Important topic especially for the LGBTQ community.

Thank you to the publisher and Netgalley for giving me an ARC in exchange for an honest review*

The Stone Rainbow by Liane Shaw is a sweet and simple story of Jack, who feels he is the only one in his small town that is attracted to guys. This could be hard to gauge since nobody in the town is actually out including Jack himself. One aspect of the story that I found difficult to believe was that this town was not capable of making itself even slightly wheelchair accessible to accommodate Jack's best friend and town hero, Ryan who has CP. Nor could they be bothered to renovate a single bathroom at the high school for Ryan when there are laws in place to protect people with disabilities.
The introduction of Benjamin was a breath of fresh air into this storyline, but sadly they dance around their feelings and that becomes something else that isn't discussed. I enjoyed the characters created by the author, but would have loved for her to have delved into them deeper and draw out their personalities.

I was given an ARC from Netgalley in exchange for an honest and independent review.

The premise of the stone rainbow and the Pride parade were cute, but unfortunately, the storytelling didn't hold up, leaving this just an "ok" book. I normally enjoy first-person present tense, but this felt like it was too much in Jack's head. Rather than experiencing the story through Jack's eyes, I felt like Jack was telling me a story in a way that kept me very removed from the action. I applaud the author's attempts at diversity, but it was often cringey and the characters just didn't pull me in. For the most part, I couldn't really understand their motivations. It just felt like they were going through the motions because the author told them to act a certain way, not because they were fully developed. I did appreciate that the book had an uplifting ending, but I do wish we'd move past the "here is how gay kids are beat down" trope. Yes, homophobia is rampant and it is horrible, but how about YA books that show LGBT+ kids just living their lives (you know, like other YA books). Kids living with homophobia need to see the best things life has to offer them, not just a mirror reflecting the crap.

DNF @ 30%. this book was so obviously written by a straight person

the representation and diversity of the characters was nice, but nothing else was interesting enough to make me keep reading. the only remotely interesting character to read was benjamin. also, the writing style was just not working for me. there were huge blocks of dialogue between characters without any indication of who was speaking.

trigger warnings for talk about suicide/ suicide attempt. sorry, but im tired of reading about lgbt+ characters with tragic stories. give me a gay kid who gets a happy story just like all the straight contemporary romances out there. can we stop throwing in suicide attempts or killing off the gay character just for some extra drama in the plot

its clear that the author is making some effort here, but the way that Jack's gay experience was written was uncomfortable to me as a queer reviewer. just the sentence, "straight, as if everyone else is somehow crooked" was just ???? it might be an attempt at trying to say that straight shouldn't be the normal but it just made me cringe so hard

The best new book I've read in 2019. As a girl from a pretty homogeneous small town, where conservative religious beliefs reign, this book struck a major chord. So many people I know are coming out now that they are away from home, and it really shows how scary it is to live in a place that doesn't tolerate you. This book makes me want to start a pride parade back home. We need to show the kids there are people who do respect and love them.

Thanks to Netgalley and the publishers for providing me with a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

Initially, I was attracted to the cover of this book, and then the synopsis made me want to read more. I liked the storyline overall. The story addresses several issues including coming out, mental health, bigotry and violent homophobia.There was a good representation of diversity but some of the characters could have been a bit more developed.
The story focuses on coming out in a small, conservative community and how the main character decides to bring about change, organising the town's first pride parade. There is violence and homophobia, both overt and discreet, and the reality of how people react to others bigotry is well-balanced. This isn't one of those stories where everyone suddenly changes their mind by the end.

A good read overall.

This was a great, feel good story, about a gay teenager in a small town where he initially does not feel safe or accepted in coming out. I will say, while this is a YA book, it could nearly pass for middle grade. Despite the characters being older, everything in this story would be appropriate for a middle school audience. While there is some talk of suicide, nothing is overly graphic or disturbing. Definitely for a younger YA audience. A fairly predictable story, but younger audiences should find a lot to enjoy here.

