Leah on the Offbeat

I don't think anything will ever be as good as [b:Simon vs. the Homo Sapiens Agenda 19547856 Simon vs. the Homo Sapiens Agenda (Creekwood, #1) Becky Albertalli https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1402915678s/19547856.jpg 27679579] but this is a worthwhile sequel, and not just because we get to see lots of Simon and his sweetie (trying to avoid spoilers if there is anyone on earth who has not yet read Albertalli's amazing debut novel). It's less of a pure love story - it's senior year now, and Leah, Simon and the rest of their friends are facing that scary ending/beginning and all of the inevitable changes. Leah is a great heroine -snarky, overweight (but who cares), smart, musical, and quietly bisexual. Without giving away the object of her affection, I will say that I found the relationship to be less than fully convincing, at least partially because it involves retconning some of the things that took place in Simon, and one character in particular comes off in a much more negative light. But real life is messy, high school is messy, and Leah on the Offbeat does a good job of showing how painful but amazing that time can be. Plus, Simon and his sweetie are the best couple ever.