Simon vs. the Homo Sapiens Agenda

Simon is a sixteen-year-old boy, who is not openly gay and is being blackmailed with his private emails with Blue by a fellow student. Blue is an anonymous and also closeted boy from the same high school. Simon and Blue have developed a flirtatious relationship through messaging, but neither one is aware of who the other is in real life because they use fake screen names. The student that is blackmailing Simon wants him to help get the attention of one of Simon's best friends that he has a crush on. Simon struggles to keep his sexuality a secret and protect his and Blue's blossoming romance from being revealed, while also trying to survive the usual high school drama. I loved the adorable “You’ve Got Mail” feeling where both characters meet online due to a tumblr post and have no idea who each other are. They continue to email each other back and forth and what begins as a friendship eventually turns into more. I'm such a sucker for stories like this that include love letters, text, emails, etc. The emailing was such an important addition in this book. It really sold the romance for me. I loved that this wasn’t just two teenagers meeting and instantly falling in “teenage love”. Simon and Blue got to know each other through their messages, without any influence of social status or appearances. It made it that much sweeter. And I loved reading the flirty and fun banter between these two. I won't give any clues as to who the love interest, Blue, is because half of the fun was trying to guess who it was. I thought I had it figured out and changed my mind a bunch of times. I did finally figure it out though, and I was so happy when it was revealed. I kind of want to go back and read the book again now that I know and read all of the clues again. lol! I have to admit that I did wish that we got to see more of Blue and Simon, together, in the end. They were so adorable! Simon is definitely going on my list as one of my favorite YA characters ever. I loved his voice and being in his head was so much fun. Simon is a theater geek who enjoys comics, Harry Potter and Oreos. He’s both confident and vulnerable and I it just made me want to hug him. His character felt so real and genuine and I’m sure anyone who reads Simon Vs. the Homo Sapiens Agenda will be able to identify with at least some of the struggles Simon faces. He is such a relateable and fleshed out character that it’s impossible not to feel invested in his story. There were also a lot of great secondary characters (that I'm hoping eventually get their own books). We have Simon's three best friends Leah, Abby, and Nick. Abby was the bubbly, happy one that ended up being a really great supportive friend to him. Leah is the one that has known Simon the longest. She came off kind of harsh and bitchy at times, but I thought it made sense for her character. She is dealing with a one-sided crush on Nick, while watching him fall at Abby's feet. She also shows jealous moments when it comes to Simon and Abby's close friendship. There's also Nick, but we don't really get to know much about him other than the fact that he has a crush on Abby. He didn't get too much character development. There was just enough drama within their little social group for it to feel real without being over the top. This is another one of those rare young adult books that have great supportive parents involved in their son's life. I love that! I've said this in another review, but I feel like often times in YA books the parents are written as "the bane of their existence" or just aren't mentioned at all. They wanted to know what was going on in Simon's life, and set him straight when he needed it. His sisters were also a lot of fun. I can’t wait to pick up more of Becky Albertalli’s books. This is definitely a book I would recommend to anybody and everybody. It's a relatable and well-written story, and it has the most realistic yet likable characters. There are so many funny and humorous moments but it also deals with important themes in a very delicate and appropriate way. I kind of want to pick this up and start reading it all over again, and I just finished it! I didn't want it to end at all, and I already miss the characters. I own The Upside of Unrequited and I can't wait to pick it up soon!

