Name: Bria's review of Juliet Takes a Breath by Gabby Rivera
Item: Juliet Takes a Breath
Rating: 5
Author: Bria

Gabby Rivera

"Juliet Milagros Palante is leaving the Bronx and headed to Portland, Oregon. She just came out to her family and isn't sure if her mom will ever speak to her again. But Juliet has a plan, sort of, one that's going to help her figure out this whole 'Puerto Rican lesbian' thing. She's interning with the author of her favorite book: Harlowe Brisbane, the ultimate authority on feminism, women's bodies, and other gay-sounding stuff. Will Juliet be able to figure out her life over the course of one magical summer? Is that even possible? Or is she running away from all the problems that seem too big to handle? With more questions than answers, Juliet takes on Portland, Harlowe, and most importantly, herself."--Publisher's description.

Juliet Takes a Breath

mia ¿

A NEW GRAPHIC NOVEL ADAPTATION OF THE BESTSELLING BOOK! Juliet Milagros Palante is leaving the Bronx and headed to Portland, Oregon. She just came out to her family and isn’t sure if her mom will ever speak to her again. But don’t worry, Juliet has something kinda resembling a plan that’ll help her figure out what it means to be Puerto Rican, lesbian and out. See, she’s going to intern with Harlowe Brisbane - her favorite feminist author, someone whose last work on feminism, self-love and lots of other things will help Juliet find her ever elusive epiphany. There’s just one problem—Harlowe’s white, not from the Bronx and doesn’t have the answers. Okay, maybe that’s more than one problem but Juliet never said it was a perfect plan... Critically-acclaimed writer Gabby Rivera adapts her bestselling novel alongside artist Celia Moscote in an unforgettable queer coming-of-age story exploring race, identity and what it means to be true to your amazing self. Even when the rest of the world doesn’t understand.

Bria

I rarely find reads where I truly relate to a character, but this did it for me. I think the color palette, artwork, the representation, the realistic interaction with the White Feminist™, literally EVERYTHING about this graphic novel is phenomenal. Now I need to read the novel because I just know it'll be a new favorite.

A People magazine Best Book of Fall 2019 An Amazon Best Young Adult Book of 2019 "F***ing outstanding."--Roxane Gay, New York Times bestselling author Juliet Milagros Palante is a self-proclaimed closeted Puerto Rican baby dyke from the Bronx. Only, she's not so closeted anymore. Not after coming out to her family the night before flying to Portland, Oregon, to intern with her favorite feminist writer--what's sure to be a life-changing experience. And when Juliet's coming out crashes and burns, she's not sure her mom will ever speak to her again. But Juliet has a plan--sort of. Her internship with legendary author Harlowe Brisbane, the ultimate authority on feminism, women's bodies, and other gay-sounding stuff, is sure to help her figure out this whole "Puerto Rican lesbian" thing. Except Harlowe's white. And not from the Bronx. And she definitely doesn't have all the answers . . . In a summer bursting with queer brown dance parties, a sexy fling with a motorcycling librarian, and intense explorations of race and identity, Juliet learns what it means to come out--to the world, to her family, to herself.

Jamieson

if it’s a phase, so what? if it’s your whole life, who cares? you’re destined to evolve and understand yourself in new ways you never imagined before.


LANGUAGE WARNING FOR THIS REVIEW

From the very moment Juliet Milagros Palante referred to herself as a ferocious cunt I knew I'd like this book. 

First of all, because teenagers swearing is realistic and I want it more in books. Second of all, because I just think there's something entirely glorious about referring to yourself as a ferocious cunt. 

This book is one of those books I worry people won't read or will dnf because it's not got that much plot. It's a coming of age story, and I get why people say it's boring but this book is so entirely well written, well addressed, well researched and well presented it's a massive fucking shame if people walk past it. Even though it's not a typical fast moving plot, I still felt myself constantly reaching for this because it was endlessly interesting in other ways then plot. 


