SUBSCRIBE
SUBSCRIBE
SLJ Blog Network +
  • 100 Scope Notes
  • A Fuse #8 Production
  • Good Comics for Kids
  • Heavy Medal: A Mock Newbery Blog
  • Teen Librarian Toolbox
  • The Classroom Bookshelf
  • The Yarn
  • Skip to primary navigation
  • Skip to main content
  • Skip to primary sidebar
  • About TLT
  • Reviews
    • Book Reviews
    • A to Z Book Lists
    • Book Review Policy
  • Teen Issues
  • Middle Grade Mondays
  • Programs
    • TPiB
    • Tech Talk
  • Professional
    • Teen Services 101
    • Things We Didn’t Learn in Library School
  • MakerSpace
  • Projects
    • #SVYALit
    • #FSYALit
    • #MHYALit
    • #Poverty in YA Lit

June 14, 2016 by Amanda MacGregor

Book Review: The Geek’s Guide to Unrequited Love by Sarvenaz Tash

June 14, 2016 by Amanda MacGregor   Leave a Comment

Publisher’s description

3P JKT Geeks_Guide.inddJohn Hughes meets Comic Con in this hilarious, unabashedly romantic, coming-of-age novel about a teenager who is trying to get his best friend to fall in love with him from the author of Three Day Summer.

Peter Parker and Gwen Stacy…
Archie and Veronica…
Althena and Noth…
…Graham and Roxy?

Graham met his best friend, Roxana, when he moved into her neighborhood eight years ago, and she asked him which Hogwarts house he’d be sorted into. Graham has been in love with her ever since.

SCROLL TO KEEP READING THIS POST

ADVERTISEMENT

ADVERTISEMENT

But now they’re sixteen, still neighbors, still best friends. And Graham and Roxy share more than ever—moving on from their Harry Potter obsession to a serious love of comic books.

When Graham learns that the creator of their favorite comic, The Chronicles of Althena, is making a rare appearance at this year’s New York Comic Con, he knows he must score tickets. And the event inspires Graham to come up with the perfect plan to tell Roxy how he really feels about her. He’s got three days to woo his best friend at the coolest, kookiest con full of superheroes and supervillains. But no one at a comic book convention is who they appear to be…even Roxy. And Graham is starting to realize fictional love stories are way less complicated than real-life ones.

 

Amanda’s thoughts

Things that drew me to this book: Great cover. Great title. Interesting summary. I liked Tash’s Three Day Summer. And I’m a sucker for books that take place either all in one place/day or in a tiny period of time. I’ve been DNFing books like a maniac these days, but happily burned through this one in a few hours.

 

Graham and Roxy are headed to New York Comic Con. It’s the perfect place to finally confess his feelings to her. They’ve been best friends for years. When they find out that reclusive comic creator Robert Zinc, a favorite of theirs, is going to appear, Graham sets his sites on getting tickets to that event, hoping it will help make the perfect weekend for Roxy. Roxy doubts she’ll be allowed to line-up overnight for tickets, chalking it up to her strict parents being “maximum Persian.” But no matter. Graham will go with Casey, his best guy friend, and get tickets. But things don’t go as planned—just the first of many things that don’t quite pan out how Graham had pictured them to. Roxy’s friend Felicia Obayashi tags along to comic con—Graham’s a little confused why she’s there, but another friend being along isn’t a big deal. What is a big deal is Roxy befriending a new person, Devin. Graham is appalled at the obvious attraction between Roxy and Devin, referring to him as a “tall British boy-shaped tumor.” Together, they all spend the con seeing panels, entering costume contests, going to signings, and meeting their idols. Graham is having a good time, but simmering in the background the whole time is his plan for confessing his love to Roxy. The added pressure of Devin being around makes him throw caution to the wind. It’s hard to guess if his confession will lead them to building something new or will destroy what they’ve had. 

 

This funny, quick read with a diverse cast of characters will appeal to fans of comics, fan fiction, fandoms, and geeks of all stripes. (Added bonus: Persian main character with many small mentions of things specific to her culture like language and food. Not sure I can name another Persian character in YA other than in Sara Farizan’s books.)