I fell in love with Simon and cheered for him throughout this poignant coming-of-age story about a closeted gay teen who discovers that he is not alone in this world when he stumbles upon the latest town blog post (Creeksecrets) from another gay teen who shares similar feelings but hasn't yet told anyone either. Throughout Simon's story and despite his fears of how the world will react to his coming out, this is a story of how love and courage triumphs all. Whether you're gay or straight, young or mature, this is a must-read novel that not only entertains but provides insight in the life of gay teen coming to terms with who he is. As we walk in Simon's footsteps and experience life through his eyes, we begin to understand his struggles and empathize with his internal conflict. We follow Simon on a personal journey that begins with a threat to out him to the world if he doesn't comply with a classmate's demand to help him establish a romantic relationship with one of Simon's friends, Abby. Along the way, we are invited into Simon's world and his loving relationships with friends and family, all of whom we get to know quite well through family gatherings and friends hanging out. But we soon discover that he is in love with Blue whom he met online after seeing the aforementioned post and the two begin an epistolic friendship turned romance that gets quite steamy at times in a teen-romance sort of way. The two of them share their innermost feelings of being gay and feelings for each other and as these email exchanges continue, Simon begins to wonder who among his friends or classmates is this elusive Blue who will not agree to meet Simon or exchange phone numbers. We all have our suspects but I'm not saying a thing. Suddenly Simon's world is turned upside down and his worst fears come to fruition when his classmate Martin outs him in a post on Creeksecrets out of frustration for his unrequited romance with Abby. Now, Simon is forced to confront his new reality and how it will affect his relationships with his family and friends, not to mention Blue. Oh how my heart ached and I cried when he was outed and when two classmates humiliated him during play practice. But the most intense scene was when Martin try to apologize to Simon who at that point after being humiliated told Martin what he really thought of him and that the moment of coming out should have been his but Martin took that choice away. "I don't even want to look at you." Martin cries, Simon gets into his car and cries and the I the reader cried. To add even more misery to the story, Simon's friends find out that he had been lying to them as he tried to play matchmaker with Martin and Abby. Truly, Simon's world has been turned upside down. Without giving any more of the story away, I want to tell you that despite the unfounded fears that Simon may have had about his coming out, in the end, his family and friends, and Blue, proved to be nothing short of supportive, and that love between friends and family triumphs all. As a gay man myself, I related to much of this story and I too agonized with telling the world that I was different. Thankfully, I didn't have to go through being outed per se and most of my friends and family were equally supportive. I highly recommend this book for all teens, gay or straight, so they too can empathize and understand what it's like for someone to discover they are gay and how it feels to dread the passing of the most frightening of circumstances -- that the world may not accept the "real" you. I feared too, too many times, but today, the world is a different place than it was in the 80s and people are more accepting of members of the LGBT community. Finally! After you read the book, make sure to see watch the movie that brings Becky's Albertalli's story to life. I loved the movie even more. Both will make you laugh, cry, cheer and sympathize with Simon, not to mention all the LGBT people in this world who suffer similar circumstances. The reader, the audience, you become more aware of what we go through as we realize who we are and at the same time, fear anyone finding out who we are. A message to all gay teens and adults. If you're gay and you fear the moment of shouting out to the world that you are who you are, fear not and know there are many of us who have walked in your shoes and we stand united! Love triumphs all!

Simon vs. the Homo Sapiens Agenda is the most wonderfully adorable book that's just hearts and rainbows and just gloriously perfect. Simon Spier is a gay teen living outside of Atlanta, GA, who hasn't come out to his friends and family, but has met a boy online, Blue, who he begins to fall for. They communicate only through email and only using pseudonyms. He knows Blue is another student at his school, but has no idea who that might be. Things start to get complicated when Simon's emails are read by another kid in his class, Martin, who takes screenshots of the emails and uses them to blackmail Simon into hooking him up with a girl he likes. The interactions with Simon and Martin are interesting and makes my heart ache for them. It's a weird friendship that's not entirely friendly when one of the party is blackmailing the other one. Simon hides the fact he's getting blackmailed and he and Blue manage to keep their identities hidden from each other. It's sweet to see the email exchanges and there's something delightful in seeing their character journeys through their emails. The book isn't entirely told through emails, but the emails might be my favorite parts before the reveal. Simon has a wonderful group of friends that are going through their own relationship issues and everything is a very nice balance of school life and teenage relationships that takes place in Simon vs. the Homo Sapiens Agenda. The book feels very real in the friendships, the awkward conversations, and just, well, Simon being a teenager. It's a coming-of-age story and is a really great LGBT book that's not at all dark and heavy to read. This book will just make you happy and will leave you with warm, fuzzy feelings at the end. *Side note: An effect of reading Simon vs. the Homo Sapiens Agenda is the sudden craving for Oreos.

