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Charming

by Mette BACH
9781459413894. BACH, Mette. Romeo for Real. Aug. 2018. ISBN 9781459412989.ea vol: (Real Love). Lorimer. Tr $27.99.
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Gr 9 Up—This series continues with LGBTQ+ modern-day retellings of classic tales. Ash, a contemporary Cinderella in Cinders, is harassed by her stepsiblings while trying to win a coding competition at school. In Charming, Char is mercilessly cyberbullied for her music. Each book follows the story of how the two of them meet and fall for each other online while using Ash's anti-cyberbullying app. Romeo and Juliet is retold in Romeo for Real and Just Julian. Romeo is a high school sports star who begins to explore his sexuality after meeting Julian, though his openly homophobic friends and family make him fear coming out as gay. Through his relationship with Romeo, artist Julian becomes involved in LGBTQ+ activism. While these story lines relate only loosely to their source material, the narratives pack a punch.
VERDICT These modern romances, written at a fourth grade reading level, effectively tie in contemporary themes like bullying and social media while presenting relatable characters embracing their sexuality.
Reviewed by Kathryn Justus , Feb 01, 2019

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