The small town setting, the characters, the family dynamics, and the situations all feel authentic, and although the ending is a little wishful, it comes from the heart. When Jupiter, a new arrival in town, becomes a kind and thoughtful confidant and mentor for Mara, Mara’s confidence and understanding of her identity grows further, and she decides to change her plan. The author does a wonderful job of showing Mara’s journey from wanting to be one of the boys to being proud to be part of the Elkhorn Five even with the rest of the team’s growing hostility as the girls become local media stars. So Mara goes out for the football team and, after being reluctantly accepted, she’s horrified when four other girls are inspired to join, too. But then Mara punches one of her basketball teammates, and her coach tells her she’s off the team unless she can play another team sport without incident. It’s not easy being a closeted butch lesbian in a small conservative town in rural Oregon, but high school junior Mara has a plan: play basketball, get a scholarship, go to college, come out. What results is a coming-of-age story that is at once tear-jerking and funny, thought-provoking and real, as Mara’s preconceived notions about gender, sports, sexuality, and friendship are turned upside down.īritta Lundin's sophomore novel will give readers all the feels, and make them stand up and cheer.Lundin, Britta. Complicating matters is the fact that Valentina, Mara’s crush, is one of the new players, as is Carly, Mara’s nemesis―the girl Mara fought with when she was kicked off the basketball team. Now Mara’s lumped in as one of the girls―one of the girls who can’t throw, can’t kick, and doesn’t know a fullback from a linebacker. Inspired by what they see as Mara’s political statement, four other girls join the team. But joining the team sets off a chain of events in her small Oregon town―and within her family―that she never could have predicted. A lifelong football fan, Mara decides to hit the gridiron with her brother, Noah, and best friend, Quinn―and she turns out to be a natural. After getting kicked off the basketball team for a fight that was absolutely totally not her fault (okay maybe a little her fault), Mara is dying to find a new sport to play to prove to her coach that she can be a team player. “What do you think?”“I think it’s frickin’ genius,” he says.
But when I do stuff like this, I worry it gets harder for us all to ignore what’s right in front of us. We don’t talk about how Mara is gay but no one says so. We don’t talk about how Mara is different from other girls. AugNew / Young adults, Sapphic books, 4.5 stars, Butch / Femme, Enemies to lovers, Family, Homophobia, Sexism, Sports Review of Like Other Girls by Britta Lundin I loved this I had high hopes for this book but it was even better than I had expected. Even suggesting it feels like I’ve overstepped some kind of invisible line we’ve all agreed not to discuss. As soon as it’s out of my mouth, I feel stupid.
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