#Radio silence alice oseman how to

I have mixed feelings on the вЂњyou donвЂ™t have to go to universityвЂќ message. I appreciate the ace representation and normalization of bisexuality. FrancesвЂ™ sexuality is similar to her racial identity, in that thatвЂ™s just a part of her identity вЂ“ itвЂ™s not a big deal. ItвЂ™s not something that he immediately knows. AledвЂ™s sexuality is something thatВ he works out throughout the book. The characters are also diverse in their sexuality. (Supporting characters include Daniel and Raine ). I applaudВ OsemanвЂ™s efforts to diversifyВ her cast of characters, though. As I am White myself, I donвЂ™t feel confident evaluatingВ whether Frances is a good example of biracial representation. FrancesвЂ™ race is not integral to the story (as it is, for example, in The Hate U Give). Frances is British-Ethiopian, with a White mother and an Ethiopian father (who does not play a role in the story). She made a concentrated effort to improve diversity in Radio Silence.

I have a read few interviews with Oseman (who is White and British) where she stated she dislikes her debut novel SolitaireВ for its lack of racial diversity. FrancesвЂ™ first person narration is down to earth and realistic, butВ it also givesВ a particular insightВ into one bright and creative girlвЂ™s mind. IвЂ™m also reminded of Stranger Things, with its focus on friendships in a spooky setting. Oseman has said Welcome to Night ValeВ inspired Radio SilenceВ вЂ“ it definitely has a similar vibe. The characters live in the real world, but the mystery of where Carys went and what Radio Silence (the underground YouTube podcast that the novel centers on) lends a mysterious air to the story. Radio SilenceВ captures a particular atmosphere that I hadnвЂ™t previously experienced in YA. Our friendships were definitely more important than our romantic relationships at that time. My friends and I didnвЂ™t date much we werenвЂ™t searching for our one true loves. The lack of romance also mirrors my high school experience. I would love to see more strong friendships, like Frances and AledвЂ™s, in YA. It has taken many of years of us being вЂjustвЂ™ friends for people to start acceptingВ that there arenвЂ™t any romantic feelings between us. The other aspect of the book that I deeply related to was the lack of romance and the friendship between Frances and Aled. It was a frustrating time, and one IвЂ™ve not really seen depicted in YA before (admittedly, my YA scope is very small). I changed, and my friendsвЂ™ understanding of me took a lot longer to catch up.

They donвЂ™t believe that person (the real Frances) could exist.В I felt that hard in my last years of high school/first years of uni.

#Radio silence alice oseman how to

She doesnвЂ™t know how to show them what sheвЂ™s really like. They have one impression of her (boring and studious). (ThatвЂ™s one thing that can be particularly different for adult writers to get right, IвЂ™ve found).ДЄpart from accurately representing what itвЂ™s like to grow up in the 2010s, Radio SilenceВ cut close to home for me in a couple other ways.В FrancesвЂ™ friends at school donвЂ™t really know her. IвЂ™ve never read text message conversations that felt so real, like they were lifted straight out of a friendвЂ™s phone. ThereвЂ™s no sense of вЂњHaha, IвЂ™m so awkwardвЂќ that sometimes happens when authors try to recreate teen life. Frances narrates with blunt and dry humour. This includes small things (such as certain mannerisms) and bigger things (such as engagement in online communities). I found the experiences described in Radio SilenceВ to be spot on as to my coming of age years. She lived her teen and uni years just as I lived them. (ThatвЂ™s my baby sisterвЂ™s age?!) OsemanвЂ™s ageВ goes a long way to explaining how Oseman wrote such a realistic novel. Upon first seeing the author photo of Alice Oseman, I thought she looked really young. Representing the TodayвЂ™sВ High School Experience TheВ following review is broken into four sections: representing the modern high school experience,В atmosphere, racial and sexual diversity, and attending university. ItвЂ™s a rare YA novel that I can objectively appreciate and also personally connect with.В I have a lot of thoughts on this book. I imagine itвЂ™ll be one of my favourite reads of the year. GoodReads | Indigo | IndieBound | Wordery