Leah on the Offbeat by Becky Albertalli Review

SPOILER ALERT!

I went into this book absolutely engrossed in the Simonverse. After finishing Simon vs. the Homo Sapiens Agenda, I just kind of sat there, staring at the last page, kind of in awe. I had read books with characters just as developed and complicated as Albertalli’s Creekwood teens, but somehow, these characters seemed different. More real. They were people I knew, not people I’d seen on some movie or read in another YA book. 

So I was just a tiny bit nervous to read Leah on the Offbeat because I didn’t want to jeopardize this wonder. But I read it anyway, and I’m so, so glad I did.

Leah on the Offbeat is in the point of view of Leah Burke, one of Simon’s best friends from Simon. But in Simon, the reader never finds out that Leah is a closeted bisexual. Her identity becomes a point of contention in the spin-off. 

But it isn’t the entire book. Leah is not defined by her sexuality. It’s a big part of her, and it’s a big part of the plot, but that’s not all there is to Leah Burke. She’s sarcastic, cutting, a talented drummer, a budding artist, and, above all, a pretty great friend. She’s not written as a one-dimensional person whose sole purpose is to find out who she is. She already knows. She just has to figure out how to express it all.

I’m enthralled by multifaceted YA novels because a lot of people don’t believe they exist. But here’s one that deals with issues ranging from body image to casual racism to economic disparity. Albertalli handles them delicately without sugarcoating, and it adds another layer of substance to the book. 

Leah serves to offer a place to those who feel like they don’t have one. Though this acceptance is in the context of the LGBTQ+ community, it can be an outstretched hand to anyone that feels as if they need one.