Review by Booklist Review
Sixteen-year-old Isabel, who has trouble hearing others in noisy environments, feels like she also has trouble being heard all the time. An outcast in her own family and always a burden in her boyfriend's eyes, it hardly even feels like there's a place for her--until she accidentally wanders into a Chicago bar during a stand-up comedy open mic and, to her shock, finds herself on stage. Like any good comedy, this novel deals in truth. Like any great comedy, it also nails the difficult job of infusing nuance. Marked by Isabel's strong narrative voice, it walks a perfect balance between humor and serious observations about the world, the self, and confidence. Henry (Heretics Anonymous, 2018) rounds out her cast of characters with Isabel's new stand-up friends, a group of seemingly wise and free college students who have lives less rosy than they appear. It's much like the novel as a whole, which is thoughtfully complex yet accessible, achieving a realism that encourages reader introspection. Isabel becomes Izzy V. on stage to escape the challenging relationships in her life and invites readers along with her, bringing the world of stand-up to life. Perfect for fans of Lance Rubin's Crying Laughing (2019) and John Green's An Abundance of Katherines (2006).
From Booklist, Copyright (c) American Library Association. Used with permission.
Review by Publisher's Weekly Review
Sixteen-year-old Isabel Vance isn't the wallflower everyone assumes her to be. While avoiding her overbearing boyfriend one afternoon, she unwittingly walks into a Chicago comedy club, where she ends up performing at an open mic. The challenge proves liberating: "I realize it then, with equal terror and boundless relief: they don't know me.... So I can be anything I want." Isabel's improvised stand-up set doesn't exactly kill, but the teen, who has an auditory processing disorder, earns her first laughs--plus a trio of new friends. The catch? Her comedy chums think "Izzy V." is a 20-something college student just like them. Izzy gets a crash course in joke writing and learns to shut down heckling and harassment, onstage and off, but her lies eventually catch up with her. Henry's (Let's Call It a Doomsday) background as a playwright shines through the banter between Izzy and her fellow comics. It's a credit to the novel's realism that the teen's internal monologue and off-the-cuff remarks are often funnier than her scripted material--showing how, as a budding performer, she's still honing her stand-up persona. Though Izzy is at times painfully naive, readers will enjoy watching her undergo the process of self-transformation, one punch line at a time. Ages 13--up. Agent: Natalie Lakosil, Bradford Literary. (Jan.)
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Review by School Library Journal Review
Gr 8 Up--Sixteen-year-old plant enthusiast Isabel Vance has trained herself over the years to be agreeable and keep her true thoughts to herself--even if it means being the butt of jokes, missing conversations due to her auditory processing disorder, or rationalizing her boyfriend Alex's increasingly isolating and controlling behavior. An attempt to avoid Alex one afternoon results in Isabel accidentally signing up for an open mic comedy show. One rocky set later, Isabel finds herself lying about being in college and exchanging numbers with college senior and aspiring stand-up Mo. Isabel, or "Izzy" as she is now known to her new college friends, starts to blossom within the stand-up scene, slowly gaining the courage to speak rather than just think. Eventually, it becomes harder for Isabel to convince herself that everything is OK while keeping her worlds separate. Henry delivers a complex coming-of-age narrative of a teenager gaining the courage to be her true self. Comedy nerds and novices alike will enjoy Isabel's introduction to the stand-up scene, but the story's core value lies in Isabel finding her voice and coming to terms with her abusive relationship. Readers unfamiliar with the insidious cycle of emotional abuse will gain insight as they witness Alex's toxic behavior and the ways Isabel rationalizes it. Isabel is white, and the supporting cast is of various races and backgrounds. VERDICT An engaging take on stand-up comedy grafted together with an important look at toxic relationships. Recommended.--Pearl Derlaga, York County P.L., VA
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Review by Kirkus Book Review
A lost and timid high school junior finds her voice through stand-up. Sixteen-year-old Isabel Vance feels like the odd one out in her own family: Her successful, professional parents are preoccupied, and her 18-year-old siblings' forceful personalities shut her out. Now that the twins are off at college, Isabel's parents fail to see her loneliness and count on her to fulfill her family role as the kid who causes no trouble. Her alpha-male boyfriend, Alex, says he loves Isabel, but he cuts her off from her best friend and closely monitors her movements. Although Isabel fears angering Alex, she tells herself that he genuinely needs her. A series of misunderstandings results in her performing an impromptu stand-up routine at an open mic event and meeting new friends who believe she's in college, too. Events quickly spiral out of control: Isabel relishes her secret life as comedian Izzy V., exploring the power of standing on stage, boldly and hilariously speaking her truth. As a straight, White, upper-middle-class girl, her new friendships with a Persian lesbian, a wealthy Black boy, and an Asian transracial adoptee offer glimpses of a world beyond the narrow confines of her prep school. Naturally, the deception cannot continue indefinitely, and Isabel/Izzy must apply the courage of her stage persona to her offstage relationships. Isabel is achingly and sympathetically flawed and her growth, realistic; readers will undoubtedly connect with her journey. Honest truths delivered with humor and heart. (Fiction. 13-18) Copyright (c) Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.
Copyright (c) Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.
