Review: Simon vs the Homo Sapiens Agenda

I received this book for free from FTC: Exchange for honest opinion, Publisher in exchange for an honest review. This does not affect my opinion of the book or the content of my review.

Simon vs. the Homo Sapiens Agenda by Becky Albertalli
Published by Balzer + Bray on June 2, 2015
Genres: Young Adult-Contemporary
Source: FTC: Exchange for honest opinion, Publisher
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Sixteen-year-old and not-so-openly gay Simon Spier prefers to save his drama for the school musical. But when an email falls into the wrong hands, his secret is at risk of being thrust into the spotlight. Now Simon is actually being blackmailed: if he doesn’t play wingman for class clown Martin, his sexual identity will become everyone’s business. Worse, the privacy of Blue, the pen name of the boy he’s been emailing, will be compromised.

With some messy dynamics emerging in his once tight-knit group of friends, and his email correspondence with Blue growing more flirtatious every day, Simon’s junior year has suddenly gotten all kinds of complicated. Now, change-averse Simon has to find a way to step out of his comfort zone before he’s pushed out—without alienating his friends, compromising himself, or fumbling a shot at happiness with the most confusing, adorable guy he’s never met.

I am so excited that the topic of LGBQT is becoming much more of a popular topic in today’s books. For me I feel that it brings on a whole new story and a new world for readers like me to disappear into. I was excited to pick up this book and am ever so glad that I did.

In Simon’s I feel we get this feeling of that fear of letting the world know your secret. And it is not just the people at school but his parents as well. We get to really know how the character is feeling and see how this could turn out to be a big deal. And to top it off someone is blackmailing him. Simon needs to make a decision on whether he is ready to tell the world his secret or be the victim to this guy’s little game.

The story moves smoothly through the chapters and what I like most is the boy who Simon has been talking to via email. They are both keeping their identity a secret but they both go to the same school. I feel the connection between these two is so sweet in the sense that Simon is able to shut out the entire world and open himself up to this person.

There are so many supporting characters in the novel that show to the reader what true friends are and what it means to be for someone you care about. These people are people I would love to have as friends to be there just to hang with.

Overall Ms. Becky writes a realistic novel picturing a normal boy coming of age who must deal with his inner self and find out if he is ready to let the world know he is gay. Heart-gripping and exceeding my expectations Simon is so ready to take on the Homo Sapiens Agenda.

Happy Reading!