I have to start this review by stating how much I really enjoyed this book. Simon Spier is gay, and he’s okay with that, but he isn’t sure about how to come-out to his friends and family. Through social media, he “meets” another young man, “Blue”, who is also gay and attends the same high school. Blue and Simon begin an online relationship that eventually turns into what they both might think may be love. When one of these emails falls into the hands of a fellow classmate named Martin, Simon finds himself being blackmailed by Martin to be his wingman. Will Simon and Blue ever find out the true identity of each other? Will Martin tell the school that Simon is gay? The dialog is well done in this book, as are the feelings of all the characters involved. The characters behaved in a completely believable manner, just as one would expect of a bunch of high school kids to act. The friendships described were also very touching, even though there was much ebbing and flowing of feelings between these friends. So many times a book like this can fall into cliche, but Albertalli does a great job of not allowing that to happen. Just when the reader thinks he’s figured out what is going to happen, the author throws in a curve ball, making for a very entertaining read. The writing style is very quick paced, and the book is an easy read, yet afterwards the message stays with the reader for days afterward. POTENTIALLY OFFENSIVE CONTENT: Sex: kissing between teenagers, a few references to sex acts in discussion, but no sex actually takes place Violence: teenagers fighting, bullying Language: I did not keep a tally, but the there were many swear words and other potentially offensive language sprinkled throughout the entire book. The “F” word is used multiple times. I highly recommend this book to anyone who has or knows a teen in the LGBTQ+ community. The issues are handled with dignity and respect.

I purchased this book as part of a 30 Days of Pride Book Review project. This is that review: “It's a weirdly subtle conversation. I almost don't notice I'm being blackmailed.” Simon Spier hasn't told anyone he's gay. Nobody except his secret pen-pal Blue, a kid that he knows goes to his school. He's not exactly scared to come out, but he knows he doesn't want his private emails with Blue spilled all over the school Tumblr… which is Martin Addison’s implied threat. He really doesn't want to play wingman for the little creep with his friend Abby… but what choice does he have? He's not just threatening Simon, he's threatening Blue’s secret identity too. He's never had someone he could talk to like Blue before and Martin could ruin everything. This is actually a cute little love story. Of course, the thing moving the drama forward is Martin’s looming threat of blackmail, how Simon decides to deal with that and how it affects his blooming relationship with a boy he only knows as an email alias. But it still manages to be a cute little love story… and a story about the absolute drama of friendship, coming out, asserting your identity in life and in your family, and, you know, of just being a teenager. Simon is insecure, funny, and over the top, and his email conversations with Blue manage to capture real chemistry. The whole book just has a sweet, funny, charming tone to it. I don't really have any complaints here. I mean, perhaps this book isn't high art or anything, but it was a perfectly pleasant Young Adult Romance. I recommend it for fans of the genre. There is also a movie, which just came out, but I haven't seen it yet. I did watch the trailer, though… and I'm probably going to like the book better. On the project scales it does pretty well. For my Queer Counterculture Visibility Scale, which measures how much each book showed a less visible side of the community, it had a few good things going for it. Simon is white middle class and gay, but he isn't living in a bubble. There are characters of other races and sexualites. He offhand mentions that there are other out kids at school. A side character comes out as bisexual. Simon discusses with Blue over email how annoying it is that white and straight is considered default. Just some good diversity in secondary and side characters. I'll put it at: 3 out of 5 stars On the Genre Expectation scale, which measures this book alongside others in its genre, it also does slightly better than average, I think. It is typical to its genre, for the most part, but there was something about Simon’s voice, about the comedy, the chemistry, that made the writing stand out a little stronger than other books in the genre I've read. I'll put it at: 4 out of 5 stars