  I fall asleep with that book in my arms because words protect hearts and I’ve got this ache in my chest that won’t go away.


Juliet Takes a Breath follows Puerto Rican lesbian girl Juliet Palante who's recently been introduced to feminism and "Pussy Power" by Portland writer Harlowe Brisbane. Juliet takes up a summer intern with Harlowe, and the story basically followers her as she navigates her internship. 


( by nomoreheroestwo on tumblr)

The truly beautiful and unique thing about this book is the incredible visibility of queer spaces, and especially queer spaces for women of colour. This book debunks and challenges aspects of feminism and womanhood that are exclusionary, cissexist or racist and promotes intersectionality. Juliet must confront and explore how her sexuality, gender and ethnicity intersect and that exploration is something so rarely seen in YA. 

What I liked about this is it kinda feels like you take Juliet's hand and learn as she does. This forced me to address and acknowledge some of my own white privilege and cissexism and I really liked that about it. If you're willing to go into it open minded you will genuinely learn alot about modern feminism, lgbt+ communities, QPOC spaces and intersectional feminism. 

Gabby Rivera feels in control and educated on every subject that comes up - this is own voices, but still a part of me was worried the exclusionary aspects of Harlowe's feminism would never be addressed. Shame on me for having no faith, Rivera masterfully writers and crafts her story. 

Aside from the larger themes, this book has such cute romance elements. There's a cute librarian girl who rides a motorbike and goes stargazing !! And an interracial couple with no white people !! (Kira is biracial Korean and White) There is also a poly relationship. And aaah it's so cute !! And Juliet is soo tongue tied over the cute girls and it was just sweet and not sexualised or anything but was just soft and realistic and I LOVED IT. 

Genuinely, I think this is such an important and well written book. I think it's important book that offers so much visible spaces for lgbt+ youth and especially queer women of colour. This book is filled to the brim with strong, outspoken and beautiful queer, poc women and it truly made my heart sing. The representation matters so much to me, and I imagine it matters even more to brown girls. 

This book feels so rare, like I don't know if I'll read anything which forefronts queer spaces this much again. I will never be over it. I genuinely want everyone to read this - whether you're gay, white, female or not. 

I feel so incredibly gushy about this book - like, you don't understand how validated and good this makes me feel and it isn't even for me. I am so happy Juliet got to find and experience spaces that included her, and a brand of feminism she could claim. Juliet's story is incredibly important, she's a chubby, latina queer women who finds her voice, her discovers and claims her own sexuality and spaces. The sharpness and poignancy of this book will not be forgotten by me, it's a terribly important story, a true look into how queer women of colour are struggling and it's a great intro book to inclusionary feminism which also serves as a critique and reminder to white feminist. 

I am literally willing to beg people to read this, it's that important. 


  Kiss everyone.
Ask first.
Always ask first and then kiss the way the stars burn in the sky.

Rachel Evans

(3/5) Audiobook - 3 hours 30 minutes - I really wanted to love this book. I thought it dealt with a whole host of important issues, most prominently the way white and cis feminism is not a movement that adequatly addresses issues experienced by 'queer and trans poc'. However, I could never really connect to any of the characters - they all seemed to lack depth, and only existed to directly express the message of the book more than they felt like real people. I feel like a fictional story wasn't quite the way to portray the overarching themes but it was enjoyable enough nonetheless.

