I had no idea this was the 4th in a series - The Pizza Chronicles - however it wasn't difficult to follow the storyline. This book navigates through their sophomore summer and deals with issues such as sexuality, family problems, and social pressure. What I love is the authors ability to capture the thoughts and emotions of teenagers in a realistic and relatable way. The book also tackles important themes such as self-acceptance, friendship, and diversity, which are all explored in a thoughtful and thought-provoking way.

Overall, "Why Can't Sophomore Summer Be Like Pizza?" is a well-written and engaging coming-of-age story that will resonate with anyone who has ever struggled with identity, relationships, and the pressures of growing up. It's a great read for young adults, but also has a universal appeal that will make it enjoyable for readers of all ages.

I absolutely loved this YA LGBTQ romance.

Such a great book with a solid storyline and great characters.

I eagerly look forward to reading more from this author.

A definite recommend

The 4th book in the Pizza Chronicles is probably my favourite so far - more emotional than before and with some darker undertones that really speak to my memories of growing up.

I am so grateful that Netgalley has given me the opportunity to read this book! I started without knowing that it was the fourth book of a series, I only found out after I did a little research on the author, however, this does not interfere in any way with the understanding of the story. This book is so much fun! I was able to identify with VR in so many ways, from the romance to the driving lesson's problems, I was delighted. I believe if I had read this when I was younger, it would have become one of my favorites.

First of all, I didn’t realize this was a 4th book of a series, The Pizza Chronicles; however, I had no problem following the storyline and honestly enjoyed the life of RV without fully knowing what had happened in the previous summer of school year.

As an immigrant and the oldest child myself, I related to RV and his struggles with his identity and the weird and awkward exchanges he has with his parents and his brother Ray. I was also a “late bloomer” in the romantic department and was terrified of driving, especially with my mom! His dad being very pushy on their driving practices to have some father-son bonding time and Ray being supportive yet annoying brother were both quite similar to my teenage life.

I enjoyed reading about the (romantic or platonic) relationships he had with both Matteo and Bobby. I can tell there was more history between RV and Bobby, and I will need to read the previous books in the series to figure out what had happened between them. But I can tell they they are more than just friends.

Having Matteo in RV’s life had let him grow a little this summer. Life is all about experiencing and learning. Not everything works out as you want it to be, but you still learn from that experience. I loved RV’s interaction with Mr. Aniso. Their friendship was so pure and needed in both of their lives, and knowing that they have each other made me happy inside.

Being confused at your own feelings and tying to figure yourself out are all parts of being in teens. I can’t say I want to be in RV’s shoes, again, but it was surely fun to have a glimpse of RV’s life with all the fun factors as a reader: Family conflicts, identity crisis, confusing friendship/relationship, summer job experiences, etc.

This was an absolutely delight read, especially for the summer time. It will definitely bring you back to your high school time when you were also an RV.

Thank you to Netgalley and NineStar Press for giving me an ARC in exchange for my honest review.

Thank you to netgalley for giving me an arc in exchange for an honest review!
I wasn’t a fan of this book. I think it was mostly me, though, since I haven’t read anything else in the series. Because of that, I didn’t connect with any characters, nor did I understand references being made to characters that weren’t properly introduced. It was a bit confusing to read. I think that in the future I’ll make sure to read the others in the series. Other than that, the story wasn’t my speed. It seemed to go by a bit slow, and a few parts were pretty drawn out when they didn’t seem important to the storyline at all. This story didn’t really draw me in. Not bad, but just not my type of story!

thank you netgalley for providing an arc in exchange for a review

why can't sophomore summer be like pizza is the 4th book in this serie, but it's possible to read it without reading the previous ones.

It's a nice story about being a teenager, relatable. It touches a lot of topics : friendships, being a gay teen, family, first job. A lot of teens will be able to relate !

This is the fourth 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 previous books.

Arvydas "RV" is the eldest son of Lithuanian ex-pat citizens and living a middle class life in Boston. RV's parents have worked hard for their modest American existence; it's not exactly the American Dream they had envisioned upon emigration. RV has a younger brother Ray who is more outgoing and popular--he's got a steady girlfirend and regularly challenges their parents on their conservative beliefs. In contrast, RV is very non-confrontational, and hides pretty much all of his feelings, all of the time. This is especially true about his sexuality, which RV is pretty sure that he's gay. He did have a girlfriend, Carole, and he like the physical things they did, but his responses are away more intense when he's with or near a boy he likes. One of these people is Bobby, who was his boyfriend--until he'd had a catastrophic concussion playing football and he's been struggling to recover since.


It's the beginning of summer and RV has a new job as an usher at a multiplex--which means doing whatever is necessary in the theaters, like clean up, ticket taking, and telling customers to behave when they are unruly. He meets Matteo there, and Matteo is a bit of a kindred spirit. He's about the same age, and has gay or bisexual attraction. Casual attention seems to bloom into more, leaving RV both excited and guilty. Bobby is not really acting like a boyfriend, but he still wants RV to visit him at home and help with his recovery exercises. It's tenuous and troubling because Bobby's frustration with his physicians and condition is high and he's sometimes angry with everyone that he's so injured. He wants to recover and get back to football by the end of summer, no matter how dangerous or unrealistic this sounds. In truth, I felt his parents were problems here, for not being honest or realistic with Bobby, allowing him to hope for something that was never to be. And, it upset RV too, to see Bobby so determined, and be so scared for him.


