becky albertalli

THE UPSIDE OF UNREQUITED by Becky Albertalli | Book Chat with Kenzie



Quick disclaimer: none of my book chats contain spoilers so anyone and everyone is welcome to join.

OKAY, Y'ALL ALREADY KNOW BECKY AND I ARE TIGHT, RIGHT? SO OF COURSE, AFTER I MET HER, I HAD TO READ HER OTHER PUBLISHED BOOK. It only seemed logical. Plus, Abigail recommended it to me in some snail mail and of course I can't let THE Abigail down. 

The Upside of Unrequited is about a girl who has always had a crush on someone from afar (26 crushes total) but she's never tried to fulfill those crushes due to her fear of rejection. When Molly's twin sister, Cassie, gets her first girlfriend and is head over heels, Molly suddenly feels distant from Cassie. Cassie tries to set Molly up with her girlfriend's best friend in hopes of saving their bond as sisters but Molly has someone else in mind...

(lol I know. I'm horrible at giving book descriptions bUT JUST STAY WITH ME HERE.)



Plot: 9/10

Characters: 10/10

Writing Style: 10/10

Creativity: 8/10

Pace: on the "little quick" side

Cover: LOVE

Overall: supah cute. squeal worthy 


One thing I'd love to know is HOW ON EARTH IS BECKY ABLE TO MAKE ME FEEL SO ATTACHED TO HER CHARACTERS IN LESS THAN 100 PAGES?? She makes them feel so real without overuse of details! So, of course, my favorite thing about this book would be the characters.



Molly was a mashed up version of Simon and Leah. Like, if they had a love child (though, not possible) she would be theirs.

This book is in the same universe as Simon Vs. The Homo Sapiens Agenda and it's definitely not Simon... But I thoroughly enjoyed it. Probably more than Leah on the Offbeat (I liked that book a lot because of all the Simon + Blue moments, hehe.) I have an undying love for Becky's writing so reading anything by her is a breath of fresh air.


This book contained MAJOR sister/sibling representation. If anyone was looking for a cute read about family relationship, this would be your book. I find that it's really important to have books that do focus on the family aspect of characters because THAT'S REAL LIFE, YO. PEOPLE ACTUALLY HAVE FAMILIES. YEP, I KNOW. I'M JUST AS SHOCKED. But yeah, this book was more about Molly's relationship with her sister than it was about the rooooooomance. (Even though there was some super cute romance- Hang on, you'll see.)



Molly was such a relatable character for me. Aside from the fact that she LOVES Pinterest and doing Pinterest type crafts #same... She spends most of her life wanting something so badly that it aches. Everyone else has already had their first kiss and people around her are either building their relationship or are investing in a new one (i.e. her moms getting married and her sister being in love), which makes her feel kind of like she will never have what everyone else has- as if she's a late bloomer. (Shout out to early teen Kenzie who felt that exact same way.)

Molly worries that she and her sister will eventually grow apart like all siblings do (this topic GOT ME SO MUCH I ALMOST CRIED), so she tries to make herself available to the cute boy, Will, who is best friends with Cassie's girlfriend. If she dates Will, she and Cassie can spend more time together and grow back together! Except, she finds herself interested in her coworker, Reid... WHO, BTW, IS SO FREAKING CUTE OMG. I JUST WANTED MORE OF HIM...!!! 




I love that this book wasn't afraid to address that yes, there are girls who have crushes and who want to have a boyfriend. AND IT'S TOTALLY OKAY AND NORMAL TO WANT THAT. YOU DON'T HAVE TO BE ASHAMED. 

It also has so much diversity and included discussions on race and homophobia. To be honest, it sort of reminded me of a happier version of an episode from The Fosters. o.O



I do wish it focused/added more detail to Molly's anxiety. I mean, Molly does stress and worry about certain things and it did include her taking medication for it but I felt that the topic was brushed off a bit if you know what I mean?

Overall, it wasn't groundbreaking but it was still super enjoyable and gets you into one of those feel good moods.

TALK TO ME!

