This review is mainly spoiler-free but tread lightly if you have yet to read it!
Last week I read and finished the book You Should See Me In A Crown by Leah Johnson. If it’s not available at your local library, you can buy it here from a local bookstore rather than Am*zon! This came out during the summer of 2020 and I found it on a list of, at-the-time forthcoming queer literature. I completely forgot that I discovered the book from a queer list so I was surprised when our protagonist, Liz Lighty, ended up being a lil homo!!! We love it here!
This adorable story is about Liz Lighty, a Black high schooler who feels out of place as a poor, Black, tomboyish girl attending an incredibly affluent school. This is her senior year and she has to earn enough money in order to attend college next year. The musician decides to run for prom queen in order to earn the scholarship prize money in order to attend her dream school and become the doctor that she wishes her mother had. She meets Mack, a new student who has just joined the school orchestra as a drummer. The story explores their relationship to one another and to prom in general.
There are many side stories happening in this book. Some might find it overwhelming and unfocused but I think Johnson did an incredible job of keeping each “side quest” extremely relevant. All of the relationships in the book are incredibly realistic in how many layers any one high schooler would be sifting through.
Rating: ★★★★☆
I’m giving this book 4 out of 5 stars. Overall this book is so incredibly CUTE!! While reading, I thought that there were some incredibly foreshadowy moments– it almost made me not continue reading. I was pretty certain there was going to be a very specific outcome. Gratefully, I was somewhat incorrect, but it was a little off-putting to feel like I had “figured it out” before the story really even got started.
This is a great read for anyone who is in the mood for a cutesey-feel good dose of adorable sapphic charm.
Have you read this book? What did you think of it?
dog with a blog 