During the summer RV connects with people that had been important in previous stories:  Carole, Mark, the S-head cousins, Mr. Aniso, even Joe the pizza guy. They provide support and struggle for RV to work with and against. Like Carole gets RV to have some fun tours with her boyfriend Guillome. And, Mark gets him thinking about whether gayness could, or should, be cured. Mr. Aniso and Joe are voices of reason and comfort, allowing RV to help them in turn. Even Ray, his argumentative brother, is a source of immense support, knowing RV's sexuality and loving him unconditionally--challenging him to come out to their parents, and supporting him through it.


As RV is learning growing up is about overcoming challenges, and building friendships that will stand the test of time. It's about loving yourself, and being your true self, whenever possible. RV has brushes with bullies in this one, those who pick on him for suspected gayness, and his levelheadedness and need to analyze the situation before acting sometimes aggravates the people around him. It was fun to watch RV practice driving with his dad, who is trying to build some type of rapport on common ground, except that RV is terrified of driving, and he's really bad, at first. RV's friends all consider him to be a pretty innocent kid, and he may be, but it's refreshing that he's not totally jaded.   


Like the previous books, this story hits a great balance between voice and action, with RV both narrating and living his experiences. I'm glad I've read this series through, and would be happy to keep riding along on RV's emotional and evocative journey. Highly recommend for readers who enjoy YA and tween LGBTQ stories.

I think the reason why I love the Pizza Chronicles so much is because RV is so “real”. Yeah, I know he’s a fictional character, but I think most of you know what I mean. He’s far from perfect – and he knows it.

His family is annoying, but he loves them regardless. And as frustrating as they may be, he knows he’s lucky to have them. He struggles with embracing his heritage, even though he understands it’s important to know where you came from. He’s confused about his feelings about a lot of things. The thing that really makes him “human” in my mind is that he has no desire to be “perfect” – he just wants to survive his high school years and not screw up too much on the way.

He’s also learning that a lot of those feelings that he’s having are normal and some of them don’t go away just because you’re an adult. His struggles with his relationship with Bobby was at times hard to read, but I was impressed with the way that RV handled himself. It wasn’t an easy situation – for anyone involved, including Bobby’s parents. Regardless of his confusion, he cared and sometimes that’s all you can do.

RV has grown a lot since this series began and he’s come to terms with a lot as well. He’s still got some learning to do, but he has a great support system. His parents may not understand him totally, but they obviously love him. He’s also got a strong sense of right and wrong. He has good friends and a couple of adults outside of his family that care about him as well. I’m hoping that the Pizza Chronicles continue, but I’m already impressed with the young man that RV is growing into.

Why Can’t Sophomore Summer Be Like Pizza? by Andy V. Roamer

Why Can’t Sophomore Summer Be Like Pizza? Is a young adult, romance story with LGBTQIA+ themes that picks up from the events of Why Can't Relationships Be Like Pizza?

Growing up isn’t easy for the best of us. You have expectations to live up to – set by yourself, family, friends, work, and pretty much everyone around you. Which are only complicated more by the empathy that comes as you grow up and the fact, you’re still trying to understand who you are in this confuddling world. So, it helps when you’ve got others to rely on and support you through the awkward times – even if they are a thousand miles away.

It’s the start of sophomore summer and Arvydas or RV is about to find out that new adventures create even more challenges. RV’s new adventures see him take on a new job at a multiplex, learning to drive, and opening himself up to a new relationship. All while his friends face their own summer of adventures and challenges.
Roamer weaves together opportunities and challenges effortlessly to create tension and misunderstanding that is believable and draws empathy from the reader. Roamer allows the reader to understand the intimate thoughts and feelings of RV as they happen and as they evolve through RV’s desire to grow up into a well-rounded young adult.

Roamer doesn’t shy away from creating a character flawed and aware of it. In fact, it is RV’s awareness of his flaws that push him to become a better person who admits their mistakes and tries to understand the impact of their actions on others.

Why Can’t Sophomore Summer Be Like Pizza? is a must-read for fans of The Pizza Chronicles and newcomers to the series. You can either pick up from the start or start from here – Roamer writes in a way that you can pick up any book in the series and start reading.

This book was so refreshingly simple and complex at the same time.
It was complex in the things the MC went through. Emotional twists and turns as he navigated his best friends depression and injury and as he came to terms with his sexuality and was confused in who he had feelings for. For me, I found his relationship with Bobby resonated the most. The MC's reflection about their relationship and interactions and the before and after of his injury hit deep. I often at times had no idea where their relationship was going to go, and I still don't, but it added a depth to the novel and the MC's character. He had much emotional fiber standing by and figuring out his relationship with Bobby.
The writing and little insights and emotions were simple and more relatable. His struggles and fears while learning how to drive, or looking at novels on his summer reading list, were all things of one's childhood most people should be able to connect with. It lightened up the heavy moments of this read with its levity. There was also a bunch of humor, like when his father walked in on him masturbating, or even in how he referred to masturbating.
Overall, I really liked this book.