Yes, No, Maybe, So

By: Becky Albertalli and Aisha Saeed
Location: FIC ALB
Genre: Romance

"The truth is, it's a weird time to be coming of age. The world's really messy right now. And it's so hard to be twelve or thirteen or fifteen or seventeen, where you're old enough to get it, but... you can't vote"

Jamie Goldberg is cool with volunteering for his local state candidate - as long as he’s behind the scenes. There’s no way he’d ever knock on doors to ask people for their votes…until he meets Maya.

Maya Rehman’s having the worst Ramadan ever. Her best friend is too busy to hang out, her summer trip is cancelled, her parents are separating and now her mother thinks the solution to her problems is political canvassing - with some awkward guy she hardly knows ...

Going door to door isn’t exactly glamorous, but maybe it’s not the worst thing in the world. After all, the polls are getting closer - and so are Maya and Jamie. Mastering local activism is one thing. Navigating the cross-cultural crush of the century is another thing entirely.

 "I thought going in that this would be a sweet, summery romance with a little bit of political discourse sprinkled in. It was, but it was also relevant, engaging and realistic. The romance took a back seat to the friendship and political aspects, which I loved. It had something for everyone, from relatable characters, to diversity in terms of race and religion to fighting for what you believe in. As someone who is currently too young to vote, I loved how the authors depicted teenagers in today’s political arena. The characters feel so deeply and strongly and want to make a difference- but people don’t take them seriously because of their age and they begin to feel helpless and insignificant.

"The truth is, it's a weird time to be coming of age. The world's really messy right now. And it's so hard to be twelve or thirteen or fifteen or seventeen, where you're old enough to get it, but... you can't vote"

I loved the ending of this book, in terms of the result of the election. I won’t say anything about it, because it is very easily spoiled.

While this book is intended to make you mad and feel the passion that it is so evident these authors feel about the current state of America’s government- it left me with a feeling of hope. Hope that our generation can change things. Hope that even though I am young, I can make a difference, no matter how small. Hope that life can improve for the thousands who are suffering under oppressive and discriminatory governments and sovereignties not just in the US but across the world.

Hope that one day, a teenager can look back on this book and not relate to the issues we are facing today." Sarah- Goodreads.com