This was a very smooth read, i.e. I opened the cover, less than three hours passed, and I closed the cover. In between, I Fell into a great reading experience of alternating chapters, Rob, then Maegan. Both are dealing with crises/fallout mostly beyond their control. For her, it's the reality that her extremely successful older sister is home on break from college and dealing (not terribly well) with being pregnant. For Rob, it's the constant reminder of his father's theft of investments from people who couldn't afford to lose anything. When things got ugly, his dad tried killing himself, but failed and now sits in a wheelchair, with a feeding tube and unresponsive.
When they're partnered for a school project, neither wants anything to do with the other, but we all know how that goes.
Factor in bullies, a very cool outcast boy whose mom was a victim of the investment thefts, increasing attraction between Maegan and Rob, not to mention interesting conclusions to both their stressful situations, and you can see why this book pulled me in so easily. ( )

CW: father attempts to kill himself with a gun however it blows away part of his head and he is left with severe long term injuries and needs constant care. His son found him after and there are descriptions of the bloody injury and scene, alcohol, inappropriate adult/young person relationships, affair, talk of abortion, excessive drinking

Well that was an intense and emotional story!

I actually found it hard to put this one down because of how engaged I was with the characters' stories. Rob was the golden boy until his father's actions tore his world apart. Now he is an isolate counting down the days until he can leave school and his lonely existence. He meets Meagan through a school assignment and together the begin to learn about the struggles each of them faces. I thought Owen was a brilliant supporting character. One thing Brigid does incredibly well, is friendships. They are so relatable and her characters feel real and easy to connect to. This will be for seniors due to one content warning in particular. I really enjoyed this engaging and heartfelt story about looking past what you see on the surface, and the importance of understanding other people's perspectives. ( )

I usually try to avoid Contemporary, because good Contemporary fiction always ends up making me cry. But Brigid Kemmerer wrote this one so I just had to read it. Kemmerer paints such a vivid picture of what it's like to a be a High Schooler that it brought back all my horrible High School memories. I hated High School. Emotions are so real in this story, and by real I mean not described in flowery detail, but in basic and deeply relatable terms.

Come read the rest of my review on my blog!

https://deesreadingtree.home.blog/2019/06/24/call-it-what-you-want/ ( )

I have enjoyed previous Brigid Kemmerer books, but I never fell in love with them. Until now! I went into this one not expecting much and ended up really loving it.

This story deals with so many serious issues. Be aware there are triggers for infidelity, suicide, cheating scandals, lost friendships, forgiveness, pregnancy issues, and more. I think some books throw in so many issues that they are lost or just overwhelming within the story. Even with everything that is tackled within this story, I never felt like that. The author did a great job intertwining them all and making them all work together.

Overall, I really enjoyed this one! ( )

Literary Merit: Excellent
Characterization: Excellent
Recommended: Yes
Level: High School

I first discovered Brigid Kemmerer when I read A Curse So Dark and Lonely, and I've been a fan of her writing ever since. She has a very fluid writing style, and creates realistic characters that are easy to relate to and root for. I didn't realize when I first picked up this book that it was by the same author, but now I'm really glad I can say I've read more than one of Kemmerer's books. This novel took me on a fast-paced journey full of suspense, romance, friendship, and betrayal, and kept me on the edge of my seat wanting to know more with each page.

Call It What You Want switches back and forth between two points of view. First, we have Rob, a once popular athlete who has fallen on hard times after his dad was caught embezzling money from half of the town. As if his sudden treatment as a social pariah wasn't enough, Rob's dad attempted suicide shortly after, leaving him and his mother responsible for caring for an invalid with no ability to communicate. Maegan, on the other hand, was once a star student, but is universally hated by the rest of the school after she was caught cheating on her SATs, forcing everyone's scores to be scrapped. Her star athlete sister has also found herself in hot water, returning home from college to find herself pregnant with her English professor's baby. When the two unlikely teens are forced to work together for a class project, they begin to learn that not everything in life is entirely black and white.

I'll get the criticism out of the way first, as there honestly isn't that much I want to criticize. Even though I liked this book a lot, I have to admit that it did feel very trope-y at times. I can't even count the number of YA books I've read where two opposites are forced to work together on a class project (one that is rarely brought up again after the plot point is established), and end up falling for one another in the process. It's a bit too much like Twilight for my tastes, and I never want to read anything remotely like those books again. Secondly, while I was describing this book to a friend, she pointed out that it seemed very much like a soap opera in book form. Again, though I LOVED this book, I tend to have to agree with my friend. This novel covers a LOT of ground in a very short amount of time, from suicide to teen pregnancy and even LGBT issues. It certainly kept the plot going at a lightning fast momentum, though there were times where it almost felt like it was too much too quickly.

Now that the criticism is out of the way, let me discuss what I enjoyed about the story. Firstly, the amazingly realistic characters and message. Rob and Maegan not only feel like very real people, but people I can relate to and sympathize with despite the fact that their lives are nothing like mine. Like Maegan, I was a star student in constant fear of disappointing my parents. Like Rob, I also struggle with figuring out the right thing to do, and often blame myself for things that were't my fault. My heart broke for both of these teens, as they are defined by society based on either a single poor decision or someone else's actions.

