What If It’s Us by Becky Albertalli & Adam Silvera

Wildcard #1 ~ “A book by more than one author.”

whatifitsus

★ ★ ★ ★ ☆

My opinion in three sentences:

I’ve never necessarily been one for a simple love story, so this is one that spent a lot of time jumping on and off my to-read list – having eventually tackled it, I don’t regret it in the slightest. The blurb made it sound a lot more lost cause-y than it turned out to be, with Silvera and Albertalli delivering some well-rounded, relatable and in-depth characters in a humorous and engaging tale of a summer in New York. As always seems to be the case in Silvera’s work, the entire read is an emotional rollercoaster that however hard you try, you’re just not prepared for (but love the torment and anguish nonetheless!)

(Without spoiling anything) the best bit:

The problem on relying on two (biased) narrators of a similar character is that they can end up being written indiscriminately and become indistinguishable. Albertalli and Silvera scoot round this issue like pros, offering two clear voices with their own distinct perspectives – the only things I’ll admit to getting confused over is which of the boys had which group of friends. Nevertheless, the dual insight gives the reader many a time they’re wanting to bang the idiots heads together, and actually helps build (as opposed to diminish) the emotional turmoil of the tale. Which, have no doubt about it, is as choppy as a storm-swept sea, so buckle up!

A warning for the book:

Pop-culture references. They’re there – galore. It seems to be an up-and-coming thing in YA literature at the moment (which is a whole other rant to have) but I am not a fan. Particularly when it’s taken to the level that Silvera & Albertalli take it to here. So much of the book is based on the references, and whilst I got them and enjoyed them, some of them are so niche that they’ll be too obscure in a few years time, and others are so obscure now that it detracts from the tale when you don’t get the humour. In limited moderation, sure, but it turns out there’s such a thing as too much.

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