Throw your sticks and your stones: JULIET TAKES A BREATH.

Juliet Takes a Breath by Gabby Rivera
My rating: 4 of 5 stars

Juliet has spent most of her life in the Bronx. But as part of a college internship, she heads to Seattle to work with her idol, Harlowe Brisbane, an author and well-known feminist. Juliet comes out to her parents right before she leaves, with mixed results. She hopes that Seattle will help her figure out how she feels... about everything.

"I've got a secret. I think it's going to kill me. Sometimes I hope it does. How do I tell my parents that I'm gay?"

I wanted to love this book, but it took forever to get into. I'm not sure why. It's written somewhat oddly, with excerpts from Harlowe's book at the beginning of each chapter. Harlowe is a lot--sometimes almost too cringe to read about. But when the book focuses on Juliet's journey to find herself as a gay Pureto Rican, it shines. Her coming out journey is lovely and touching. While I didn't love Harlowe (the book appropriately deals with Juliet's own struggle of realizing her idol might not be perfect), I enjoyed the queer cast of characters (many of color) surrounding her.

JULIET meanders a lot and sometimes feels like it could benefit from a good edit. But the story at heart--a young girl finding her way--is a good one. 3.5 stars, rounded up here.


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