While I haven't read the original book this graphic novel is based on, I still absolutely loved this! It was so diverse and inclusive, and unapologetically queer, and filled with BIPOC and WOC.
I loved Juliet, and just wanted the best for her and wanted her to break up with her shitty girlfriend and wanted her family to accept her. What an amazing and well rounded and fun protagonist.
And now the novel is going straight onto the top of my TBR.

First. I haven’t read the novel so I don’t know if this edition is accurate it nevertheless I enjoyed this book. And this is the first QBIPOC (correct me if I’m wrong with it 🙈). The artwork is just so pretty, I love it so much.

This is such a lovely graphic novel. I enjoyed accompanying Juliet as she comes out as gay. Like Juliet, who knows nothing of it, I learned so many things that I didn’t know as I go on the story.

This book covers not just being queer, a coming out, but also being a feminist and also the racism. Being able to stand, recover, acceptance. I love how her character developed towards and also her new look ❣️.

Overall this is really good read. I do really this book. Just a heads up, some parts might be triggering. Enjoy ❣️.

I had not read the novel that inspired this adaptation, so I came into this story with no expectations except the ones built from reading the book's blurb. Juliet was such a delightful character, and I was mainly sad when I reached the end of the graphic novel that I could no longer spend more time with her. Her characterization, along with the full cast of side characters, were all quite strong and most of them read as their own individuals. I like that Juliet did not come across as fully grounded or formed in her feminism or inner power, if anything her journey was fully engaging with what does feminism mean to her and if that title even allows for her to be included in its community. Despite these themes that the graphic novel grapples with, I didn't think it was weighed down by them and it is fully capable of keeping the attention of teens and adults alike.

The art for this graphic novel was perfect for this story. A wonderful marriage between illustrations and text that I wish Gabby Rivera and Celia Moscote will team up again for another graphic novel.

3.5 stars rounded up.

Juliet Takes a Breath follows the title character on her journey of self discovery and self acceptance. The book does an amazing job at POC representation, as well as a lot of LGBTQ+ representation, which i feel is so important!

Some of the illustrations were more graphic than I had anticipated they'd be, so I was a little caught off guard there, but overall the illustrations were done very well.

Id be interested to see how the graphic novel compares to the full length book. While the graphic novel was good at a solid 3.5, I feel like the full length story would be more compelling.

I love comics and graphic novels, one about a Queer, brown, latina? The moment I saw this, I jumped at the chance to read it. I've had the original novel on my radar for a while but haven't gotten around to read it so I can't compare between the two, but I don't think is necessary. I believe every format adds something to a story and can be an avenue for different people to find the work. With Gabby Rivera's experience writing for Marvel's America it only makes sense to offer Juliet Takes a Breath as a graphic novel, and I'm glad they do.


There' are a lot of things to like about this work. Juliet is an outstanding main character, and one we don't see enough. I particularly enjoyed her relationship with her family, it felt real to me as a latina. The fear of telling your family, the pain when you are not fully accepted, but finally coming to a "happy ending" a place of acceptance and understanding felt very real to me and reminded me of my own relationship with my mom at times.

We also see her explore and learn more about feminism, intersectionality, queerness, heartbreak, love and sex. Is a full journey, and we are happy to accompany Juliet all the way.

Visually is a beautiful book. There are a couple images that will forever stay in my brain. The depictions of Juliet naked are beautiful, when she cuts her hair and we see her transform outwardly but also internally in one frame. Outstanding coming-of-age story.

I have to admit, at times I found the way they presented the storylines a little simple. Some topics they were dealing with could have benefitted from a format where they could go more in depth, I assume the novel does, but for a first approximation to them, it works. It opens the conversation.

I received an ARC from NetGalley for an honest review.

*reviewed from uncorrected egalley ~ netgalley*

teen/adult graphic fiction (queer, Black, Puerto-Rican American from the Bronx accepts an internship with prominent "white lady feminist" in Portland)

I didn't know anything about the story when I picked this up (was just happy to see a curvy queer POC featured prominently on the cover), so I was a bit surprised by the *extra*-ness of the feminism--if the title of Harlowe's book makes you more than a little uncomfortable, it is very possible you will find some of the content "offensive." But I think that shaking people up a little is a good thing, and the effect is refreshingly proud and positive, even humorous.

while this book doesn't teach any specifics about LGBTQAI+ topics (or intersectionality/race issues), it does mention concepts of non-binary gender, poly love, etc., and helpfully provides some vocabulary for readers to follow up on, whether they are queer/questioning or hoping to become a better-informed ally.
Also recommended: Hood Feminism: Notes from the Women That a Movement Forgot.

