
Sci-fi but basically contemporary.
I mean I do like both genres on their own but this mix is especially nice.

Sadly it wasn't quite a 5 star for me :(

This book was so sweet! I really like how the relations in the book have their ups and downs and how the characters grow. I'd definetely recommend this book for contemporary readers, especially for those who are interested in space and space flight. But even if you aren't, I'm sure this book will be something for you aswell.

Jasmin 

This book came just at the right moment for me - so I might be a biiiit biased 😅

However, I loved the story and characters. Cal, the protagonist, was bot your completely likeable character, but thatade him more interesting. We see him grow and leatn about life throughout the novel.

The writing is fluent and keepa you hooked - I've been listening to this book for ite entirety on 1x speed, as I didn't want to miss a thing. And the cast is brilliant 😍

Another part that I loved was how the surrounding of Cal and Leon reacted to finding out about their relationship - it was no big thing, it was no dramatic 'omg that kid is queer' scene or anything alike. Whilst we see inner monologue of the main character worrying about how Leon thinks aftrr their first kiss, their relationship is normalised and portrayed as nothing out of the ordinary - something I hope will be reached in our real life society soon as well.

iris

It’s a really cute and fast read. I loved it and it got me out of my reader’s slump <3 

However i wished we got to see more science... every time a scientist was talking the book cut it off as if it’s not interesting :( *shooting stars much??*

The Gravity of Us

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