How Could You

This was delightful! It was cute and ugly and real all at the same time. The art was beautiful, and as someone who was (and is) queer in college, and part of a queer friend group, the highs and lows of this are so realistic. I loved the representation in this and I would totally recommend it as a good and super quick read.

Thank you for sending me this advanced reader copy. I loved How Could You, it was such an easy read and I felt like I understood the characters in the short amount of time I spent with them. I would love to see another story in the same style as this one from Strapp. Thank you again.

I adored this graphic novel, the characters felt so real each one was unique and the art was eyecatching and expressed so much emotion. I highly recomend everyone gives this book a read becasue I loved this coming of age story!

A lovely, messy, sometimes painful but always hopeful little graphic novel.

I really appreciated the themes of growth and redemption, change and boundaries. I really nuanced look at the young queer experience.

The art style was very cute and evocative, but occasionally the lack of differentiation in face shapes made it hard to tell who was who, especially when characters suddenly changed key aspects of their appearance, like hair.

I really enjoyed this and was surprised how easy it was to get invested in the characters in such a short time. The ending was well done; a little open ended, and no wrongs were tied up in neat little bows to be hand waived away.

"Are we always going to suck?"

"I don't know. But I don't think we have to."

i adoreee this so much!! it shows the complexity of friendships and relationships especially when youre a lesbian.

I have been a follower of Ren Strapp's work for quite some time and I am happy to have seen them publish a full-length graphic novel. This one is the messiest dyke college drama, in which (almost) all characters are relatable and making mistakes and being in the wrong and yet you're on their side. And the reality check.

I appreciated having different perspectives and representation with Lou being nonbinary and using a cane, two butch lesbians in Molly and Lou, several queer women of color in Yona, Anjali and Jackie. It's also representative of the lesbian exchange of girlfriends in college, where everyone at some point has feeling for everyone.

I was compelled by the messy drama throughout this as a group of lesbian friends navigate the tricky world of romance on the verge of adulthood. The characters and situations were all relatable, which made me even more invested when they made mistakes.

How Could You is the debut graphic by Ren Strapp and follows the relationships of a group of queer women at college. I really enjoyed this story and the characters felt really tangibly clueless about how to navigate their feelings in the way that you do when you’re just starting out in life as a queer adult.

This book gave me similar vibes to Mimosa by Archie Bongiovanni, with a more new adult spin, although realistically it reads more Laura Dean Keeps Breaking Up With Me but every single character is Laura Dean.

Some reviewers have been turned off by how messy or unlikeable many of the characters are, but for me that is what young queer relationships are like - too many feelings and no brakes; in a world that feels so tiny and yet so vast compared to years of not understanding yourself. I was charmed, your mileage may vary.

Strapp’s character designs and layouts also really shine here - the beats that really embraced whimsy and cartoonish breaks in the form really added a sense of levity to this story of heavy emotions.

This graphic novel is delivered in a very cute art style which reminds me of Heartstopper. I loved the characters in the novel and how it depicted the issues young people have in college in relation to relationships and sexual orientation. I would love to see a follow up for this to see where the characters go in the next year.

This was just 200 pages of pure dyke drama and I am here for it. I loved the illustrations and generally had a lot of fun reading this graphic novel. It was fast-paced and very immersive. I did find that there was a bit too much going on for a story this short, with many interesting characters and plot points that felt like they could have been explored more thoroughly. Overall, this was a solid debut from Ren Strapp, who I have been following for a while, and I would definitely be eager to pick up anything she publishes in the future.

I really thought this book was really cool! You never see any graphic novels about young adults in college above freshman year. Maybe sophomore year. New adult novels in the graphic novel format are hard to come by. This is actually I feel some customers are looking for. Yes, the characters were very very flawed, but I definitely would love a sequel on Lou or a redemption arc. I know this is classified as New Adult, but I think it would shelve better in the YA graphic novel section.

A shining example of a graphic novel for adults with complex relationship storylines and topics. Strapp uses color and layout to convey the deep, yet changing feelings of the characters as their stories evolve. The backmatter at the end regarding Strapp's process is insightful. Well worth the read.

hi hello i loved this:)

the way the characters discover their own identities and also learn to navigate heartbreak and break ups (both friend and romantic) is so raw and real. i felt seen in these pages.

i also cried so take that into account.

Thank you to NetGalley and Oni Press for a free digital ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review.
This book was so MESSY and GAY. I've never read something that so succinctly captures the experience of every lesbian in an isolated area knowing each other and having canoodled in some way or another. I feel like I was just whispering "oh my god, please stop" for the entirety of this book, but I also could not tear my eyes away. Some of these girls need a time out, I swear to god. The art style is so delectable, which could be to blame for me not giving myself a break from this stress! All of that to say, this book was also incredibly hilarious and messy, and I had a great time reading it.
I haven't seen such creative use of panels and bleeds and layering and breaking the walls of panels since reading the manga Our Dreams at Dusk, and I adored how visually stunning it was. One scene that really entranced me was when Molly was running while crying--just so fucking cool. The author's choice of color was so playful and bold, and I was just in awe. I loved that the author included a little bonus explanation behind their choice of color in this book. This is the messy lesbian rep we need!!! 5 stars, no notes.

How Could You follows (and I say this affectionately) some messy ahh b!tches, and we love that for them. A fragmented story, one half follows Molly and Lou through college while the other follows their ex-girlfriends, who appear to be cosying up together in the City of Loooove on their semester-abroad. If you tried to connect all the characters in this book with string on a pinboard, you would tie yourself in knots, making for a complex and interconnecting story where no one can sneeze without it causing a breakup, a hook-up, or a bust up. Objectively, the stakes aren't super high, but it will bring you right back to that coming-of-age point in your life where the relationship tension is taut enough to strum a jaunty tune on.

The main POV characters are kind of unlikeable, so if you're a person who wants someone to root for in a book, that may be an issue. Personally, I loved it. There's something really cathartic about reading a book where people are kind of grim to one another, but in a way that feels relatable and not entirely irredeemable. It's also a great reminder that who you are in college...is probably not the greatest person. But that's okay, because everyone is still finding their feet, exploring their identity, and just trying to get by. All we can do is try to minimise the collateral damage we cause.

This book is a must-read for people who enjoyed Laura Dean Keeps Breaking Up with Me, Loveless, and The Impending Blindness of Billie Scott.

I adored the art and colours. The little drawing of food were delicious. Marseille! The parties!

There was a lot of tenderness and an unbelievable amount of messiness, but in a fun way. The story gets a little hard to follow at times, and I'd hoped for a more satisfying resolution, but overall it was lovely. Lou is a precious baby <3



Thank you Netgalley for providing digital advanced copy in exchange for honest review.

This book made me feel like I was 20 again. The messy characters were so real, and were written so well that I feel as if I knew them in school. This book and it's beautiful graphics teleport you back into the confusion of being 20 and desperately grasping at love.

I really enjoyed the relentless messiness of the this graphic novel. It felt very real, and I love that everyone didn't neatly resolve all of the conflict to be bffs at the end. The art was gorgeous as well.

This was such a great graphic novel - I loved the art style. I found that the characters came across really realistically, with a great mix of personalities and styles. I loved that this was set at college rather than having more of a high school feel to it. A great, quick read, perfect for young adults!

I enjoyed this graphic novel a lot, the artwork was cute and cozy. The characters were realistic for me and behaved like human beings who make mistakes. I liked that this graphic novel showed there are consequences for the actions they took. The romances were amazing to read about too!