About This Book:
A hilarious and heartfelt novel about a neurodivergent theater nerd that tackles slut-shaming, what it means to be a friend, and the power of forgiving others—and yourself.
There are countless good reasons to hate seventeen-year-old Jess Lanza, Stone Bridge High’s premier autistic theater nerd and Champion of Questionable Life Choices. Unfortunately, the cyberbullies that hounded her all summer are stuck on last year’s life-ruining mistake, the one that earned Jess the title “Boyfriend Stealing Slutbag.” To relieve the bullies of their stale content, Jess vows to dazzle them with online posts about her own ridiculous fails and embarrassing character traits. But somehow, all of Jess’s posts circle back to her friendship with Chloe—the friendship her alleged sluttiness pulverized—and the gaping hole she left in Jess’s life. As Jess chases Chloe’s forgiveness, she must confront some of her darkest weaknesses—and darker still, the truth of what happened with Chloe’s boyfriend, a story neither of them wants to hear. Told through a series of blog posts and short scripts, this cleverly staged and structured debut novel crackles with spot-on dialogue, features a range of fully developed neurodiverse characters, and sharply evokes high school in all its hilarious and agonizing complexity.
*Review Contributed by Adrien Carter, Newsletter Manager and Staff Reviewer*
Jess Lanza believes that there are many reasons to hate her, but unfortunately, the cyberbullies are focused on one mistake she made, which gave her the title “Boyfriend Stealing Slutbag.” Jess comes up with a brilliant plan to take away the bullies’ content and makes her own online posts about her failures and embarrassing character traits. These all seem to keep coming back to her former friendship with Chloe, which was ruined by the alleged sluttiness that Jess engaged in. While striving for forgiveness from Chloe, Jess confronts her weaknesses and the truth about what happened with Chloe’s boyfriend.
What I Liked: This book is told through blog posts and short scripts created by Jess. Each blog post takes you through various moments that have happened in her life and highlights how Jess is processing those events. It’s intriguing to be inside her mind and be privy to these thoughts, especially as Jess switches the account from public to private.
This book covers many important themes, and it does it well. The complexity of figuring out your sexuality, sexual assault, feelings, and friendship while being autistic are all themes that come up throughout this book. The discussions Jess has with others and the realizations she makes through her blog posts as she reflects on those conversations are pivotal to her character growth. This book does a great job of showcasing what it can feel like to realize you’ve experienced something traumatic and to understand what that means for you.
Something else that is briefly brought up by Chloe’s mother is being Black and Autistic, and how that changes how someone navigates their life. This moment that Jess has with Chloe’s mother is impactful for the reader as well as Jess because you see Jess start to think differently about being autistic, and what that means for Chloe.
This book covers heavy topics in a sensitive manner that will resonate with young adults. The book does a great job of showcasing what the experience of someone with autism might look like and how they navigate complicated problems. The pacing of the book helps break down some of the more serious topics, and each of the people in Jess’s life approaches these topics with grace. It’s important that we see the support that Jess has from adults in her life, especially Chloe’s parents, as their friendship is rocky throughout the book.
Final Verdict: Reasons to Hate Me is a powerful story that highlights the complexity of being autistic and going through a traumatic event, while at first not recognizing the event for what it is. This book is great for young adults ages 14 and up who may be experiencing bullying or are trying to process sexual assault. This book is one to read many times due to the multiple topics that are covered, so each time you read, you can focus on something new and discover new insights on those ideas.
*Find More Info & Buy This Book HERE!*
