My review will be up in March.

reasons why you should read this:

-asian american main character
-finding out about her bissexuality
-discusses a lot of important topics
-diverse secondary characters
-funny but sad

I love how it tackles very important issues, like transgenderism and the question of what makes you a boy, what makes you a girl? It's handled with care, both in the narrative and in Jordan's thoughts, and you can see Redgate has done her research on the subject.

I also enjoyed how it tackles the idea of religion, and how it links to one's sexual orientation. And the casual sexist that can exist when boys are talking to each other behind closed doors, when they probably don't even realise how hurtful their words could be to girls.

But mostly, I love love love how Jordan discovers her sexuality through the book. It is a big deal without being dramatic, it is important without being at the front and centre, and it touches me in a way no other book ever did before. Like, this book gets me. It gets what my life is about.

More lightly, Noteworthy is a read fun read about music and friendship. The boys in the book are just all wonderful in their own way, and the easy banter between them is amazing. I laughed at so many of their jokes and rolled my eyes at all their bullshit and dramatics.

I enjoyed the story as it was a fresh twist of the drag trope. I would consider buying the book.

I was so pleasantly surprised by this book and just enjoyed it sooo much from the first page. It hooks you and it has a great story, great cover, and great writing. I highly recommend it!

Thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for a review copy in exchange for a honest review.

Actually rating is 4.5 out 5!

I loved this book so, so much! If I didn't have a huge pile of ARCs waiting for me I would seriously read it again and again. It was so much more than I thought it would. Just looking at the cover and reading the synopsis gave me the impression that it would be a light, laugh out loud kind of story. Like, common, it's about a cappella, something I automatically associate with Glee, cheesy dance moves and sappy love songs. Instead, Noteworthy offered a very honest glimpse into the struggles of coming of age, gender, sexuality, and disability. I did laugh (because there are a lot of funny moments), but I also teared up and found myself nodding or shaking my head a lot. This is totally a must read!

Reasons Why I Loved It:
- It features a Chinese American MC written by a Chinese American author. So it's an #ownvoices book, which we need more and more of.
- The MC is also bisexual, although I wish the author would have gone into more detail. It wasn't the focus on the book.
- It has a diverse cast of characters! The MCs father is a parapledgic and members of the a cappella include a boy with a learning disability and a Sikh who is also gay.
- The boys in this book have well developed and emotionally healthy relationships with one another. It isn't all hormones and back slapping. This was pretty refreshing.
- There are some very funny moments! Sarcasm for the win!
- It honestly talks about menstruation. For example, in one scene the MC's period starts unexpectedly and she's forced to make a pad out of toilet paper. She's then worried about it leaking through. Oh, and the parts detailing period cramps...yeah I could totally identify with it. THANK YOU!! Why do so many books avoid talking about this?
- There was a slow burning romance that didn't take away from character development or social commentary. I LOVED THIS! It was wonderful to see the MC move on from a previous relationship that had a hold on every aspect of her life to moving on and realizing what she wanted. And her love interest was just so accepting and encouraging. AHHHH yes!
- A book about crossing dressing is super tricky because how far do you go when there are trans people who have to deal with so much prejudice each day? I thought the book handled this balance really well. There was one scene where the MC was researching how to bind her breasts and she realizes that she was taking tips from a website that helped trans people. This made her feel guilty and I appreciated her commentary about the struggles trans people go through on a daily basis.

Noteworthy is adorable, important and a book that you NEED to pick up as soon as it's released. Pre-order it, request it from your library, whatever! YOU NEED TO READ IT.

* Also, for fun, the author has posted her recordings of three songs featured in the book. She has a fantastic voice!

First off, I really liked Jordan as a character. It's pretty obvious that the girl is a smart cookie, and I'm not just talking about book smarts ,which the book glosses over. I'm talking about full-on critical thinking of the world and how she fits into it. I loved how she thought not only of herself but empathized with others without claiming their experiences as well. I got on with most of her arguments, agreeing with her and liking how it fits into the story itself. Then there's the fact that I responded well to Jordan's wit. Mainly because it corresponded well with my own. ;) Every time Jordan would make a quippy remark, I'd pause reading to say,"Yes!" So, yeah, I really liked Jordan as a character. :)

The plot itself was okay. It was kind of predictable in some places, and dragged on near the end. Other than that, I didn't really like how the romance was set up. I felt as if the romance could have been taken out of the book and it wouldn't really matter. I guess I just wasn't invested in it as much as Jordan's success with the Sharpshooters. However, I did like how Jordan's backstory is revealed bit by bit and only when it's relevant to Jordan's present. It was a good way to set up the book's exposition, in my opinion.