Sarahi Flores

I requested this book last year I believe and just last month I decided to read it. This is a very overdue review but I still want to give my feedback. The main thing that motivated me to read it was because it was pride month and I was going through my books to see what I own that I can read for that month. I totally forgot about this gem. It seemed well fitting with the topic everyone was discussing, pride month and reading about a Latina was also a plus. I try to read about Latinx authors or characters at least once a month so this fit quite well. 
So Juliet, the antagonist of this story. She is unique let me tell you that lol. I know quite a lot of puerto rican girls and they are no Juliet. Let me rephrase, puerto rican girls are known to be very opinionated and have no trouble expressing themselves. Juliet has trouble expressing who she is. This is quite a change in my opinion. It's refreshing to see a kind of uniqueness from what they are usually known for. I know most of you are saying I'm stereotyping here but you will understand if you got Puerto Rican friends lol. Like I said it's refreshing, in a good way. You don't get see that much often especially in a diverse community. Juliet seems to be the girl you can easily get along with. I like her.
Coming out in a latino culture is very different from America. You always get looked down upon and worse case scenario, you get disowned. Every culture has a different opinion and a matter of how to handle this. Juliet was braved enough to come out to her mother. That's never easy so I give her props for that. She still doesn't quite feel like she's a lesbian since she barely found out that there's different types, which may I add, what? lol Yup I basically learned a few terms and definitions along the way. 
You can say this was a 101 of feminism and being a queer. It's enlightening to see how this subject felt for me. It's laid back and more opportunistic to make you feel like you can learn more about the LGBT & GLBT community. I didn't know much about it to be honest, just a few things here and there so this was something great for to know the basic stuff and it motivated me to do some research of my own afterwards. 
I really enjoyed this book because Juliet came out and started to start her new life by finding herself and what does it mean to become queer. This is a 4 out of 5 stars and it is a book i would recommend for all of you :)

vins

3.5 stars, had to round it up for that ending. 

Juliet Takes a Breath is a queer YA lit that has a chubby, brown lesbian teen as its protagonist (the eponymous Juliet). Juliet is new to this gay, feminism stuff. She read a book by a self-proclaimed Pussy Authority, vulva goddess-loving hippie feminist Harlowe Brisbane—and latched onto it. Harlowe Brisbane is also a caricature parodying the second-wave (white) feminism to its most ridiculous degree. We then embark on Juliet's journey in finding a place for her chubby brown lesbian self in this curious land called feminism. 

There are a lot of caricatures in this book. Characters that behave more like political and ideological mouthpieces than actual humans, especially the ones Juliet met during her internship with Harlowe in Portland.*

"How do you identify? What are your preferred gender pronouns?" one male feminist asked Juliet in an act of intimidation, to which Juliet answered, "I'm sorry, what?", which was then met with an eye-roll. A good portion of this book ran with this much subtlety of a sledgehammer; they come off madly didactic to me, I read through them with great trepidation. But then I think about the target audience of this book: teenagers, early to late teens, whose lives are entrenched in the faceless, regurgitated voices and speeches from freaking Tumblr and Twitter. They all probably sound like this to these kids. This book is set in 2003; Juliet had no Tumblr or Twitter to guide her through queerness and anti-colonialism and anti-imperialism. What she had tho, was her inquisitiveness, her readiness to learn, her humour, and her ability to feel and feel and feel. She feels so much, and Rivera is able to capture all her emotions in gorgeous, buoyant turn of phrases that give much-needed texture to this otherwise straightforward story. I got misty-eyed in so many parts. 

By and large, I simply think I'm a decade too old for this book (literally). But I imagine if I were an (American) queer teen of color who's stumbling my way into *waves hands* all that, with lots of questions in my mind, this would've been a book I'd fiercely love. This book is a welcome and a reassurance and a guide for them specifically. 

My chief problem with this book, however, is that I'm not sure if it provided enough distance from Harlowe's pussy feminism thinkpieces for 14-15yos to recognise it as something to be initially dismissed. It only fell apart two-thirds into the book, and I really wish Rivera would've done it sooner, or gave Harlowe's voice a smaller, less sympathetic platform. I think it was enough for me, I don't know about the 14-15yos readers (especially the trans kids who'd had to read through chapters upon chapters of pussy pseudoscience and lunar cycle). Though, again, I'm a decade too old for this. 

Still a joyful, self-affirming read though!

* (not Juliet's family tho; never her family. They're most definitely her person. And Kira, which is such a lovely character!).

Victoria Bartlett

So so good. Beautifully written and empowering.

Megan No

I received a copy of this book via Netgally. Thank you to the Author and Publisher.

