I received an advanced copy of The Comedienne’s Guide to Pride from Page Street Publishing so I could share my review with you!
About The Comedienne’s Guide to Pride
Author: Hayli Thomson
Publisher: Page Street Kids
Release Date: July 19th, 2022
Genres: Young Adult Contemporary, LGBTQ+ Stories, Comedy, Coming of Age
Purchase Links: Bookshop.org, Amazon, Barnes & Noble, Goodreads, Book Depository
Synopsis of The Comedienne’s Guide to Pride
Taylor Parker isn’t out yet, but she’s keeping an even bigger secret: she entered a sketch contest where the grand prize is an internship at SNL.
When Taylor applied to this opportunity for marginalized writers, she checked the “LGBTQ” box on the application without really thinking about it. But now that she’s a finalist, she realizes she’ll need to be out to win. Whether she’s ready or not.
In the month leading up to the competition results, Taylor befriends Charlotte Grey, whom Taylor’s had a crush on for years. As they spend more time together, they realize they’re genuinely falling for each other–and while Charlotte is willing to take it slow, Taylor doesn’t want to ask her to keep their relationship secret forever. Taylor just hopes she can muster the courage to come out before all her secrets do.
My Review of The Comedienne’s Guide to Pride
As an avid fan of Saturday Night Live (I would be more than willing to die for Kate McKinnon if it was ever necessary) I could not contain my excitement when I read the synopsis for A Comedienne’s Guide to Pride! I forced myself to wait to read my copy until Pride month, as a little reading treat, and I’m very glad I waited. A Comedienne’s Guide to Pride is an instant pride month classic! Taylor was such a hilarious protagonist, and reading from her point of view was delightful. I found her to be especially relatable, as I not only share her identity as a lesbian, but as a person who uses humor to cope with difficult circumstances. Though this book was largely very funny, there were still high emotional stakes and a lot of intense scenes for Taylor, which gave the story a solid balance in my opinion.
My Recommendation-
If you love the sense of humor the cast brings to each episode of Saturday Night Live, you need to grab a copy of A Comedienne’s Guide to Pride as soon as possible! I would especially encourage folks who need a funny queer story to make them laugh (and to give them all the feels) this pride month!
About the Author
Hayli Thomson is an author from Sydney, Australia. She writes novels about candid characters for anybody who ever watched Jo March leap a fence and longed to be her best friend. Bizarrely, during her teen years, Hayli was afflicted with a “headache” every third Monday in September, when she was left with no option but to stay home from school and watch her favourite female comedians collect Emmys live on the other side of the world. Her debut YA novel, The Comedienne’s Guide to Pride, hits shelves June 2022. Hayli is represented by Bridget Smith at JABberwocky Literary, New York.
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