The moment I saw the very first page of this graphic novel, I had tears in my eyes. Because I had never seen a fat, brown, queer girl look so freaking beautiful. It was my source of joy for the entire novel, I couldn’t take my eyes off of Juliet’s character art because she was just so, so pretty and I wanted to hold her in my mind’s eyes forever and never let go. If it’s not abundantly clear, I really loved the art style. It was everything I would have wanted from a graphic novel adaptation of Juliet and more.

The story, although quite similar to the novel, changed certain character arcs which took away from the original story and oversimplified some things too much for my taste; which is to be expected for the sake of the format. However, I still enjoyed the graphic novel for a multitude of reasons and have tried to be objective in my rating and separate it from the original novel as much as possible.

I loved this novel when I first read it years ago, and have been yelling about it ever since. I couldn’t believe my good fortune when I saw a graphic novel adaptation on NetGalley! I did get a little nervous, because adaptations of beloved things can be tricky if they don’t life up to expectations - but I shouldn’t have wasted the energy, because this is BRILLIANT and I whole-heartedly loved it. The art is gorgeous - the color palette was just so luscious. This coming of age story just captures something so perfect and real.

Quite simply amazing! I have never read the novel this graphic novel was adapted from, but I 100% will be now. It's political, affirming, powerful, and challenging. A+, must read, must buy

Wow. Wow. Wow.

This book has it all! The parts I enjoyed the most were the educational sections.

A definite for anyone who loves graphic novels or is interesting in learning more about POC

5/5.

*reminds self that 3.5 stars is still a good rating and I shouldn't feel bad*

I wanted to adore this as much as most of my friends adore this and/or the original full novel version of the story, but I really thought it was just alright. While I adored the conversation on queerness and on being QBIPOC, and how different that experience is from a white queer person's experience, I found the plot rather meandering and boring. The art is really pretty, though, and I think this graphic novel will be PERFECT for so many readers! It might not have been the ideal fit for me, but I still enjoyed it enough and thought it was an important enough story (including the points made for us white queer folks who frequently don't get it right when allying with our QBIPOC loved ones) to round up to 4 for Goodreads' sake.

Thank you so much to the publisher for providing me with this review copy in exchange for an honest review!

Juliet Takes a Breath is a novel, but this was an Graphic Novel adaptation of said novel.
I read the novel years ago, but since I'm an old lady, my memory isn't that great and I didn't remember it all that well.
This graphic novel really gave me back my memories while still being a fully new experience. I loved the drawings, the art, it was all so perfect. The story was just as good as the first time around. I really liked the main character and her journey.
Often, when I read graphic novels, since it doesn't take me long to read them, I feel like the characters aren't fully develop and I can't care as much about them. This wasn't the case here. Not at all. I was enthralled from beginning to end.
Really an amazing book.
You should read it.

Thanks to the publishers for sharing this one. I really enjoyed it. It was refreshing and wholesome and the art was gorgeous. My full review appears on Weekend Notes.

I was a huge fan of the novel version, so I was super excited that there was now a graphic novel version! The illustrations were gorgeous and added a lot to the story and characters. My only issue was that there were a few scenes/conversations I felt like were missing from the original book, but I understand if everything couldn't be fit into the graphic version. I think this version might actually better for younger readers even more than the original! Overall, still loved the story and think it's an important read for a lot of people. Honestly, would love to see a follow up novel of Juliet post college and seeing all she has learned and what she has become! Loved this read. Thank you so much for the opportunity to read this ARC!

I would like to thank for the ARC of this book which was kindly provided by the publisher via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

I have not read the novel this comic is based on, but I still wanted to read this comic! I really enjoyed reading Juliet's story of finding herself. She knows she's a lesbian, but that's it. She's not 100% confident, and she works her way to there. She learns and grows, and it was really beautiful to see and rad. I think it's a lesson for all of us. There's so much more in this world that we aught to know and understand. It's okay to grow and change!

⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️.5

“Still, like I said, I got a big secret. One I can’t keep any longer. I just hope I don’t ruin everything. And that the family I love so much... doesn’t disown me.”

[Received a free copy from Netgalley for an honest review]

Juliet, a Latinx Lesbian, finally comes out to her family right before she leaves for an internship to work under Harlowe, a feminist white lesbian author, in Oregon that Juliet idolizes since she’s been reading her book, “Raging Flower: Empowering your Pussy by Empowering your Mind.”

