Emergency Contact by Mary H.K. ChoiMy rating: 5 of 5 stars
Look, if you want to make me feel things, this is how you do it.
My heart is full.
Highlights
Multicultural rep
This is a beautiful blend of cultures, stereotypes and callouts. This book has no time for your racist bs. The stereotypes can be hilarious and are called out before they are allowed to be harmful. The whole thing just struck me as clever, inclusive and genuine. It both surprised and delighted me how much I enjoyed the representation.
Real drama
We are talking heavy drama here. I'ma go ahead and spoiler tag these themes for you: (view spoiler) and we are not just scratching the surface, we are diving deep into this drama. Oh, my heart. But these characters deal with this stuff. It's not just swept under the rug, or skipped over halfheartedly. They LIVE it. This is what makes a good story. The depth was really incredible to me and it made this book hit so much harder.
Friendship goals
So first we have the secret texting between Penny and Sam. They're both kind of losers so them finding comfort in one another is a serious case of the warm and fuzzies. But I also want to acknowledge Jude and even prickly Mallory because these two are great friends. Jude is an eternal ray of sunshine and lights up every conversation she's part of. Even though Penny is weird and standoffish Jude still has time for her. This book is all about that deeper level of friendship - loving people for who they are, exactly as they are. There's no superficial preening or gossiping; there's no sharing all of the details of everything even. It's just people being there for their friends when it's needed. Again - depth. It got me good.
Bonus: I really enjoyed the lessons on creative writing. Lots of good tips there!
The story flows in and out of the different issues but it never feels messy. It's not overwhelming because there's humour in everyone's oddities, but at the same time the issues are explored to their ends. I can't find fault with the writing at all. The feelings are real and honest, the people are unique and diverse, and the story has a little bit of everything to keep you entertained from start to finish. The representation of anxiety I felt was done really well, and I loved that the characters weren't classically beautiful yet they were attractive to each other. This book really is about being true to yourself, and knowing you are worthy of being loved exactly as you are. I'm all for that.
There's just so much to fall in love with. This is another one I'll be highly recommending, and my 5th 5-star for the year.
Clearly I'm going soft.
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