 

Review copy courtesy of the publisher and Edelweiss

ISBN-13: 9781481456531

Publisher: Simon & Schuster Books For Young Readers

Publication date: 06/14/2016

Filed under: Book Reviews

SHARE:

Read or Leave Comments
Comic ConFriendshipGeeksPersiansRelationships

About Amanda MacGregor

Amanda MacGregor works in an elementary library, loves dogs, and can be found on Twitter @CiteSomething.

ADVERTISEMENT

Related Posts

January 2023

Book Review: Play the Game by Charlene Allen

by Amanda MacGregor

January 2023

Book Review: The Davenports by Krystal Marquis

by Amanda MacGregor

January 2023

Post-It Note Reviews: A mayor dog, a bunch of Big Bads, a mobster, and more!

by Amanda MacGregor

January 2023

Book Review: The Roof Over Our Heads by Nicole Kronzer

by Amanda MacGregor

January 2023

Book Review: Lark & Kasim Start a Revolution by Kacen Callender

by Amanda MacGregor

ADVERTISEMENT

SLJ Blog Network

100 Scope Notes

Sydney Taylor Blog Tour: THE TOWER OF LIFE by Chana Stiefel and Susan Gal

by Travis Jonker

A Fuse #8 Production

Abecedarian Movement and Dance: A Q&A with Corinna Luyken About ABC and You and Me!

by Betsy Bird

Good Comics for Kids

Haley Newsome on Unfamiliar | Interview

by J. Caleb Mozzocco

Heavy Medal

What’s Coming in 2023, A Feedback Poll, and Goodbye for Now…

by Steven Engelfried

Teen Librarian Toolbox

Writing Trans Joy in Spite of Everything, a guest post by Edward Underhill

by Amanda MacGregor

The Classroom Bookshelf

The Classroom Bookshelf is Moving

by Erika Thulin Dawes

The Yarn

A Book 25 Years in the Making: Marla Frazee Visits The Yarn

by Travis Jonker

ADVERTISEMENT

Related Articles on SLJ

Underdog Titles That Could Take the Prize | Pondering Printz

Glorious Bodies: Body Acceptance and Self-Love in Books for Teens | Great Books

8 Pitch-Perfect Manga for Music-Loving Teens | Mondo Manga

18 Novels for Teens That Blow the Dust Off History | Summer Reading 2021

17 Side-Splitting Teen Titles | Summer Reading 2021

Commenting for all posts is disabled after 30 days.

ADVERTISEMENT

Archives

Follow This Blog

Enter your email address below to receive notifications of new blog posts by email.

This coverage is free for all visitors. Your support makes this possible.

This coverage is free for all visitors. Your support makes this possible.

Primary Sidebar

  • News & Features
  • Reviews+
  • Technology
  • School Libraries
  • Public Libraries
  • Age Level
  • Ideas
  • Blogs
  • Classroom
  • Diversity
  • People
  • Job Zone

Reviews+

  • Book Lists
  • Best Books
  • Media
  • Reference
  • Series Made Simple
  • Tech
  • Review for SLJ
  • Review Submissions

SLJ Blog Network

  • 100 Scope Notes
  • A Fuse #8 Production
  • Good Comics for Kids
  • Heavy Medal
  • Neverending Search
  • Teen Librarian Toolbox
  • The Classroom Bookshelf
  • The Yarn

Resources

  • 2022 Youth Media Awards
  • The Newbery at 100: SLJ Celebrates the 100th Anniversary of the Award
  • Special Report | School Libraries 2021
  • Summer Reading 2021
  • Series Made Simple Spring 2021
  • SLJ Diverse Books Survey
  • Summer Programming Survey
  • Research
  • White Papers / Case Studies
  • School Librarian of the Year
  • Mathical Book Prize Collection Development Awards
  • Librarian/Teacher Collaboration Award

Events & PD

  • In-Person Events
  • Online Courses
  • Virtual Events
  • Webcasts
  • About Us
  • Contact Us
  • Advertise
  • Subscribe
  • Media Inquiries
  • Newsletter Sign Up
  • Content Submissions
  • Data Privacy
  • Terms of Use
  • Terms of Sale
  • FAQs
  • Diversity Policy
  • Careers at MSI


COPYRIGHT © 2023


COPYRIGHT © 2023