I rather liked this book. I think this book would make a good read for people that like to read YA LGBT romance but want to broaden their horizons a little bit. I found that the first half of the book dragged a little bit but the last quarter more than made up for any slowness I experienced in the beginning. I liked the diversity in this book and thought it was written with care and thoughtfulness. As a main character, I really liked Jack. However, I sort of felt that maybe the other characters were a tad underdeveloped. I personally didn't really care about the romance but that probably was just me.

All in all, I found this book to be truly inspiring and engaging and for the right reader, I think this book could be a true five star novel.

I really liked the overall story. It was great reading about teens dealing with coming out and how different people decide how open they are about their sexuality.

Overall it was an enjoyable story, but I think I just needed more.

I am 37% through this book and cannot bring myself to finish it. The characters lack depth, as does the story.

I really didn't know what to expect when I began reading, The Stone Rainbow but was quickly swept up in its sometimes heartbreaking, sometimes inspiring story line. As a YA novel, I think this is an important one. I can't tell you how desperately I had wished for books and stories like this when I was a teen... to know others were dealing with and overcoming great challenges associated with 'being different', just like I was.

I really appreciated the viewpoint and the character sketches created by Liane Shaw. NO, the characters aren't perfect and don't make perfect decisions. Just like real life. They struggle, they fall, they succeed, they grow. It's the imperfections of the characters that make this book so perfect.

This book stayed very close to me, in my thoughts, way beyond the pages. As clear and delicately as it is told, Shaw still left plenty of room in the story, for the reader to imagine or daydream; living beyond the pages.

I think The Stone Rainbow perfectly shares how, as individuals, we often don't see ourselves as others do... how we are much stronger than we think we are... and how there is the potential greatness in us all.

I hope Jack and Ben receive another 'chapter' as their journey through life and love continues.

I received a copy from the publisher through NetGalley in exchange for and an honest review.

** spoiler alert ** I received this book through netgalley and am offering a simple review. The book is really about 2.5 stars. It’s not that it was a horrible book it just tried to be too many things and didn’t focus on plot enough to fully flush out a more meaningful story. It features elements about coming of age, intolerance, coming out, gay marriage, hate crimes, activism and gender expression. By casting a net to wide the author wasn’t able to develop the a strong enough narrative to let you bond or root for anyone other that you for getting to the end of the book. I think with more focus on jack and his self acceptance the book would have been much more meaningful. A prime example is that you have speeches about pride from characters that haven’t really been developed it comes off as hollow and full of false platitudes. The book would make a great amazon prime movie, but it would never connect to a larger truth and rings hollow.

I enjoyed the message of this book, it was uplifting and hopeful. The story is about being proud of who you are and accepting yourself and others. Jackson was cute, I felt bad that he felt alone and that he couldn't be and out gay man. I was really happy he found Ryan, Benjamin, and Lucas to help him feel confident. I felt like most of the characters weren't developed fully and I would have liked more time on Jackson's relationships with them all.
The story is pretty short and gets to the point. It's a good read for the younger crowd and very positive.

I absolutely loved this book. It not only represented the LGBTQ+ community, it represented ethnic minorities and people with physical disabilities. There is also a focus on the mental health struggles many queer youth face. There are so many good quotes and moments in this book that could have an enormous positive influence on LGBTQ+ youth and even those who aren’t part of that community. It teaches wonderful lessons about inclusion. I would recommend teachers to adapt it to their curriculum if possible. I would also recommend it as literature for a GSA or LGBTQ+ resource center.

I received a copy of this book in exchange for my honest review. Thank you NetGalley.

the style of writing is different than what i've read in the past... it was a little difficult to follow at times. the concept of the book is beautiful., i just feel like something was missing or not written well in this book.

I loved this book! Love is Love and the sooner we learn that the better place this world will be! This is a wonderful book for anyone who may feel awkward, scared or frightened to acknowledge who they are. Be proud of who you are!

Overall, I liked this one. It dealt with some heavy themes (including suicidal ideation and homophobia) but manages to stay hopeful in a way that isn't easy to do. The love story between Jack and Benjamin is also cute, especially how it helps Jack come into his own with his gay identity. Although it's more of a side story rather than the main plot, Jack's friendship with Ryan (another student who has cerebral palsy) also gave the book more meaning and depth than just a simple coming-out story.