This was an inspiring read. Not only was the main character relatable and lovable, but almost every other character introduced was full of personality. I quickly became attached to all of them. The story is beautiful and each chapter is filled with incredible quotes. My copy is filled with highlights of amazing lines.

Renee Delcourt

This. Was. So. Perfect!!!! Definitely worth the read and I highly recommend it.

Laura

This was an absolutely incredible book. The story is so easy to fall in love with, yet at the same time gets your mind thinking critically about so many things. I absolutely loved it and am already incredibly excited for Gabby Rivera's next book.

Zoe Smolen

I loved the novel and so was excited to see the adaptation. While some of the nuance in the story was los I thought it was a wonderful adaptation with stunning art! The heart of the story is still there, and it was fun to see it brought into a (maybe?) more modern setting (it seemed that way with the phones!). If you liked this and haven't read the novel yet I highly encourage picking it up. 

Thanks to Netgalley and Boom studios for a free copy in exchange for an honest review.

Trigger warnings: (view spoiler)[racism, homomisia, bimisia, adultery, sexual harassment & assault, body shaming (hide spoiler)]

Note: I have not read the full-length novel Juliet Takes a Breath.

An important story about becoming confident in yourself, immersing oneself into the LGBTQIA+ community, intersectionality and found families. Rivera has created a powerful story and further adapted it into something succinct, engaging and powerful. 

I can not think of another story that gives such a raw and genuine insight into the LGBTQIA+ community, but also the damage of ignoring intersectionality that exists and impacts on the group.

Not only does Rivera weave an impactful story, Moscote illustrates the narrative in a way that brings the characters and their relationships to the forefront. The stark, colourful imagery provides an engaging contrast with the emotional tension this story instils. 

Overall, this is a wonderful, accessible title for many young readers.



  Note: Review copy received via NetGalley. This does not impact opinions within this review.


blog •  trigger warning database • more links

Happy reading! ❤

listen ............... i need to read the full book asap

Sarah

First of all, thank you to Netgalley and Boom! Box for the ARC!

I haven’t read the original book, so I cannot say if this is a good adaptation or not. All I know is that I had no problems following the story. It did not feel like an adaptation.
I’m also in love with the art style and the color scheme! Stunning!

I also cannot talk about the poc representation, but what I can tell you, is that I loved the queer representation.
Juliet is a gay teenager who knows almost nothing about what it means to be one and doesn’t have the support of her girlfriend and family.
She doesn’t have the right words to explain how she feels, she’s just trying to find herself in a world that keeps telling her that what she feels is not valid.
And, as she opens up, she finds support, she finds love, she finds people who accept her for who she is, no questions asked. She also discovers that, by being herself, she might open the hearts and minds of the people who have a difficult time understanding her. It was beautiful.

Juliet growth was deep, authentic and emotional. It’s so important to have these stories, I hope someone who needs it might find it soon. 100% recommend this!

Hayley 📖🌈💜🌸

3.5 stars. 

While I haven't read the original book this graphic novel is based on, I still absolutely loved this! It was so diverse and inclusive. So unapologetically queer, feminist, and not afraid to call out white feminists/women. And so filled with BIPOC and WOC. Also, ownvoices! 
I loved Juliet, and just wanted the best for her and wanted her to break up with her shitty girlfriend and wanted her family to accept her. What an amazing and well rounded and fun protagonist.

Brook

Really enjoyed this story- it's a queer coming of age about the shortcomings of heroes, how we find ourselves, and family. It's about new love, and loss, and I raced through this because the language was beautiful and true. I'm always a bit anxious when a book has trans characters, but this one didn't seem to drop the ball... So that was a relief.

kate

maider

Diesel Cheung

"Juliet, a self-identified queer, Bronx-born Puerto Rican-American, comes out to her family to disastrous results the night before flying to Portland to intern with her feminist author icon--whom Juliet soon realizes has a problematic definition of feminism that excludes women of color"--

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Juliet Takes a Breath by Gabby Rivera

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