You Should See Me in a Crown in DMPL Book Chat

Jul 11, 2020 Laura rated it it was amazing

Shelves: has-ff-romance, favorites, chronic-illness, lgbtqia, race-racism-and-antiracism, delightful, anxiety-and-anxious-mcs, romance-ya, art-passion, black-mc

This book was such a spot of brightness in a dark time that I read 90% of it and then saved the end for over a month, because I didn’t want it to be over.

This debut queer prom-com is everything I’d hoped it would be. Very sweet and fun and just the right amount tropey/predictable, but still with some real issues and some sad moments. It deals with racism, homophobia, poverty, losing a parent, and chronic illness (the main character’s younger brother has sickle cell, which I haven’t seen in many ...more

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Feb 10, 2021 Danielle rated it it was amazing

Shelves: books-i-own, ya-lit, lgbtq, romance, contemporary, project-lit-ya

"This whole race is set up to mimic some twisted fairy tale. The queen is supposed to be the best among us: the smartest, the most beautiful, the worthiest. But the people who win are rarely the people who deserve it. Like with any monarchy, they're just the closest to the top. You don't earn queen; you inherit it."

Liz Lighty is the protagonist we all needed (but didn't know we needed). She is bold, confident, sure of who she is, and has a strong work ethic. She's the character I needed to read "This whole race is set up to mimic some twisted fairy tale. The queen is supposed to be the best among us: the smartest, the most beautiful, the worthiest. But the people who win are rarely the people who deserve it. Like with any monarchy, they're just the closest to the top. You don't earn queen; you inherit it."

Liz Lighty is the protagonist we all needed (but didn't know we needed). She is bold, confident, sure of who she is, and has a strong work ethic. She's the character I needed to read about in high school. Liz is working to attend her dream college but when a music scholarship falls through, she is forced to do the one thing she thought she'd never do in her cliquey high school: run for prom queen where a large scholarship is up for grabs. Liz doesn't want to burden her hardworking grandparents so she takes on this challenge with just the help of her friends. The next few weeks get interesting as Liz participates in all of the prom shenanigans while also grappling with rekindling a relationship with a middle school friend and developing a crush on the new student, Mack.

I loved Liz so much as a character. She is incredibly well written and relatable. I mean, what teenager doesn't go through growing pains in old friendships and develops crushes on new classmates? I really appreciated that Liz's story is one that isn't often told: she's a Black queer kid in a small midwestern town - a place that typically isn't overly accepting of Black (or) queer kids. This story is so important because all kids need to know they aren't alone and the world isn't as small as it feels in a small town. I loved Liz's relationship with her brother and her long-time friend, Jordan. I appreciated that even though high school was coming to an end, Liz doesn't let that stop her from making new friends and beginning new relationships. I think Liz's financial situation when it comes to college is a story that is all too familiar for many young people today. I know this story would have been refreshing for me to read in high school, simply to know I wasn't alone when it came to paying those steep tuition prices.

All in all, this book was like a warm hug. Leah Johnson is a force to be reckoned with and I'm so excited to read more writing from her in the future. If you like YA contemporary romance, then you will absolutely love this book.

TW: homophobia, parental death (off-page), public outing, anxiety attack, chronic illness ...more

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Jun 18, 2021 Andy rated it really liked it

Shelves: lgbtq, ya

“You Should See in a Crown,” Leah Johnson’s charming and fast-paced debut novel, is a time capsule for today’s teens, much in the way late-90s films like “She’s All That,” “Can’t Hardly Wait” and “10 Things I Hate About You” were for me.

I thought of those films often while listening – each its own sort of fairytale about the outsider breaking through – and “Crown” follows a similar trajectory.

Whereas the films of my generation were about mostly white teens finding love, Johnson gives us a quee “You Should See in a Crown,” Leah Johnson’s charming and fast-paced debut novel, is a time capsule for today’s teens, much in the way late-90s films like “She’s All That,” “Can’t Hardly Wait” and “10 Things I Hate About You” were for me.

I thought of those films often while listening – each its own sort of fairytale about the outsider breaking through – and “Crown” follows a similar trajectory.

Whereas the films of my generation were about mostly white teens finding love, Johnson gives us a queer BIPOC heroine navigating the social challenges of being one of the only minority students at her central Indiana high school while taking on its most honored traditions – prom.

Johnson – a born and raised Hoosier, like me – takes on issues like casual racism, microaggressions and income disparity through Liz’s experiences competing for prom queen and the college scholarship that comes with it, but overall, this is a mostly breezy read.

As an adult, reading a story where prom plays such an important role in the plot requires some reality suspending. We know prom is a minor blip on the radar of life and things like “promposals” and school-specific social networks seem ridiculous.

Thankfully, Johnson knows the novelty of the story will reach an audience beyond teens, and she gives us adults a few knowing winks to let us know she understands just how crazy it all is.

While many of the usual young adult tropes are here – teens educating adults on the world, queen bee sabotage, jock with a heart of gold, over-enthusiastic teacher, Type A best friend, family drama, etc. – Johnson doesn’t belabor these “requirements” of the genre, and instead inserts a fair amount of real-world wit on Liz and Mack and their burgeoning relationship.

The audiobook is narrated by Alaska Jackson, who does a great job of giving Liz her voice, but the rest the characters fell a little flat. Given the quickness of the plot, an audio or traditional format would both work well. ...more

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Nov 11, 2020 Courtney rated it really liked it

Shelves: hello-sunshine

Five weeks of campaigning for prom court, and if you get selected, one more week to campaign for kind and queen specifically. Five weeks to take myself from "Liz Lighty: Unapologetic Wallflower" to "Liz Lighty: Slightly More Apologetic Prom Queen Contender."

This book was just so much fun and at the same time made me so grateful to NOT be in high school anymore. There was a lightness to this book that even though difficult things are broached: public outing of an LGTBQ character, bullying, sickle ...more

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