2.75 stars.
This was the second book in the series and I still do not like the diary-feel of the book. It made it hard to follow the story. It was sort of okay, but it did not make me wanna read the next book in the series that comes. RV was sort of okay, but the book still lacks the drag-in feel and make me enjoy it. It was not much better than the first one.

RV, having successfully completed his freshman year at the demanding Boston Latin School, is hoping for a great summer.

Bobby, too, has pressures. He spends part of the summer away at football camp, and his father pushes him to work a summer job at a friend’s accounting firm.

The book is as interesting as the title is! I liked the characters, but the plot could have been better.

Thank you NetGalley for an advance reader copy.

I really enjoyed reading this book, it was such a fun young adult read and I'd definitely recommend it.

This was a hit and a miss. Although I did like the first book and wanted to love this one it fell kind of flat for me. It was missing the spark that book one had. I ended up finishing this one but should have DNFed.

I have received this ARC from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

Without knowing beforehand that Why Can't Freshman Summer Be Like Pizza? is the second book in the pizza chronicles, I will admit that I wasn't lost once. Maybe it's because this series could be read out of order but who knows? I guess I will have to dive into the first book to let you all know.

In it, you will meet RV and he is the oldest son in his family. After first meeting him, I didn't really know what to think. He was the oddball in his family and didn't really seem to connect with anyone. Especially his younger brother. I mean he does have Carole and Bobby but that's about it.

While being the nerd at school, RV is also going through some things and is trying to figure out his sexuality. Honestly, college is all about experimenting so I can see how he's trying to figure out if he's gay or bi. Heck, he could be anything his heart desires - same for Bobby.

In the end, this book dove into such deep and meaningful topics. Definitely enjoyed this and look forward to my next book. Possibly the first one?

And RV’s saga continues. Summer is supposed to be a time to relax, have fun, spend time with friends and forget about the pressure of school. It didn’t take long for RV to figure out that his summer plans weren’t going to happen. His best friend was off to Paris, his parents wanted him to spend the summer being responsible. Not exactly what a high schooler wants to hear when summer vacation is supposed to start. To make matters even worse, Bobby’s parents want him to spend the summer being responsible as well and he’s spending the rest of his summer at football camp. All of which leaves little time for RV and his summer plans. *sigh*

As with the first book in this series, the story pretty much takes place inside RV’s head. He’s a quirky, awkward sorta teen who worries about everything and tends to overthink things. I’m kind of enjoying getting to know him. He makes mistakes, like all teens are likely to do, but he means well and has a good heart. He also has the support of friends and he’s making new ones along the way. I think his family means well, but sometimes they frustrate me as much as they do RV.

I’m kind of hoping that there’s more to come in The Pizza Chronicles, because I’d love to get to know RV and his friends even better.

Thanks Net Galley for the preview!

I really struggled with this book. I didn't know it was a sequel but did not feel like I was missing background information. It seemed like RV is attempting to be a Holden Caulfield type but he comes off a little whiny. I also felt uncomfortable with his teacher relationship. The journal style was hard to connect with as well.

I honestly was not a huge fan of the writing in this book. While the journal style writing was something that made it easy to connect to main character, the writing itself was not very deep. I had not read the first book and I think that probably would have helped me fill in some of the context that was missing for me. I also kept waiting for something big to happen and just never got there. While the premise of the book was evident, it was just a somewhat boring read for me. I was provided with an ARC from NetGalley. All opinions are my own.

Ok, I confess, I didn't know it was a sequel... BUT I read it anyway and it was a very great novel. I was litterally laughing my ass off and RV is so moving and appealing, wonderful and relatable. At first I didn't understand everything since I didn't read the first book and then I was in it, I escape and read read read.
It talks about struggling with school, but also struggling with friendship, secrets, family and love. It talks about the struggle of being gay sometimes and coming out.
Little fun novel, very entertaining

I love the format or style of writing. It's easy to follow and we see how RV's manages his problems even if they're not the way he wants it to. I thought it was quite interesting that his little brother, Ray, chooses to be deviant in terms of drug usage. I hope that RV somehow manages to form a better relationship with his little brother. I'm also glad that there is an interracial gay couple, even though this is my first LGBTQ+ book series, it makes me glad that it exists. The representation and diversity is something I love about this book.

There need to be more YA books like this in this world. Not having read the first book in the series, I have already purchased it and can't wait to dive into it. This book tackles some of the more serious issues both of teenagers but the even more intricate challenges that LQBTQ teenagers often encounter. I loved both the diversity of characters and the diversity of issues that this book works through. This is a short quick read and not one to be missed.

