Jan Reimer votes:

The Girl in the Blue Coat vs. Holding up the Universe

Rachel- I chose to start with The Girl in the Blue Coat as I am not a huge fan of historical fiction and wanted to tackle this one first. I was pleasantly surprised with how much I enjoyed the story. I was engaged from the start and interested in Hanneke’s illegal trading. As I continued, I did not connect with Hanneke’s character as much as I thought I would. Her bravery and determination were obvious but I still felt I was missing something. I enjoyed The Girl in the Blue Coat but perhaps reading in the sunshine swayed my vote to Holding Up the Universe. It is a lighter read, despite the two main character’s difficult backgrounds. Both Jack and Libby’s characters are quickly likeable and I found myself  “rooting for them.” I was, however, very thankful that the story did not take on too much of a sappy teen romance twist! Libby’s character sent a powerful message about self-acceptance, confidence and determination. I loved that she tried out for the Damsels Drill Team! I did not connect with Jack’s character as much but I still enjoyed reading from his perspective.

Krystal-Admittedly, I did not make it through either of our reads this round, I did read about half of each one and agree with Rachel on Holding Up the Universe as our win. Perhaps, I too am swayed by the content of both and was looking for a ‘lighter’ read over spring break. Holding Up the Universe was whimsical to a degree in which I related to some of the odd challenges that teens are making for themselves on social media (tide pod challenge comes to mind). The neglect of forethought and consideration of the victim in the cruel game/ challenge that Jack and his friends play and the resulting exploration of teens struggling with their self image and perception was adequately portrayed in a plot that I will return to finish up at a later date.

Once again, historical fiction was thrust upon me with the Girl in the Blue Coat and I enjoyed how the plot followed the perspective of a young woman struggling to accept the loss of her young love and supporting her struggling family in a way that she would never have imagined herself doing before. I found myself reflecting on the story of Anne Frank while reading and often compared the two accounts of a horrific part of our history. Unfortunately I did not connect to Hanneke’s character as much as I would have liked to in order to really encourage this one to go through.