Ha, of course Harlowe was based on Inga Muscio. OF COURSE. ( )

Juliet comes out to her whole family the night before leaving to start a summer internship with legendary author Harlowe Brisbane, the ultimate authority on feminism, women's bodies, and other gay-sounding stuff. Harlow is sure to help her figure out this whole "Puerto Rican lesbian" thing. Except Harlowe's white. And from hippy Portland not the Bronx like Juliet. And she definitely doesn't have all the answers. Juliet realise she herself doesn’t know all the questions she needs to be asking.

This is a YA novel which deals with queerness, gender, BIPOC issues, privilege and how Juliet is figuring it out with guidance from those around her.

This would be a great book for a young queer kid or adult. And also a great work from a queer BIPOC voice. I found it interesting to see how Juliet at nineteen navigated her evolving understanding or race, gender, sexuality and expression (the scene in the bookshop

I really wish Rivera had held out for one of the Big 5 and I really wish she'd waited for an editor who could make this book what it had the potential to be. First of all, this really needs a good copy edit (when I'm spending five minutes on the train wondering if 9 times 6 is really 56, there's a problem) and a line edit to tidy up a lot of sentences that pulled me out. Mainly, I think there was a lot of potential for side characters to be fleshed out instead of one-dimensional, for the settings to feel more realistic instead of single-faceted, and for Juliet to have felt more mature--her voice read as a young high schooler to me, not a rising sophomore in college. Even plot could have been shaped a little more cleanly.

Rough edges and narrow vision aside, this was a really fabulous book that so needs to be out there. As a white feminist, Juliet's point of view was honest and unapologetic which is so so important, and I loved the message of self love and learning to take care of yourself. I hope this inspires similar books, because we need to be called out. I want to see more from Rivera, but I want to see it polished so that it can get further and hit more people who need to read stories with main characters like Juliet.

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Before I get any further, I would just like to note that 9 times 6 is 54. Right? ( )

The first time I read this, I was thrilled by it. A chronically ill Latinx lesbian teen written convincingly! She gets to work for her idol! Good, solid lessons are learned that I myself have had to re-learn, like not placing people on pedestals. I was so excited when I finished this book the first time that I didn't know where to begin reviewing it, so I didn't. At the time, I gave it a four star rating.
Uh. So um, my opinion can change a lot on the second read. If you have triggers around homophobia and family laughing at you when you explain you were surrounded by three sexually aggressive, harrassing men, I advise skipping the first thirty pages. Wow, her family is so creepy. Harlowe's up next. She's a carnivore-shaming type, and I rolled my eyes at how many stereotypes she fit, both times I read this. Juliet being kind of starstruck does not excuse Harlowe's behavior. Juliet idealizes Portland hardcore, and I laughed both times when I read her discoveries that it's not how she imagined it. I went to a university just like Juliet's entire experience of and portrayal of Portland, and ughughugh. Onward. (shakes head) Eugh.

Harlowe keeps Juliet waiting half an hour at the airport, and she's flying alone for the first time. What a terrifying ordeal both instances must have been, and how inconsiderate of Harlowe! Harlowe also misleads her about how many other interns she has, only decides Juliet's internship will consist of the morning she wakes up in the attic despite the two having planned months in advance...she's disorganized in major ways that show a clear lack of respect for Juliet. Phen was a huge jerk to Juliet, and I'm not sure if it was because he was allowed to be, or if he genuinely disliked Juliet. I grimaced and sneered every time he was on the page. Above all, his character was actually pointless. He could have been cut entirely and nothing would have changed--just have Harlowe be flighty about showing Juliet around. It would fit with her character. Sadly, Juliet might have pardoned her. On that note: eighty-five pages into the book, I understood that Juliet's girlfriend had moved on from their relationship. It took Juliet awhile to catch on, which made me sad, since I've historically been in that spot IRL too.

I really hope Harlowe never finds out what endotmetriosis or PCOS is, with her opinions on period pain management. Ugh. I have no respect for her.
I loved Part Three of the story! And Lupe in Part Four warmed my heart and was wonderful. It was a huge cliche for the pregnant character to go into labor right before Juliet goes home. The symbolism in that part was syrupy. I'm not sure what to think of my emotions on second read, probably because there was such a dramatic shift. I'm so glad diverse books keep being written and being widely distributed, though. ( )

"Juliet Milagros Palante is a self-proclaimed closeted Puerto Rican baby dyke from the Bronx. Only, she's not so closeted anymore. Not after coming out to her family the night before flying to Portland, Oregon, to intern with her favorite feminist writer--what's sure to be a life-changing experience." This little blurb is what first pulled me in. I loved almost the entire story. The only drawbacks were Harlowe's existence and the stream of consciousness narration. I hated Harlowe, and while I believe that was part of the point, because there's no way she's meant to be a likable character, it was almost too much. One scene that is still so vivid to me is when Juliet gets her period and is refused pain killers because Harlowe's methods are *obviously* better. I also had a hard time following along in some places because of the narration style. ( )