I think this will be a very good book for young adults to have. I wish there had been more selections like this series when I was in high school. I would have liked to have more insight into the jocks as well as some of the more stereotypical unlikable characters.

This is the second book in a series and I'm going to sum up a bit of stuff that many be spoiler-y if you haven't read the first book.

Arvydas "RV" ...... (sorry I don't have the tenacity to write his last name) is the eldest son of Lithuanian ex-pats living on green cards in Boston. RV's parents have worked hard for their modest American existence; it's not the American Dream they had envisioned upon emigration. They are up for citizenship, if they can pass their tests, but RV's dad is a bit sour on the idea. RV also struggles to connect with his younger brother Ray, who seems like a "cool kid" while RV is an avowed dweeb and total book scholar.

It's the summer following RV's freshmen year at the prestigious Boston Latin School. RV is a real scholar and thinker, and he's a bit nerdy if he does say so himself. He struggles to fit into his Lithuanian role, and he doesn't fit in well at school. He has two good friends: Carole who was his first girlfriend, and Bobby who is somewhat of a boyfriend. Bobby had asked RV for tutoring help in the first book, but they both feel an attraction that leads to discussing their fluid sexuality. Bobby thinks he's gay, but he doesn't want ANYONE to know. RV struggles to understand his sexuality, but he's thinking he's gay because he's really generally attracted to men. He worked on these ideas while visiting his dear Latin teacher, Mr. Aniso in the hospital last winter. Mr. Aniso is clearly gay, and was brutally bashed one weekend. Their mentor-friendship has grown over the course of the summer when RV has felt more and more isolated. Carole is in Paris with her dad, a military man with a new appointment, and Bobby spends more and more time at football camp.

Bobby is black, Mr. Aniso is gay, and RV is the child of immigrants, and potentially gay--or bisexual. They each experience prejudice in their lives and RV documents this with the kind of unflinching honesty only a confused child can bring. Mr. Aniso and Bobby both agree that RV is innocent, but in different ways. Mr. Aniso affirms RV's goodness and willingness to see the best in people, and Bobby is a little on the pressuring side, willing to explore their sexuality in a way that's a bit too fast for Bobby.

I really liked the side characters here, even Ed, the garage and gas station owner that RV works for. Ed is without question the embodiment of white American male supremacy, but RV is able to talk to him in ways that diffuse his inherent racism. He's a product of his environment like many unacknowledged racists, and RV is able to shift his bigoted paradigm. RV also grows the strength to stand up for his family, and his feelings, once he figures out the depth of them.

This 15 year old's digital journal is the meat of the story, and RV's private thoughts really cut to the heart of racism and prejudice over several classes. In a time when there is heightened awareness of the institutional racism and racial inequity in America, RV's insight is a welcome call out for people to just be more human, and understand that their personal experiences does NOT invalidate the injustices experienced by others.

I adore RV and will follow him on his quest for truth, justice and the American experience. Trigger warning for incidences of gang behavior, teen drug use, and a shooting.

This was light on plot but covered a few different issues well, if not in depth. The writing style was interesting, and his was an overall engaging read with the biggest issue for me being a lack of proper resolution.

rv just turned 15 and can't wait to spend his summer with his friend bobby, who he has feelings for. together they're both questioning their sexualities. but of course, life gets in the way, and suddenly rv has a job and bobby's father wants him to go to football camp.

i have mixed feelings about this one. one thing i definitely loved was that bobby is black and he also calls rv out when he's saying problematic things. he also talks about the struggles his father had while searching for work being a black man in the us. moreover, rv is lithuanian and at home they speak their language and there's always an english translation included in the text, which i thought was great, because the author shows rv's heritage and doesn't exclude the reader with missing information at the same time.

nevertheless i had some issues: female and other non cis male characters were totally missing; phrases like 'girly girls' didn't sound feminst to me. the only characters that rv describes as 'fat' are his unlikeable employers; one of them often says racist stuff and actually owns a gun. only later in the book, rv somehow starts to like his employers, but it still made me uncomfortable that the only 'fat' characters were acting as the bad ones, it makes you wonder if there was any harmful intention behind that.. at last, there were a lot of american high school stereotypes interwoven in this story and as someone who grew up in germany, i just can't relate to that and at some point, the never ending portrayals of jocks having to act strong and 'manly' as bobby says, just started to annoy me. however, for anyone who is looking for an easy read for the beginning of pride month, why don't you give this a try yourself!

thanks to netgalley i received an early access digital review copy in exchange for an honest opinion!