The message, similarly, is realistic in that there really is no clear answer in the end. Rob and his new friend Owen convince themselves throughout the novel that stealing from the rich to give back to the poor is a good thing, but Owen's mom later reminds them that they, too, are judged based on what the world thinks they deserve. An example of this can be seen when Rob criticizes Owen's Xbox, wondering how someone who is poor can afford a game system but not lunch food every day. Meanwhile, the lunch lady judges Owen for spending his money in a way she deems to be unwise, despite the fact that she knows nothing about his circumstances. This logic is applied to Rob's seemingly innocent theft, as Owen's mom questions whether the pair of earrings he later steals might've been important to their owner. While I never thought twice about Rob's actions, this sentiment made me pause and wonder what gave me the right to decide how wealth is distributed.

The novel is full of ethical questions like this, never letting the reader become too comfortable with one answer or another. In truth, both sides are correct: stealing is wrong, but it's also wrong for people to go hungry and struggle while others skate by with disposable income. Similarly, Maegan understands that cheating is wrong, but did so out of a desire to please her parents and earn their respect the way her older sister had. Cheating was not the ethical choice, but Maegan also didn't deserve to be shunned and hated because of one bad decision. Even Rob's father, who swindled half of his clients out of their money, began his scheme with honest intentions, but nobody could argue that the outcome was the right result. What I love about this book is that it presents us with real-world questions that really don't have a right or wrong answer: it is, instead, the kind of book that makes us think about morality in a different way.

I absolutely loved the relationships in this book, from the main romantic pairing to the friendship between Connor and Rob. At first, Connor seems like a huge jerk, but you later find out that he's putting on a front to keep his dad from being physically and mentally abusive. Meanwhile, though Owen becomes a good friend to Rob, he promotes problematic behavior by encouraging Rob to steal from wealthy people he doesn't like because they "don't deserve the wealth." Rachel, Maegan's best friend, holds resentment for her because she views Maegan as "having everything," but treats Maegan and Rob badly instead of honestly communicating her feelings throughout the story. Once again, even the characters we aren't supposed to like are shown to have depth, and nobody is a one-note comic book villain. Similarly, characters we are meant to like don't always act entirely morally, making them seem much more human and realistic.

Another relationship I really loved was the sisterhood between Sam and Maegan. When Sam tries to wall herself off and distance herself from her family, Maegan steps in to remind her time and time again that she can be trusted, and only wants what's best for her. While I've never had a sister myself, I can remember feeling very similarly about my younger brother. There were times growing up when I absolutely hated him, and resented him for being my parents' favorite. If anything ever happened to him or anyone ever picked on him, however, I was the first person to come to his defense, as my love for him ran deeper than petty annoyances or jealousy. I get the same vibe from these two sisters, who have each others' backs and develop a really strong bond throughout the series. I think these types of realistic relationships are important for teenagers to see, as they show that no relationship is perfect, but the best ones rely on communication and a willingness to be vulnerable.

Though there isn't any sexual assault in this book, I would still be afraid to give it to any teen dealing with a teenage pregnancy, or a teen in a relationship with someone who is essentially grooming and taking advantage of them. While it could really help them identify the signs, I would worry that it might cause some post-traumatic stress or anxiety. If I thought a teen girl could handle it, however, I do think this book could be a positive example of teenage pregnancy, as Sam is able to overcome her fears and make the best decision for her life and body. What I appreciated about the pregnancy arc is that none of Sam's options are shamed; she considers adoption, abortion, and finally keeping the baby and raising it on her own, but for every step her family tries to be supportive and understanding. Nobody who learns about her secret judges her, and by the end of the novel she is doing well. This book gives teens who might be dealing with an unplanned pregnancy that there are options, and that it's okay to be scared and not know what to do all the time. It also teaches teens that they have options, and that deciding to keep their baby isn't going to instantly be a life-ruining event. I appreciated these perspectives, and was glad to see such a controversial subject portrayed in such a compassionate manner.

This book could also be triggering to those with suicidal thoughts, though it also does a great job of demonstrating the fallout from a suicide gone wrong. Rob and his mother constantly blame themselves for what happened to Rob's father, and are forced to care for him every single day because of his lapse in judgment. As Rob was the one to find his father after it happened, the book does not shy away from the gruesome details that accompany finding a loved one after a suicide attempt, and I think this is a good way to make teenagers think about the consequences before choosing to take their own lives. Rob is also encouraged to get counseling, and while I think it would've been a better message if he actually had instead of simply saying he had, I also believe this is sending a message to teens that there is always help and hope, and that suicide is not the answer to temporary problems. Like I said before, this book tackles a lot of issues at once, but I think they're all very important issues worthy of attention and discussion.

While there are a few plot holes in this book (they never discuss the project again, there are never consequences for revealing Sam's pregnancy at a party, etc.), I still found myself really enjoying it. The romance was sweet and believable, if a little contrived, and the characters felt like fully-fledged people who make mistakes and are flawed. I'll admit the ending felt a tad bit rushed (I wanted a more in-depth resolution to the many problems facing these characters), I attribute this to the fact that there was so much being covered that it was hard to neatly tie everything up without doubling the size of the book. Though flawed, I'm rating this book five stars because I found it both compelling and entertaining, and I think teens will really enjoy the suspense and fast-paced writing. Fans of romance and realistic fiction will love these characters, and I guarantee they'll be rapidly turning the page for more just like I was upon reading this book for the first time. ( )