Noteworthy

I love this book a lot. The fact that the MC is a girl singing tenor is the way straight to my heart. On top of that, I appreciated Jordan's thoughts about gender, and I thought gender was handled pretty well throughout the book. (Having trans characters in addition to the mentions of trans people would have made it even better.)But this is a book that is really about relationships -- platonic, romantic, and familial -- and empathy and trust, and I love its portrayal of all of those things.

I’m not certain exactly what I expected when I purchased this book, but what I got was far more than I could have anticipated. This story of a talented student in a private high school trying to discover how she fits into the scheme of life is cleverly and imaginatively drawn, and is a thoroughly delightful and satisfying read.All major characters are interesting and multi-dimensional, most particularly the narrator. The members of the protagonist singing group, as well as an antagonist member of a rival group, exist so clearly on the page, I suspect they’d be easy to pick from a real life lineup.The plot, while moving forward in an expected rhetorical manner, managed also to comment on side issues of import to young readers. It is hard to imagine any reader, young or old, not captivated by the young hero of this story and her adventures.I intend to keep a sharp eye out for future works by this fine author.

I loved this book. It felt real and true to high school, which is sometimes hard to find. I loved Jordan, our narrator. She was able to discuss the nuances of not completely understanding her own sexuality and gender identity and growing into, and I felt that. I loved that. And I LOVED Isaac, because he was both real and a caricature, both smooth and a bundle of nerves. I would have loved to know someone like Isaac in high school.My reservations on the rating all stem from the crossdressing and the way the book was marketed. While I found it easy to believe that Jordan might come out as nonbinary or gender queer in her future, that was never stated. So marketing this book that way makes me uncomfortable.All in all, I really liked this and will be thinking about it for a long time. A guaranteed book hangover.

Three days after finishing this book and I'm still thinking in Riley Redgate's writing cadence. This book is amazing. She perfectly captures what it feels like to be a performing arts teenager who finally finds a group to perform in while questioning their own identity and sexuality. While that sounds like a small, self-selecting group, this novel feels honest and reads like a thriller. I have a lot of trouble recommending it enough.

I rarely review anymore, but I had to for this. “Noteworthy” lives up to its name on so many levels, and it looks like the second work by the author!There are the characters, sketched out with the details of a first impression, then layered and folded into something mesmerizing.There is the story—of cultures, expectations, gender identities, sexuality, and the hunt for the You in a person— and the brilliant plot (sometimes overwrought) of a girl pretending to be a guy, and the spider web of deceptions and evasion that inspires.I came into this story expecting something light and fun-twisty, but what I found was so much deeper and way more awesome. It’s worth every penny, every minute.

This was a truly lovely book. Redgate did a stupendous job in crafting a world revolving around education in the arts, and the sometimes difficult circumstances students have while navigating that particular learning minefield. The characters were likeable and well rounded, even when they played a fairly static, minor role, which allowed for the growth of some interesting relationships. The authors use of humorous language added some extra oomph to the story, making it an entertaining book that I will be happy to reread.

Atypical of normal teenage angst, Jordan struggles to survive in a world where up is down and all the opportunities go to a slim subset of the population based on biased stereotypes. So what’s a girl to do? Jordan finds her own opportunity that brings her closest to her dream. But the closer she gets to that dream, the more she struggles with the consequences of her actions. Strong characters and excellent display of character bias and the emotional fallout.

The writing was fun and easy to follow. The plot made sense. The main character, a Teenager is Chinese descent, faces the struggles of her prestigious performing arts boarding school. Her going under cover as a boy to join the a cappella group helps the author explore identity of generational immigrants, scholarship students, trust fund families, sexuality, gender-identity, and more. It was a fun read with a deeper meaning!

new condition for a gift

I really enjoyed this and I would love to write a proper review, but somehow I don't feel like I can do this book justice.I like how it handled some things, while being too short on others, but it still has many wonderful and achingly insightful moments about sexuality, gender identity, toxic masculinity, wanting to fit in and meet expectations and many more.My main complaints are that the narrator spent a bit too long describing the buildings of the campus, and I would have liked to see several of the side plots resolved instead of left open/never mentioned again. I also wasn't really feeling the romance, but the focus was on the friendships anyways and those were wonderful. The characters in general were great and diverse.Jordan, the protagonist, was very relateable and there were several instances were she put words to feelings and situations that I've never managed to voice to myself, especially regarding femininity.Overall definitely a new favourite.

Ridiculously funny, just the right amount of nerdy and cute and at the same time it also tackles a lot of important social issues.

Enjoyed every moment and couldn't put it down. Gorgeous, introspective read studying gender, race & class, without feeling preachy. Strongly recommend.