#love and resistance

[richincolor]

Love & Resistance by Kara H.L. Chen (Quill Tree Books)

Publisher’s Summary: Seventeen-year-old Olivia Chang is at her fourth school in seven years. Her self-imposed solitude is lonely, but safe. At Plainstown High, however, Olivia’s usual plan of anonymity fails when the infamous Mitzi Clarke (influencer, queen bee, bully) makes a pointed racist comment in class. Olivia knows what she must do: let it go. But Olivia is tired of ignoring things just so she can survive. This time, she defends herself.

That is the end of her invisible life.

Soon, Olivia discovers, and joins forces with, the Nerd Net: a secret society who has been thwarting Mitzi’s reign of terror for months. Together, they plan to unite the masses and create true change at Plainstown High.

But in order to succeed, Olivia must do something even more terrifying than lead a movement: trust other people. She might even make true friends along the way . . . if Mitzi doesn’t destroy her first.

My Thoughts: This book was a perfect summer read. There’s a good balance of ups with the downs throughout. The story contains bullying and racism, but also brings in friendship, love, and as the title would indicate – resistance to the injustices.

Having attended seven schools between kindergarten and graduation, including two in Ohio, there were many things I could relate to in Olivia’s experience. Many readers are likely to connect to her attempts to be invisible and find out the lay of the land when she starts attending new schools. And if not, they probably would at least understand the necessity.

Being new to a school junior year is challenging enough, but having the added layer of race, makes starting over significantly harder in a place like Plainstown. Olivia explains, “When you walk through life wearing a target–your face–there are times when you forget you are different. But there are always reminders.” The little things people do like staring or talking too loudly because they think you don’t know English all communicate that, “You are not one of us.” 

Though her grandfather has died prior to the beginning of the book, I appreciated how Olivia shares parts of his immigration story and their relationship. Over the years, he told her many stories and taught a lot about military strategy. She is especially well practiced in the art of non-engagement. And then everything sort of spirals out of control and she has to utilize other strategies she learned from him. She also has to look for and collaborate with allies.

One of my favorite parts of this book was seeing the friendships being built and nurtured. It’s also a plus that there are people working together who have different opinions and find ways to express them without simply laying judgement on someone’s personality. Comparisons are drawn to the ‘us and them’ aspect of modern politics where you are only for or against us and there is no nuance. It’s not easy, but there are individuals who value being able to question and discuss things while also respecting others and being open to seeing people as more than one-dimensional. This doesn’t mean they ignore the vile actions of folks, but they see other ways of interacting with people and ways to work with those who they may have only seen as enemies before.

And yes, there is a romance or two to be found in these pages. The banter is super fun and made me smile. There is one central relationship, but there is also another side couple added to the mix.

Recommendation: Get it soon! Olivia and the Nerd Net are folks well worth meeting.

Extras: Excerpt

Pages: 352 Review copy: Final copy via publisher Availability: On shelves now

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Rating: 5/5

Book Blurb: Moxie meets Mary H.K. Choi in this funny, whip-smart YA debut about love, resistance, and the enduring friendships that make it all worthwhile. Seventeen-year-old Olivia Chang is at her fourth school in seven years. Her self-imposed solitude is lonely but safe. At Plainstown High, however, Olivia’s usual plan of anonymity fails when infamous it-girl Mitzi Clarke makes a pointed racist comment in class. Tired of ignoring things just to survive, Olivia defends herself.  And that is the end of her invisible life. Soon, Olivia joins forces with the Nerd Net: a secret society that's been thwarting Mitzi’s reign of terror for months. Together, they plan to unite the masses and create true change at school.But in order to succeed, Olivia must do something even more terrifying than lead a movement: trust other people. She might even make true friends along the way . . . if Mitzi doesn’t destroy her first. A cheeky, thought-provoking force of a book, perfect for fans of E. Lockhart’s The Disreputable History of Frankie Landau-Banks.

Review:

A girl finds herself joining a revolution after a confrontation against a popular girl who made a racist comment and with this revolution she’ll find friendship, strength, and even romance. Olivia Chang is seventeen years old and at her fourth school in years. She’s lived in self imposed solitude to stay under the radar and safe away from the harmful bullying and notice of others, but her plan to stay anonymous fails when the ultimate it-girl and popular girl, Mitzi Clarkes makes a pointed racist comment in class and Olivia stands up against her. Olivia is now very noticed and the enemy of the popular girl and her friends... but then suddenly she finds herself being drawn in by a group known as the Nerd Net, a secret society of other students who have been thwarting Mitzi’s reign of terror. Now Olivia isn’t alone and she finally has friends and a support system, and even a crush... but starting a revolution and fixing the social system isn’t easy, and things are always going to get messy. Can Olivia help stop Mitzi before more people are hurt or will Mitzi destroy her first? This was a great story, filled with thought provoking moments and a heart warming story about friendship and finding the strength to stand up against bullying and being supporting of others. I really liked this one and found Olivia’s journey to be a great one to read, she really went from quiet introvert to someone who makes a stand to someone who empathizes and tries to be there and understand the complexity that people have. The romance was sweet but the highlight of this book was the friendship!! 

*Thanks Netgalley and HarperCollins Children's Books, Quill Tree Books for sending me an arc in exchange for an honest review*

[junaart]

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