My main concern when reading this book was the amount of loose ends in it. Jordan's old friends only appear at the beginning of the book but have no further purpose than reminding us what she had lost by centring her world around her boyfriend, Michael. It would have been nice to see some tension between her acting as a boy as well as rebuilding relationships with friends that don't know she's crossdressing. It would make things so much more complicated! :D And then there was the history surrounding the a cappella group, the Sharpshooters. While you get to know more about some of the members, other members remain a mystery, like Trav. I would have liked to know more about him, especially since the book hints that he's been through a lot. But as readers, we only get to know what Jordan knows, and she doesn't really know much about Trav outside of a cappella and his family situation.

Well, that's all I have to say about Noteworthy by Riley Redgate. For anyone whose interested, Noteworthy comes out on May 2nd, 2017. ;)Have a nice day, everyone!

Jordan Sun is a junior on scholarship at the prestigious Kensington-Blaine Academy for the Performing Arts. She’s just been locked out of a role in the school musical for the third year running. Why? Because she’s an Alto 2, while most parts require a higher Soprano range. What’s a girl to do? Cross-dress and audition for the elite all-male a cappella group, the Sharpshooters, obviously! (And nail it.) Now, she’s living a double life, pretending to be a boy while watching her girl self fade into the background. But how long can she keep it up? You’ll have to read to find out.

It’s going to be really hard for me to write a review of Noteworthy that isn’t completely gushing because I absolutely loved this book. Jordan’s slightly sarcastic, highly observant, constantly questioning voice sucked me in from the very first chapter. Her internal monologue sounds exactly the way I felt as a teenager. I was really intrigued by the idea of a modernized cross-dressing plot that addresses gender as a social construct.

As she tries on a masculine identity, though, Jordan struggles with feelings of guilt: she wonders if she’s being disrespectful toward the trans community by using their advice to put on what’s essentially a costume for her. Riley Redgate doesn’t shy away from these conversations, but shows how Jordan’s desperate transformation isn’t that far off from what any of us would do to get what we want. Isn’t high school all about trying on different identities and personalities, performing the part you think will help you fit in? It’s made even more interesting by the detailed way Redgate constructs the Kensington-Blaine boarding school environment. Jordan is surrounded by rich kids constantly so she finds it hard to relate to them. She hasn’t made a lot of friends, since she spent the last two years isolated in her relationship with her ex—even more reason that she longs to belong with the guys in the Sharpshooters.

Part of why this book is so amazing to me is the grace with which Redgate tells a story that’s all about (say it with me!) intersectionality. Jordan is Chinese, from a working-class family; her dad is a paraplegic who recently got totally screwed by the health care and disability benefits system. She’s also figuring out her sexuality: she thinks she’s bisexual, but she’s never had the opportunity to figure it out, as she was involved in a long-term heterosexual relationship through the end of the last school year. Even the side characters are diverse, from her childhood friend Jenna to her new friend Nihal.

There’s a lot going on with this book, but Redgate manages to make all the pieces fit together and feel natural. The various side characters are fleshed-out with their own personalities and quirks. Even Jordan is surprised at how complex each of the Sharpshooters are in real life, and she realizes just how quick she is to judge rich kids by their clothes and status objects rather than who they are inside. This isn’t a political book, though, but a reflection of the complex diversity of humanity—it’s beautiful.

I don’t have anything negative to say about Noteworthy, but I do have a few caveats for any potential readers:

This is not a bisexual “coming out” story. While Jordan does identify as bisexual, this is not the crux of her story. As someone who discovered my own bisexuality at the ripe old age of 22, I really appreciated the nuanced way Redgate handled this. So many stories with bisexual protagonists fall into the trap of “proving it.” As a girl who’s only ever had heterosexual relationships, it’s easy for people to say “well how can you really know if you’ve never been with a girl?” and while Redgate addresses this, she doesn’t spend half the book making a big deal out of Jordan needing to have a relationship with a girl to “prove” her bisexuality. It’s how Jordan identifies, and that’s enough. Even better? None of the other characters make Jordan feel bad about this. This is like some sort of bi paradise, let me tell you.

This is not a romance-heavy story either. Jordan is dealing with a lot of stuff—namely, pretending to be a dude—so she’s not really wandering around having feelings all over the place. When she does have feelings, she works really hard to push those down. A lot of the early backstory deals with her ex-boyfriend, Michael, and the other romance takes a while to build.

The plot is music-heavy. As a former music nerd (and long-time fan of Glee—there, I said it), Noteworthy really struck a chord with me (teehee). The musical camaraderie is real and tangible and heartwarming, but if that’s not your thing, this might not be the book for you.

