I usually don’t get very personal in my reviews because I’m sending it off to a publisher afterwards and whatnot, but for Roomies I have to make a small exception. So the first half of this post is going to be a normal review, telling why Roomies is awesome and why you should totally consider buying the audio version. The second half will be just my general feelings and what this novel meant to me personally. I shed a few tears, guys.

“Live in the present. Take care of the relationships in front of you now. Most friendships have a natural life, and when they’ve lived that out, you’ll know.”

I was initially drawn to Roomies because it had such an interesting cover and premise. I loved the idea of two strangers getting to know each other over one summer before college. But what I didn’t expect was such a complex cast of characters, heartbreaking relationships and two coming of age stories that felt so realistic and utterly honest. I underestimated this novel, and boy what a mistake that was.

Elizabeth, AKA EB, lives with her mom in New Jersey and is excited to move away to California for college. On the opposite side of the country is Lauren who is the oldest sibling out of six, who can’t wait to finally have her own space in college. Unfortunately for Lauren, she ends up getting a roomie despite requesting a single. Elizabeth is excited at the thought of having a roommate since she’s always been an only child, so she begins emailing Lauren. Over the course of the summer they learn more about each other and their selves. It’s the story of how an unlikely friendship can completely change your outlook on life and your future.

What I loved most about Roomies was the honest character portrayal. Both Elizabeth and Lauren’s voice was realistic for their age and perfectly highlighted the feelings of a teen leaving their family for college. There are feelings of excitement, uncertainty, regrets, fear, homesickness, etc. But these never felt overpowering and flowed so well from page to page. The reader or listener, learns more about the characters’ lives as they learn more about each other. I’ve read my share of dual POV novels before and I believe this may be one of my favorites. I cared about both girls equally and got excited each and every time the POV flipped. I think this is also in large part to the AMAZING narrators Becca Battoe and Emily Eiden, whose chemistry was perfect. There aren’t a lot of YA novels that take place right after high school and before college (I’m not talking about New Adult). Someone FIX THIS because it needs to be a thing.

And then we have the love interests. GUYS, *SWOON*. The best part of the dual POVs was seeing two girls find two equally amazing guys that both complimented them and encouraged them positively. Lauren’s love interest, Keyon, was hands down my favorite (more on him in a bit) because he really caused both Lauren and Elizabeth to challenge their feelings on race. This book isn’t about race, not by a long shot, but I really appreciated that dynamics of Lauren figuring it out. However, Elizabeth’s boyfriend, Mark, is not to be forgotten. I really loved how, after being in a relationship that didn’t sit right with her, she found this guy who was willing to wait for her. Mark was the kind of guy that I’d want all girls to end up with. The sweet guy who is concerned for who you are instead of what you can do for them. The contrast between the undesirable guy and the awesome guy was a great aspect of the novel, one that I wish I saw more of in YA.

Finally, there is the ending. I love how it ends with the promise of hope. It’s realistic because both girls are entering into a part of their lives where anything could happen. Yet, instead of them having these feelings of uncertainty that we saw in the beginning, they are confident and read to conquer what comes ahead. I truly loved this book and it’s the first contemporary audiobook that I actually really enjoyed.

Steph’s Outtakes

This is something that I want to do more at the end of my reviews where I just talk about something that really hit my feels pretty hard. I don’t always want to put it in the review that I’m sending to the publisher–though I have no issue if they read it anyway–because it’s more personal and less objective. But at the same time, I don’t want to write another post about the same book, so Outtakes has been born.

My feelings. Guys, can we talk about misrepresentation in YA for a minute in honor of Black History Month? I have this thing where when I run across a black character in a novel and put them under a microscope. It’s not something I mean to do or even realize I’m doing, but I am more critical of seeing how my race is portrayed in novels. I can’t help it.

So there’s a black character in Roomies named Keyon. While he’s not really a major part of the novel, I felt his character and mannerisms were so accurate. It’s not only that, but the way Lauren, Elizabeth and others reacted to him. When Lauren first mentions him in an email to Elizabeth, she doesn’t mention his race, only his name. This leaves Elizabeth wondering if Keyon is black because she guesses that Keyon is a black name. But then she realizes how horrible that sounds and checks her privilege at the door. After that, there are a few times were Elizabeth has moments of deep thought about race and how little she knows about the world and other cultures. And I loved that moment because it was a moment of growth for her to say, “Hey, I’ve just realized I don’t know anything, but I want to learn.” She also thinks about how she doesn’t have any black friends, how terrible she finds that and how she wants to widen out her social circles when she goes to college.

