Rating: 5 STARS!! Genre: Contemporary/LGBT/YA Series/Standalone: Standalone How I got this book: Bought In the town of Newsands, painfully shy Alex is abandoned by his two best friends for the summer. But he unexpectedly lands a part-time job at Wonderland, a run-down amusement arcade on the seafront, where he gets to know the other teen misfits who work there. Alex starts to come out of his shell, and even starts to develop feelings for co-worker Ben... who, as Alex's bad luck would have it, has a girlfriend. Then as debtors close in on Wonderland and mysterious, threatening notes start to appear, Alex and his new friends take it on themselves to save their declining employer. But, like everything in Wonderland, nothing is quite what it seems... This might be my absolute favourite book of the year so far and it's easily my top Pride Month read!
I was in a bit of a funk when I picked up this book, but Simon James Green (and Alex) managed to flip my bad mood on its head. This book is a riot, I started laughing on the very first page and I don't think I stopped until long after I closed the book. Alex, like Noah before him (if you haven't read Simon's debut novel Noah Can't Even, you can find it on Goodreads here!) I adored Noah, but I LOVED Alex in Wonderland! Alex is so instantly relatable with his shy awkwardness and his extremely bad luck that was so familiar it was unsettling. I love the English seaside setting, reading about the pier, the mini doughnuts and, of course, Wonderland itself made me crave the seaside so much (I haven't been for years) that it inspired me to take my family to New Brighton Beach last weekend so that my four-year-old could experience the joys of playing in the ocean, sand between your toes and the intoxicating thrill of the 2p machines! Alex in Wonderland is so many things; a coming of age story, a first-love story, a friendship story and a mystery. It also tackles sexual identity and diverse representation through Alex, Efia and Ben and divorce through Alex's family in a way that keeps the pace moving and the story so much fun to read. Simon James Green writes with a fantastically comedic, authentic voice and brings Alex's character tripping off the pages. I also really enjoyed the other characters in this book; Alex's step-mum (who I loved to hate), Lemon Boy (the second pizza restaurant scene had me shaking with laughter), Ben (and his dimples), Efia (and her meddling) and Maggie (who's sarcastic and crazy but caring at heart). Without giving too much away, the only part of this book that I didn't like too much was the ending, Alex deserved to be treated better, much better! Overall though, this was the perfect summer read. It's light, incredibly funny, relatable and so awkwardly-romantic you'll be biting back a grin the entire way through! Now, I'll just be sitting her not-so-patiently waiting to see what awkward, adorable muppet of a character Simon James Green blesses us with next. Comments are closed.
|
Never miss a post!
About Kay (She/Her)
Book addict, film mad, music lover, business owner, writer and mum (not necessarily in that order), living in the UK. About Sophie (She/Her)
Sophie loves books (obviously). She has a passion for photography and spotting wildlife, and is interested in anything made with passion and creativity. THIS BLOG IS SPOILER FREE!
Rating system: 5 Stars - AMAZING!! 4.5 Stars - Almost perfect! 4 Stars - I really loved it 3.5 Stars - I liked it alot 3 Stars - I liked it (I don't typically review books that I rate below 3 stars)
Archives
March 2023
Categories
All
Recently Read:
#Bookstagram:Upcoming Blog Tours:
|