Ultimately, Noteworthy is about the age-old quest to find where you belong. Sometimes that place does fit into neat categories of boy-girl or gay-straight. Sometimes in order to find where you belong, you have to take big risks and let yourself transform. In the end, for Jordan, it’s worth it—and so is reading her story.

She's the Man meets Pitch Perfect but with more LGBTQIA and PoC representation. Thoroughly enjoyable and surprisingly self-aware, I just could not put this book down. If you're looking for a feel good read that explores deeper themes and doesn't lack substance, then you should pick this up.

Noteworthy is like 'She’s the Man meets Pitch Perfect,' but with a twist. It's outrageously good.

The story subverted stereotypes and made it even better. This book single-handedly saved me from my slump. I came in for the LGBT representation and I come back with so much more.

This is such a stellar story, I am struck with the reverberating otherness of the main protagonist Jordan. She’s Chinese American who is taller than most girls. She’s not perfectly comfortable with her skin. Heck, she can’t even land a role in her school’s play because of her voice. She’s poor and underprivileged. I love that the author fleshed that out, infusing details what makes her even more othered at her prissy environment. It’s achingly real. Even though, Jordan is a minority, the repercussion of her action was still dealt with.

Noteworthy simply have so many layers to unfurl. We have a prim and proper musical director Trav; the resident bad-boy slash enigmatic boy Isaac; a classical music fanatic Mama, the popular kid with learning disability Jon Cox; a visual art Sheikh student Nihal, A fourteen-year-old democrat boy Marcus, and a socially awkward guy Erik. These male characters have a significant role, it’s highly fueled by testerones. I’m letting it slide because Redgate made them more human who deserve empathy.

The story filled itself with several faithful, relevant problems we don’t often see in YA; it seems too much. But this is our reality, too.

For romance readers, yes there is romance, but alas that’s not the focal point of the book.

Review to posted at Hollywood News Source closer to the release date.

This book doesn't come out until May *cries*, so I'll just give you a list of reasons why you NEED to buy this book when it comes out. (But before I do, I would just like to mention that the cover seems a little juvenile for the content of this book, and I wish it had a better one, so keep that in mind. This book is a lot more mature than it seems!)
1. As my dear friend Kirsti (from melbourneonmymind) put it, this is pretty much the book baby of the movies She's the Man and Pitch Perfect. If that doesn't have you sold....... ¯\_(ツ)_/¯
2. The diversity! Our MC is Asian American and coming to terms with the fact that she may be bisexual and what that means for her. Other diverse characters include A Sikh character, a gay character, characters with different body types, plus lots of discussion around transgender people, as our MC encounters a website specifically for trans people on tips and advice and there's a great, respectful discussion around it. There are also different characters living on different socio-economic levels and Jordan's father is also a paraplegic and is in a wheelchair and has chronic pain and one of the Sharpshooters has anxiety!
3. It's HILARIOUS. The banter is incredible and you'll be that person who giggles involuntarily in public.
4. THE BROMANCE. The 7 other guys that make up the Sharpshooters are such wonderfully developed, complex characters that I grew to love and adore. They are honestly friendship goals and I love them so much.
5. There's also a rivalry going on between two A Capella groups and I love that the main 'villain' has a lot of depth and complexity to his character.
6. It's an #ownvoices book. Enough said.
7. There were certain passages that sent chills down my spine for their relevance and honesty.

ARE YOU CONVINCED YET? I could literally go on forever, but alas, my obsession with this book is already at an all time high, so I'll stop for now. JUST GO AND PRE-ORDER THIS WONDERFUL BOOK.

NOTEWORTHY is a glaringly realistic window into the world that is much needed on the teen shelves in bookstores today. Both a drama and a humorously wild tale of a cappella, brotherhood, and finding one’s way in the world no matter the obstacles stacked against you.
-pooled ink Reviews

I wasn't sure if I would enjoy this book, it isn't my normal type or read but I am pushing myself to read out of my comfort zone. I was glad I did because it took me on a deeper journey than I thought,. My initial expectations of the book were that it is just a story about an A Capella group. What I mean by this is people fighting over songs, people wanting to join the group and all that type of typical group dynamics exploration. As it turned out it wasn't that simple, I was led on a journey getting to know Jordan/Julian and her/his desire to be accepted, to have her time in the spotlight only having to disguise herself to do it and bonding with a group of guys all unique and valued in their own way.


The most confusing/disappointing/underdeveloped part of the story was about Michael, I know there were snippets of him throughout the book whether it was a memory or just the mere mention of his name. Yet, when I first began reading the book I felt that his role was going to be larger than it was and his character would be developed further which essentially wasn't to be. I can see how vital his role was to the whole plot of the story and Jordan accepting herself and moving on, so I also recognise that any more added content would have probably been taking the book in the wrong direction. So while I was confused and disappointed I also understood the possible reasoning behind the story line.

