Juliet Takes a Breath

by Gabby Rivera

Hi, my name is Juliet Palante. I've been reading your book Raging Flower: Empowering Your Pussy by Empowering Your Mind. No lie, I started reading it so that I could make people uncomfortable on the subway.

But I'm writing to you now because this book of yours, this magical labia manifesto, has become my bible.

Juliet's head is spinning with questions.

Will her beautiful, chaotic Puerto Rican family still love her when they find out she's gay?
Will an internship with her favourite author help her understand what kind of feminist she wants to be?
And why won't her girlfriend return her calls?!

In a summer full of queer dance parties, a fling with a motorcycling librarian and intense explorations of sexuality and identity, Juliet's about to learn what it means to really come out - to the world, to her family, to herself.

• ISBN10: 0241433983
• ISBN13: 9780241433980
• Publish Date: 19 September 2019 (first published 27 January 2016)
• Publish Status: Active
• Publish Country: GB
• Imprint: Penguin Books Ltd
• Format: Paperback (B-Format (198x129 mm))
• Pages: 320
• Language: English

Reviews

[Angie]

YES!
+Juliet is a lesbian Latina who is exploring feminism! She's just starting out, so there's so much to learn. Which is why she's leaving her home in the Bronx to do an internship with her favorite author in Portland, Oregon.
+I can't think of any other books I read that focus on an internship. Especially not an internship as unconventional as this one. Harlowe is certainly a different kind of person than Juliet was expecting, but not in all bad ways. But not all good either. People are flawed. Even those that we put on pedestals.
+Sweet summer romance. No strings. No complications. Hot librarian. Thumbs up.
+This book will open doors for people who are entering their own journey of identity. Juliet learns so much about feminism, race, intersectionality, relationships, spirituality, politics, and so much more. It's a lot, but I loved it.

NO!
-Some of the conversations felt like Juliet was reading from a pamphlet on these topics rather than talking to an actual person. I don't doubt that these conversations would happen, but all of the people that she speaks to sound very text book rather than conversational and engaging.
-If this is set in 2003, how is it almost the ONE year anniversary of 9/11?

[bestmessever]

Wow, I read this book practically in one sitting. This is one of those books that is life changing. I am thinking so much and asking so many questions now. I have so many things I want to research and learn more about. I am in awe of the beautiful writing, the incredible story and the way it makes me want to scream at the rooftops for everyone to read it.

[lovelybookshelf]

There was much I loved about this book, but also much that frustrated me. I loved Juliet, her voice, her growth, seeing white feminism parodied. But a major character is cissexist and TERFy for most of the book, and it doesn't seem to bother anyone. It's finally addressed briefly (thank you, Ava), but nowhere near enough to satisfy. This would make an interesting book club pick because there's a ton to discuss, and it's a fast read.

[lisacee]

I have so little in common with Juliet but I love her so much.

[Heather]

"Juliet Milagros Palante is leaving the Bronx and headed to Portland, Oregon. She just came out to her family and isn’t sure if her mom will ever speak to her again. But Juliet has a plan, sort of, one that’s going to help her figure out this whole “Puerto Rican lesbian” thing. She’s interning with the author of her favorite book: Harlowe Brisbane, the ultimate authority on feminism, women’s bodies, and other gay-sounding stuff.
Will Juliet be able to figure out her life over the course of one magical summer? Is that even possible? Or is she running away from all the problems that seem too big to handle?
With more questions than answers, Juliet takes on Portland, Harlowe, and most importantly, herself. "

Everyone needs to read Juliet Takes a Breath

Ok, that was easy.  Review over.

Seriously though, this book has something to say to everyone.

Juliet is nineteen and has her first girlfriend.  Her family doesn't know and that bothers her.  They are very close and keeping something this important from them feels wrong to her.  She tells them right before she leaves for the summer to do an internship in Portland with her favorite author.  The reception is not what she hoped for.