Then there’s the part where Lauren is meeting Keyon’s parents and she says:

“Keyon and Joe Junior were adorable kids. I’ve always thought black babies were the cutest, and I almost say that to Sue before realizing there’s no way to say it without being totally offensive or making Sue think I’m an idiot. Race. It’s so tricky, even though we’re all supposedly enlightened and color-blind. I don’t want it to be a Thing. But it kind of is a Thing, isn’t it?”

Right as I heard that, I knew some might be offended by this. And I get because it sounds wrong, but I know some people think this. Years ago, my aunt, who is white, made a similar comment, saying she thought black women were prettier than white women. I chucked at it then because it was such an awkward moment and she was really trying hard not to offend anyone. But back to Lauren, I liked how she thought about what she was going to say before she did. As much as we all want to pretend that race isn’t a Thing, it still is. And what you say to a person can be offensive even if you don’t mean it like that.

That was clear especially when Keyon met Lauren’s parents for the first time and she was a little nervous about it. Lauren’s dad is none too thrilled about their relationship partly because he’s being a dad and that’s just what dad’s do, and party because Keyon is black. Keyon knows this and Lauren knows this, but Keyon just takes it in stride as just One of Those Things That Sometimes Happens When You’re Black. I’m not saying Lauren’s dad is a racist. He’s not, however, it’s that ingrained prejudice that still lingers in our country that still makes race a Thing. It’s unfortunate, sure. But it’s still there and probably will be for a long time. (Hell, before I started using a picture of my face as my avatar, you should have seen some of the surprised faces I got at signings. Fun times.)

Random Personal Story: [spoiler]Okay, so story time really quickly. When I was in high school, I worked at a grocery store as a Courtesy Clerk. Basically, I bagged groceries, carried them out to people’s car and retrieved carts from people who felt the need to leave the all the way across the parking lot. I used to get a lot of strange backhand comments. Like the one time I helped a lady with her groceries. I noticed she had two toddlers and told her I thought they were adorable. Instead of taking that compliment like a normal person, she said, “Thank you! Do you have any kids?” Did I mention I was in high school? And no, I don’t have the face of an older person. In fact, I still look like I’m 16, which is awesome. I just blinked at her because how do you respond to that? Upon realizing her stupidity, she quickly backtracks by saying, “Oh I just thought…” We both knew what she thought.

But my favorite still remains the old white dude who told me not to spend all my tip money on drugs at once because clearly that’s what all black kids do. Good thing he caught me right before I visited my drug lord*. So, yeah, I quit that job.

*I’ve never smoked in my life. Don’t do drugs, kids.[/spoiler]

And then there’s Keyon himself and his side jokes about his own race. Now this is something that some might not get unless they grew up around black people or have black friends or maybe have seen The Chappelle Show, but satire is an awesome thing. Sometimes you make jokes about serious things as an icebreaker in a particularly uncomfortable situation. I do this all the time because otherwise, I’ll cry and that’s no fun. Keyon, a one point, is trying to find out how Lauren feels about them as a couple. He can tell she’s hesitant, and while her hesitation is not exactly race related, she does think about it. She finds him beautiful and is surprised he is interested in her at all, being an ordinary white girl. So he says something along the lines of, “…unless you don’t date the brothas?” and she, flustered, replies, “Oh! I date the brothas…” And I thought it was such a cute moment. Two kids walking the line of uncertainty, both thinking they aren’t worthy of each other.

So when I think about Elizabeth and Lauren challenging how they’ve viewed race and whatnot, it’s well-done. I know some reviewers disliked how much Keyon’s race was mentioned, and I suppose it may have made some people uncomfortable, but it was real. Because it’s exactly what happens in real life. People every day think what Lauren and Elizabeth thought. And people like Keyon exist and go through these things everyday. Keyon was just such a well-done character that I actually cried for a moment. It was the way he talked, the things he said, how he and his family were portrayed in such a positive light. This is by far not a sad book, and I don’t even know if the authors intentionally set out to do this, but it’s always nice when someone takes the time to get it right.