Reading wrap-up #43: Heartstopper edition

The rumors are true. I binge-read the Heartstopper graphic novel series by Alice Oseman. This young adult, LGBTQ+ book that follows two boys as they fall for each other, discovering more about each other and themselves along the way.

As a reminder, here is how I rate my books:

• (★★★★★): Loved it
• (★★★★): Really liked it
• (★★★): Liked it enough
• (★★): Didn’t care for it

Another few notes: I will warn if there are any spoilers with (start spoiler) and (end spoiler) so you know when to stop reading and pick up again if you don’t want to ruin the book for yourself. I no longer go out of my way to watch adaptions, but will continue to mention them and their general critiques (from Rotten Tomatoes) in my reviews. Finally, you can always check out my book review index page if you’re looking for my extremely important opinion on any book in particular.

The volumes all kind of blurred together, so this is your warning for mention of self-harm, alcohol consumption, eating disorders, biphobia and homophobia. On a brighter note, the series looks like it’s going to be made into an adaption.

Heartstopper Vol. 1

Rating: ★★★★

GoodReads rating:  4.54 / 5 (48,000 ratings)

Medium used: E-book (borrowed from library via OverDrive)

Summary: “Charlie, a highly-strung, openly gay over-thinker, and Nick, a cheerful, soft-hearted rugby player, meet at a British all-boys grammar school. Friendship blooms quickly, but could there be something more…?”

Heartstopper Vol. 2

Rating: ★★★★

GoodReads rating:  4.64 / 5 (30,000 ratings)

Medium used: Free Webtoon comic

Summary: “Nick and Charlie are best friends. Nick knows Charlie’s gay, and Charlie is sure that Nick isn’t. But love works in surprising ways, and Nick is discovering all kinds of things about his friends, his family… and himself. Heartstopper is about friendship, loyalty and mental illness. It encompasses all the small stories of Nick and Charlie’s lives that together make up something larger, which speaks to all of us.”

Heartstopper Vol. 3

Rating: ★★★★

GoodReads rating:  4.66 / 5 (21,000 ratings)

Medium used: Free Webtoon comic

Summary: On a school trip to Paris, the characters we have come to know and love navigate friendships and relationships as well as a new city.

Thoughts on the series: I didn’t want to give individual reviews on the volumes because I read them so quickly they all kind of blurred together and I had a lot of the same thoughts on it. First, the Webtoon series was great at giving content warning and to what extent it’s talked about in the text. The characters in this book are distinct and well drawn out (no pun intended), the problems are very real as well as the solutions and coping mechanisms. This series makes me feel so warm and bet it would be especially helpful for youth looking to identify with charters across the sexuality spectrum and better understand LGBTQ+ stereotypes.The books definitely got better with each volume and I can’t wait for the fourth and beyond in its entirety. This series was enjoyable, but I gave it four stars as I’m not exactly running to tell all my friends about it.

Have you read any of these?

Photo by Radu Marcusu.