Portland isn't what she expected either.  It is so overwhelmingly white but the white people are weirder than any white people she's met before.  If she's come to her favorite lesbian author's house, why is there a naked man in the kitchen?  Why doesn't she understand what anyone is talking about?

There is no right way to be

Juliet had idolized Harlowe as a lesbian author who seemed to have the answers to everything.  But as Juliet gets more involved in Harlowe's world she sees that some of the ideas that Harlowe has might not be right for her.  Part of her growing up and owning her own story is finding out how she needs to branch out and be different.  Learning what to keep and what to reject is hard.  She needs to see a variety of ways of being a lesbian so she realizes that there are options out there.

Likewise, Harlowe can't mold Juliet to fit into her preferred narrative.  This causes conflict in the book as they try to find neutral ground to speak to each other.

Not everyone speaks your language

Juliet doesn't have the background in the language of the LGBT movement to be able to understand everything that people in Portland are talking about.  Preferred pronouns?  Polyamory?  As readers follow Juliet's stories they are exposed to concepts that they may also have not known about.  It is also a reminder not to denigrate people who may not know the "correct" terminology but to educate.

This is a book for anyone who has ever felt out of place but who wants to belong.  Juliet is charming and you root for her the whole way through the book.

I listened to the audio version of this book.  The narration was amazing.  Her accents were well done and the Spanish in the book flowed naturally in the story.

Do yourself a favor.  Pick up this book and fall in love with Juliet.

 This review was originally posted on Based On A True Story

[brokentune]

4.5* - Not perfect, but I loved it.

"Feminism. I’m new to it. The word still sounds weird and wrong. Too white, too structured, too foreign: something I can’t claim. I wish there was another word for it. Maybe I need to make one up. My mom’s totally a feminist but she never uses that word. She molds my little brother’s breakfast eggs into Ninja Turtles and pays all the bills in the house. She’s this lady that never sleeps because she’s working on a Master’s Degree while raising my little brother and me and pretty much balancing the rhythm of an entire family on her shoulders. That’s a feminist, right? But my mom still irons my Dad’s socks. So what do you call that woman? You know, besides Mom."

When I first looked into picking up Juliet Takes a Breath, I came across a review that described this book as the female version of The Catcher in the Rye. My immediate reaction was "Oh, good grief, noooooo!" and I instantly wanted to cancel the sample that had just been delivered to my kindle.

However, I read the first few pages and was kinda hooked by the voice of Juliet, a 19-year-old Latina, living in the Bronx. The book starts with Juliet writing a letter to the author of her favourite book, a book that she originally started reading as a joke, but that turned out to have such an impact on her that she started to question her view of life.

"I fall asleep with that book in my arms because words protect hearts and I’ve got this ache in my chest that won’t go away."

I guess, this is where the similarities with Holden Caulfield start. But, really, this is also where they end. Where Holden dismisses the believes of others over his own somewhat narrow-minded ideas, which are based on his misinterpretation of the Burns poem (which he never really bothers to find out more about), Juliet wants to learn more about the ideas in the book that she regards as her "Bible" and manages to arrange an internship with its author.

And so Juliet's huge road trip begins. She moves to Portland (OR) for the summer to help her author gather material for a new book, and by doing so learn more about herself, her family, her relationships with others, her place in the world, and as with all good coming-of-age stories, she learns that stories change depending on whose narrative is given a voice.

"Who were these women? I didn’t recognize any of their faces. How could I be 19 and not know any of them? I’d always done all of my homework, read all of the books assigned in school and yet, here was a world full of possibly iconic ladies I knew nothing about."

Unlike The Catcher in the Rye, which was a painful read because I mostly remember wanting to smack Holden with his own book, I could hardly wait to pick up Juliet Takes a Breath in my spare time. A couple of nights sleep may have suffered also, but it was such good fun reading this, that I really didn't mind.

I'm looking forward to more of Gabby Rivera's writing.

"It made me wonder about all the ways that we are able to love each other and how movies and TV make it seem like you have to discard people once they break your heart or once the love disappears. Maybe that was a horrible lie, a complete disservice to real love."