SHOULD I DO A BOOK CHAT ABOUT LEAH ON THE OFFBEAT? Do you think family representation in books is important? WHY? Do you have a sibling (or siblings) you are super close to? I DO! Have you ever felt like a late bloomer? BECAUSE SAME. What are some books you've read that aren't super "omg-this-just-changed-my-entire-existence" but really enjoyable and just good to read? Let me know! :) 

xx Kenzie 



Caution warning: semi-detailed discussions about sex, minor swearing, and teenage drinking (which was pretty unnecessary in my opinion)

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    15 happy thoughts

    1. AH YES I LOVE THIS BOOK.
      honestly i feel the same as molly- i've had so. many. crushes. in the past like three years but it's always kinda hard to start a relationship because of my sexuality (plus a good 85% of the people i like don't like me back heheh.)
      also *claps* so *claps* much *claps* lgbtq+ *claps* representation *claps* like *claps* yeS *claps*
      k imma stop talking about this book now
      -mckenzie

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      1. WASN'T IT SUCH A FEEL-GOOD BOOK?!?!?! WE NEED MORE, BECKY!!

        Don't you love it when you can relate to a character like that? It makes you feel so understood. I'm glad we were both able to relate to Molly even for different reasons. <3 And don't worry, there is someone special waiting out there and they're just waiting for the right moment. "Good things come to those who wait." :) You will have all the good things you deserve. <3

        Thank you so much for reading and commenting!

        xx Kenzie

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      2. lol i said waiting twice in the same sentence whoops

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    2. I like that you had a caution warning near the end. For reasons you and I discussed before, I know this book isn't for me, but I love reading your book reviews because you're just so AMAZING at them- even if I know a book isn't going to be for me before I read your review, I just love to see what you have to say and seeing a different opinion other than my own. <3

      Great review. <3

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      1. I'M CRYING. <3 Wowow, thank you so much, Ivie. Your comment means a lot to me because I've never been the best at reviews... So I'm glad I'm doing SOMETHING right.

        Thank you so much for reading and for leaving your sweet words. <3

        xx Kenzie

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    3. YES do a book chat for Leah On The Offbeat and YES to these cute book pictures?! This seems like such a good read and now I have to buy it because of Becky Albertalli's doodles in your copies! ♡

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      1. HEHE, OKAY! I'll definitely think about doing one now. ;) And Asdfghjkl; thank you so much! *cries* Yes, please read it! It's definitely worth the purchase. I can't wait to get my Upside copy signed the next time I meet Becky so that all my books have some Becky doodles in them. <3

        Thank you so much for reading and leaving some sweetness in my comments. <3

        xx Kenzie

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    4. Ah, cue me internally kicking myself for not picking this book up when I saw it at the library last week. :')
      IT SOUNDS SO GOOD. Great review!!

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      1. DON'T YOU HATE IT WHEN THAT HAPPENS?!?! Well, maybe this is the sign to pick it up the next time you see it. ;) LET ME KNOW YOUR THOUGHTS!!!

        Thank you so much for reading and commenting, dear. <3

        xx Kenzie

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    5. Awesome review! I've heard of this author before, although I haven't had a chance to read any of her books yet.

      And the main character suffers from a Pinterest addiction? Me, all the way. :P

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      1. Thank you so much! <3 Her books are definitely worth picking up. They're so easy to get into and make you feel super happy afterwards. <3 I HIGHLY recommend Simon Vs. The Homo Sapiens Agenda. ;)

        Ha haha ha. RIGHT?! I love it when a character is #relatable. Thank you so much for reading! <3

        xx Kenzie

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    6. This sounds so interesting. I like the story-line!

      www.fashionradi.com

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      1. Right?!?! I also loved that it took place in the summertime. <3

        Thank you for reading! :)

        xx Kenzie

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    7. I've been wanting to read both that and Leah off the beat forever but I haven't yettttttt!!! That sounds awesome!

      Nabila | Hot Town Cool Girl

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      1. AHHHHHH YOU HAVE TO! <3 Especially if you've already read Simon, you'll squeal so hard when you read his cameos in both these books. ;)

        Thank you so much for reading and commenting!

        xx Kenzie

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    Thank you for taking the time to leave a message, it truly means a lot to me. I try my best to respond to each and every one of them, so come back and let's have a conversation.

    xx Kenzie