This book is about Juliet discovering/understanding her own identity and exploring her sexuality as she educates herself on powerful women and as her new QPOC friends educates her on queer theory. This is very woman empowering and empowering for QPOC readers. This book also goes over themes that different QPOC women go through. From attempted rape, to lesbophobia, to racism.

On the bright side, it’s nice to see that Juliet does have a lot of people who still love and care for who she is though. I love her sibling relationship with her little brother Melvin, it’s so sweet. Also!! I’m so happy to see that Juliet is a fat main character in the graphic novel!! As someone who is also fat and a fat feminist, I love how Gabby Rivera and Celia Moscole made sure that they portrayed how beautiful fat women’s body proportions are throughout the graphic novel. There’s not many books that has a fat main character so I really loved seeing how Moscole has beautifully drawn Juliet!

While there were some occasions that I felt that the Juliet Takes a Breath is taking maybe too much of a strong turn to emphasize their point or how there’s certain parts I was a little uncomfortable with, I understand that many QPOC feels that way. I’ll let you be the judge of that when you read this. Overall, this was a nice read and I enjoyed it. If you want to read something with a fat Lesbian Latinx who discovers herself through self-love and learning about queer theory from other QPOC characters, then this novel is for you.

*I am reviewing this as someone who did not read the original novel.*

A beautifully crafted story about finding yourself, learning to love yourself, and standing up for youself.

I loved Juliet so much. I laughed with her and I cried with her. As a queer Puerto Rican from NY, I cannot begin to say how much this her story meant to me. I related to Juliet so much. I saw myself in her as she learned about feminism and struggled with how "white" it initially felt, and in her journey to find her place in the LGBT+ community. I am so happy to see how much more empowered she gets and how she grows by the end of the book.

I loved the art style. I thought the mostly warm color pallette was simple at times, but still appealing. It's so amazing that in graphic novel format we actually see so many curvy, lively, gorgeous queer people of color just jumping off of the page in all their glory. Plus, I thought it was a brilliant touch that Lainie was drawn pale and in blue tones to foreshadow her "ghosting" Juliet.

This book touches on a lot of topics, feminism, white feminism, lesbian identities, queer identities, the process of coming out (especially when you come from a conservative and ethnic background), romance, heartbreak, as well as female body image. That's a lot to pack into a fairly short graphic novel! While some points could have been elaborated on more, I think Rivera did a good job and it holds together nicely.

I cannot wait to purchase copies for myself and for my queer younger cousin!

Thank you to Netgalley and BOOM! Box for the ARC in exchange for an honest review!

As I always say I am not an own voice here so please go check out own voices reviews. I may be a lesbian but I am not a poc so please go check out those reviews first.
I read the original novel this graphic was based on back when it first came out and I loved the novel so of course I had to check out this. I knew the story would be the same so my rating is really based on the art and how bits chosen best reflected the novel.
The art was beautiful in so many ways. I love seeing books where the main character is not the same skinny white girl we see in most books. The way Juliet was drawn especially brought a smile to my face. All of the characters looked perfect to be honest but as a plus size girl I loved seeing her owning her body. I also love some of the more artistic touches done during certain more emotionally scenes. Using not just facile expressions but also background to really convey the emotions Juliet was feeling.
I really enjoyed how this managed to be condensed but also had all of the most important scenes. Seeing them visually was such a rich experience. I felt let I was really soaking in the story this way. Honestly this was just a fantastic graphic novel both as a visual for an equally fantastic book and as just a stand alone for those who may not read a full novel.

I'm so glad to say that I loved the graphic novel even more than the book. My first thought after reading the book was, why are people so judgemental and racist? And also I thought that help was everywhere for Juliet, right there in her family, I didn't understand why she didn't just ask them.
Reading the graphic novel makes sense now, the circumstances an the illustrations have been beautifully illustrated and that just took my breath away (ironic with the title, I know).

The characters looked so much like how I imagined them to be and that was a added comfort. I loved the landscape illustrations and also the tiny details from the very hair colours to the lip colours everything wad splendid. I still don't like the ending of the story but this graphic novel covered just the lengthy end by a few well done events and that is decent work.

I really liked the fact that it felt like reading the original book in a efficient way with all the important elements which was a comfort read.
Thankyou netgalley for the review copy and I really liked reading it. It felt like a trip down the memory lane. #netgalley #JulietTakesABreath

it was a really good book. i didn't read the novel ,and i thought this was it but when i opened it ,wow surprise. it helped me with my reading slump.