While I cannot give the ending away...you really need to read the book yourself, I will say I was satisfied with the ending.

my review: https://youtu.be/Al-lfMjFQW0?t=12m23s

Just finished reading this book and I absolutely loved this book. So many feelings I have from reading this book. I loved the way diversity was showed through out reading this book. For those who looking for more diverse books need to add Noteworthy to their TBR Pile.

NOTEWORTHY is a poignant story that explores bisexuality, manhood & womanhood, and the a capella environment. We start out with Jordan Sun, who is a junior trying to find her place in the world of Kensington. She feels like she's failed, because she's got rejected for a role every single time that she's auditioned for the musical. Plus to add to that, she is an Alto 2, which doesn't fit the regular "feminine" voice range, so it's seen like she's a lone wolf floating on an island.

One day she gets an email, that tells her that there's an opening into the Sharpshooters, an elite a capella group who is worshiped by the student on campus. Jordan wants nothing else then to feel a part of something, to stop feeling so isolated. There's only one problem: since the beginning of the groups's history, this has only been a male-only group.

Our main protagonist Jordan, feels so authentic, yet different then every other "rich" kid that's on campus. She Chinese America, has a taller height than average, and feels confident. There's realistic financial problems that she has to face; she came from a poor and underprivileged family, her father is disabled and mother has part-time job, and she's riding on a full scholarship and doesn't have the money for plane tickets.

This type of nuanced discussion needs to be happened more and more in YA. Bringing out the shame of relying on government programs to buy food and the inability to pay for college, perhaps help other people. They feel like they're not alone, they see Jordan that is "other" yet it also seems like the things that she's going through are realistic. This is reality for many people (like Jordan), and it needs to be more represented in the YA lit. that we are reading.

As a side note, the subplot of this book is romance, but it's definitely not the main focus. Her bisexuality isn't the main focus either, there isn't that much attention in that department. I'm ok with the author choosing not to really focus on that, because this is her artistic work, and Jordan's sexuality is only one part of her life.

What would really bother me is when I hear readers say (view spoiler). No way, you can't just go and invalidate that big part of their identity. You know what, I honestly did not feel the chemistry between her and her love interest at the end of the book, but she can be with whoever she wants. period. I can respect that and her decisions completely.

I could really connect to all of her anecdotes about being a theater kid and trying to audition her way into musicals and getting rejected. That's where the author hooked me on being deeply connected with Jordan as a character. I loved how Redgate put an emphasis on singing and a capella group, and how everything isn't as it looks like. There are points of rivalry and struggles and tension between the group members, which makes their humanity shine through. I mean, we all get that drama happens in choir, right?

**Thanks to NetGalley the publisher for providing me a copy of this book in exchange for my honest review. All opinions are my own**

Note Worthy reminds me of Twelfth Night, She's the Man, or even Mulan - where a girl masquerades as a guy for whatever purpose and ends up in over her head. Jordan wants to be in theatre, but as an Alto 2 she is hard-pressed to even find a find tailored to her range. All she wants is to pursue her dreams. Feeling down, she notices an audition for a tenor in an all-male A Capella group and takes a chance. Dressed as Julian and sporting a short wig, she impresses the Sharpshooters enough to claim the open spot and suddenly everything changes. She actually had this small, musically-inclined family to belong to. A place at Kensington - as long as nobody realizes that she is a girl.

Pretty quickly, it looks like one of the guys might be a future love interest for Jordan, not Julian as in all likelihood the group will eventually discover her secret. I expected that they would be hurt at first, but eventually forgive her after all they've been through together. Most of my expectations came to pass, although there were slight deviations. Overall, there weren't really any big surprises or reveals in the book.

The characters are so wonderfully well written and realistic. You watch them grow, learn about themselves and find yourself grinning like an idiot when Trav does (because that boy seriously needed it). You cheer for their wins and want to personally beat up those who wrong them. You've become an honorary Sharp and these guys are your family just like they are for Jordan.

Highly recommended contemporary novel about growing up, learning about yourself, making friends and the secrets you keep. And most importantly? Music. Great read for teen/young adult readers with a small amount of profanity.

This book was incredible. Jordan was an entirely relatable character with clear motivations, authentic feelings and voice, and a wonderful supporting cast of characters. Noteworthy is a book that touches on so many subjects and speaks true to all the ones I can see from my perspective.

I will be recommending this book to... well, everyone. But lovers of a capella, theater, cross-dressing ladies, and complicated schemes will enjoy this title.