Not Going To Plan
Personally, I like the verse style layout of the book and the dual narrative that occurs alongside each other rather than chapters changing for each character. I also like the pictures created from the words that relate to its action and/or the character’s fears. I think that this book shows a wide range of issues that some teens may face such as homophobia, not ‘fitting in’, judging for beliefs and the possibility of teen pregnancy and the decisions that come with it. However, I do believe this book occasionally followed classic tropes such as the friend group consisting of the problematic one, someone part of LGBTQ+, the smart one and the other one who contradicts and/or sporty – this isn’t a bad thing it’s just a basis that many authors follow. I also agree with what Marnie and Rakel were saying about ‘We’re damned if we do/damned if we don’t,’ because within society women/girls are judged for wanting or not wanting intimacy and/or sexual engagement and for the expectation to be both pure and not ‘frigid’. Typically, men/boys aren’t as criticised within the same category for their own choice. Obviously, the topic of abortion is a large part of this story and I believe it shows a range of viewpoints such as Rakel’s religious viewpoint, the protests we’re told are outside the clinic and Zed’s logical thoughts on it as abortion can go against moral and/or religious conscience and it’s hard to determine what counts as ‘murder’ when it comes to that, but ultimately, in my opinion, it relies on the choice of the mother and her capability at that time to be able to look after a baby and hopefully she has the support of family and friends.

Iyesha