"It's a weirdly subtle conversation. I almost don't notice I'm being blackmailed." With an opening line like that, how could I not like this book? Simon is a high school junior. He has a tight knit circle of friends, is close with his family and is involved with stage crew. He has a penchant for junk food and a love of music. The only thing missing from his life is someone he's never met-- Blue. Blue is the anonymous, online handle of Simon's secret crush. They communicate by email and Simon's smitten. But he can't tell anyone about Blue, because Blue is a boy. Neither Simon nor Blue is out, and Blue seems further determined to keep their online relationship confined to a computer screen. Things get a little tricky for Simon when a classmate, Martin, happens by chance on his secret email account. Martin start to sorta-kinda blackmail Simon into playing matchmaker between him and new "it" girl Abby in exchange for his silence. But, hey, Simon's got this under control. As the weeks go on, though, it starts to feel like Martin's blackmailing isn't even the biggest threat to his relationship with Blue (although it certainly doesn't help). Simon is falling in love with him, but Blue keeps dragging his feet about meeting in person. What if Blue doesn't feel the same way? The best part of this book is the characters. Simon is a perfect mix of insecure, sweet, angsty, dorky and cool. I couldn't decide whether I wanted age him 15 years and be his friend, or just pinch his cheeks. I loved the reveal of Blue (I had my suspicions, but it was still fun), and Simon's group of friends in general. I liked that Simon's parents were cool without trying too hard, and that his sisters were presented as real people instead of background props. I did feel like there were some loose threads at the end. I would have liked to see closure between Simon and Martin.

I think this is a really well written book with a good story. It is written by a child psychologist, who is writing it in a way that is relatable to teenage audiences. It is still a really entertaining, heartfelt, heart-grabbing page turner. I think the characters are realistic and never go too over the top. They are real teens that react the way real teens would to situations. Such as alcohol at parties. Not all teens are dumb and think it's cool to get drunk. Also, the way people react to someone else dating a person they like is realistically illustrated. I think the author really, accurately gets in the head of what it's like to be a teen struggling to come out as gay, and his whole experience surrounding being a gay teen. The way it feels to them when other people make insensitive jokes/remarks unknowingly in front of them. The way it feels when other people know and hold it over them. The way it feels when the anxiety won't let them be open, even to their closest friends even when they know the reaction will be positive. It was really fun to follow along with the emails Simon and "Blue" exchange...trying to guess at "Blue's" identity along with Simon. Great book. Can't wait for the movie!

I’ve been curious about this book for a while, but it kept getting pushed to the bottom of my TBR pile because of the whole “I hate YA novels set in high school” thing. But then it went on sale, and I decided I might as well snag it. Yesterday, I picked it up, and if it weren’t for my unfortunately timed dinner plans last night, I wouldn’t have put it down. I loved it from the very first page. Brace yourself. Simon is a boy. I know, right? I’m killing you with that revelation. But for me, it IS a revelation because apparently, I only hate YA novels set in high school when the protagonist is a girl. As the mom of a 17-year-old eye rolling-boy obsessed-makeup factory, it just hits too close to home, ya know? I live teenage girl drama. The last thing I want to do is read about it. Simon has more admirable qualities than just his gender. He’s refreshingly witty, honest, and relatable. He’s in healthy, loving relationships with his family and friends (who are every bit as badass as he is), and they all root for him. I was rooting for him too—lump in my throat, cringing, squirming, hoping, squealing, grinning—rooting. This book was unexpectedly swoony, unexpectedly angsty. My stomach was in knots throughout. I worried about the email surfacing. I worried about who Blue might be. I worried about the direction I thought we were headed. But I needn’t have worried because everything wrapped up better than I’d imagined. I didn’t cry until the very end and that was because it was over and I truly didn’t want it to be.