The one criticism I have is that Jack seemed like the only fleshed out character. That's good for a protagonist, but it was hard for me to picture or understand the other people in his life. I would have liked the other characters to have a little more depth to give more meaning to Jack's story and relationship with them.

This is a companion to Caterpillar's Can't Swim, but the author has written both as able to stand on their own. I would recommend this one to fans of that book if you want to hear the story told from a different perspective.

I mainly requested this book because of the pretty cover, and I should probably stop doing that, because this was so incredibly disappointing.

The book started with two clear instances of ableism in the very first 20 pages. Jack's friend Ryan has cerebral palsy and uses a wheelchair. Jack admits that he knows that it makes Ryan very uncomfortable when people act all impressed about the things he's good at, like swimming. And rightfully so, because yikes. But right after admitting that he's aware of this, Jack just HAS to state that he's super impressed that Ryan can swim, since he can't walk. Why? Not 10 pages later, Jack suddenly starts pushing Ryan's wheelchair without permission, and when Ryan gets pissed about that, he thinks:"If I was Cody, he'd let me push him from here to the next county." Jack (and the author, by extension), you do know disabled people don't exist so you can feel good about yourself for "helping" them, right?

It's also an interesting choice that the straight author (she has "LGBTQ+ ally and parent" in her Twitter bio) wrote a gay main character who lives in a really homophobic small town, and who has almost drowned before the book starts, in what people think was a suicide attempt (this never became clear in the book). His mother is super homophobic, and people at his school use homophobic slurs. And of course the gay love interest has to almost die to add some drama to the story.

I will say, it's clear that the author is making an effort here. But the way she describes Jack's experience being gay is just a complete miss. There were so many strange issues that made the book very uncomfortable to read, aside from the main issues I listed above. For instance, Jack's friend Ryan has a very homophobic best friend who's a complete bully, but Jack puts up with him anyway? And when Jack talks to the new guy at school, who becomes the love interest, he keeps pressuring him into not coming out at school, which is so not his call to make. An example of the smaller issues is this sentence: "Straight. As if everyone else is somehow crooked." Does... does this woman know the history of the word? It certainly doesn't seem that way. (It started as a gay term for heterosexuals.)

This could have been a pretty cute romance, but there were just too many issues for me to enjoy it.

Rep: half Latinx gay MC, side character with cerebral palsy, half Chinese gay love interest.

CWs: possible attempted suicide, homophobia, homophobic slurs, ableism (unchallenged)

A powerful queer+ book that was serious, but also funny. There was drama, but it wasn't drawn out, and the characters were detailed enough to keep me reading.

Overall, a well written story (bar the sometimes confusing dialogue), and I'm glad it was more of a coming-out story, rather than a love story.

Rating: 4/5

(This book will feature on my blog on September 3!)

I voluntarily read and reviewed and advanced copy of this book, received through NetGalley in exchange for my honest review. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

The cover got my attention at first sight. It is the perfect mix of mysterious and colourful to make me want to know what was the book about. After reading the synopsis, it just wanted me to read it more. What I found is a beautiful coming out story set in a small town that feels claustrophobic.

I really liked the book's plot. The author addressed many relevant issues: coming out, mental health, masculinity, bigotry, homophobia... It also made me very happy to see so many different characters and to have an awesome representation of diversity. Although I feel some of the characters could have been a bit more developed, I understand this was because of the book's point of view. I really enjoyed the way the author wrote about how difficult it can be to go against the conventions of a small community and how the main character, Jack, decides to step up and advocate for change, deciding to celebrate the first PRIDE parade in his small village.

I loved Jack's relationship with Benjamin. It might seem very high school, but the way they interacted and grew closer also felt natural and real. Also, Jack's character growth is great, but the growth of his relationship with his family and friends was awesome to read.

The story is told from Jack's perspective. It is he who narrates everything, presenting the facts as he sees or perceives them. While this allows the reader to get to know Jack very well, I felt it also slowed down the pace of the story, because it did not present manny actions, just a retelling of them through Jack.

I think this is a good story for those who might be coming to terms with their own sexuality or gender identity specially.