If You Still Recognise Me

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Exploring the bonds of friendship, family, fandom, culture and queer community, this is a story about finding who you really are at the heart of all the things you love.” - Sera Milano, author of This Can Never Not Be Real

Throughout this, Elsie’s voice was so distinct. I’ve said before that I’m not always a fan of first person POVs but this has proved to be yet another exception. This was definitely brilliant. I loved being in Elsie’s mind, experiencing her thoughts and emotions. They were never dramaticised, and always felt genuine and real. I loved the writing style. It was straightforward and easy to understand and immerse yourself in. I found the dialogue to be perfect, not at all cringey in a way that some ya novels written by anyone over 20 usually are. Cynthia So covered so many important topics including sexuality, gender expression, asian fetishization, the eurocentric beauty standard, and more. And they were all handled with such care and consideration. It was nuanced the way it delved into Elsie’s mind as she discovered (or re-discovered) things about herself. I almost gave this book four stars because of those two issues, but then I read the ending and I felt it would be wrong of me to give this book anything less than five stars. The ending was super cute and it left on a hopeful note. Not every issue was resolved by the end of the book, but having an open ending for those issues worked really well. I also really enjoyed the evolution of her relationships within her family, especially her reconnection with Uncle Kevin. There was so much love in this book, not just romantic, but familial and platonic. The exploration of deeper topics, homophobia, racism and asian-fetishism, was done with so much care and consideration. The novel is truly a complex love letter to those who have grown up with fandoms as a central comfort and is a refreshing display of what representation should be. The book itself is so beautifully written and the way in which culture, sexuality and relationships are intertwined throughout the book, is so heart achingly emotional to read. We aren’t only just given over five main queer and poc teenagers, we also get to read about the reconnecting of deep relationships that will almost most definitely make you want to pull the tissues out! This is definitely a novel that makes people who feel unseen and unheard, feel represented and loved without even asking.This wonderful book is both a tender coming-of-age romance and a tapestry of queer identity that spans oceans, generations, and stages of life ... Suffused with queer wistfulness and the ache to be known, So's debut is as intimate and revelatory as the first touch of a first crush's hand. - Riley Redgate, author of Seven Ways We Lie TW// homophobia, mentions of grief, mentions of death (grandfathers), brief mentions of racism, brief mentions of anxiety, mentions of divorce What makes this stand out the most is the main character's relationships with her family members, particularly her mother, grandmother and uncle, that are explored with so much care.

There’s such a lovely place for friendships in this story. I loved Rikita, Elsie’s best friend, always here for her and yet not afraid to tell her when things aren’t alright. I also deeply appreciated seeing Joan, Elsie’s best friend’s return and how they slowly found their old friendship again. A lyrical, complex tale of friendship, family, and all the stories we tell ourselves - true and not - about what it means to love"- Kelly Loy Gilbert, author of When We Were InfiniteThis book had me feeling so nostalgic for my teen years, I was Elise. Obsessed with fandom, crushing on an actress and watching everything she had ever been in, using tumblr as an outlet, making edits and gifs and consuming novel length fan fiction daily. I really loved this aspect, and haven't ever seen it portrayed so accurately before. Multi-stranded and suffused in sapphic love, Cynthia So’s If You Still Recognise Medebut is a compassionate, cute ode to fandom, finding love, and finding your people. The novel also deftly explores the intersection of sexism and racism, homophobia, and abusively manipulative relationships while remaining a super-sweet coming of age story that’s populated by characters who will make many a heart melt.

Also, I was obsessed with every single book by David Levithan that I could get my hands on. What’s your top writing tip? Beautifully written with moments of sheer lyricism. A must-read for humans of all ages and walks of life. I loved it so much! - Wibke Brueggemann, author of Love is for Losers A: For me it's this book IF You Still Recognize Me (5000⭐). This book involving an estranged childhood friend who moved oceans away but then meeting each other again just to realize you're Exploring the bonds of friendship, family, fandom, culture and queer community, this is a story about finding who you really are at the heart of all the things you love."- Sera Milano, author of This Can Never Not Be Real Cynthia So deftly weaves a story that explores queerness, love, and relationships across distance, both geographical and time. An accomplished debut with shades of Nina LaCour, If You Still Recognise Me is the perfect summer-time read."- Lizzie Huxley-Jones, author and editorA beautiful and intricately layered tale of friendship, fandom and finding yourself – I absolutely adored it.” - Sophie Cameron, author of Out of the Blue