Book Review
Title: The Universe is expanding and so am I
Author: Carolyn Mackler
Genre: YA/Family/Contemporary
Rating: *****
Review: The opening to The Universe is expanding and so am I takes place five months after the end of The Earth, my butt and other big round things. We re-join Virginia and Froggy who have been together in a relationship for five months, something the old Virginia thought she’d never have. After dating for a little while Virginia seems to have left the honeymoon period behind and discovers that she doesn’t really feel anything for Froggy but doesn’t want to break up with him because he is the first and only boyfriend she’s ever had, but she doesn’t want to lead him on when their relationship won’t go any further than it already has. Despite this her life is good, her sister is returning home from the Peace Corps and she and Shannon are doing a summer internship together, but she also has to pass her driving test and is hating every second of it. One thing that still struck me was her relationship with Byron still isn’t what it used to be, and I doubt it ever will be.
As we approach the ¼ mark in the novel, Virginia is contemplating her relationship and her summer plans when she runs into a nice foreigner and immediately feels a connection with him, but she is back to being awkward and shy, but she hopes that she will meet him again. However, her summer is turned upside down when Shannon drops out of their internship at the last moment, making Virginia feel alone. Life for Virginia isn’t as bad as it was in the previous book until Byron gets arrested presumably for the date rape incident the previous year and Virginia’s anxiety goes through the roof and having Brie in her kickboxing class isn’t helping her get away from her issues.
As we cross the ¼ mark in the novel, it looks like Byron is going to be faces charges for what he did, which he deserves to because being drunk is not defence for raping someone, but it takes Virginia back to square one, all the progress she made erased. When Byron makes bail, Virginia gets to see the people her parents really are and when she tries to confront them with the truth of the situation, she is treated like the bad guy. Honestly, I agree with her that Byron should be punished for what he did because it was wrong, and they shouldn’t be trying to make light of the situation.
As we approach the halfway mark in the novel, Anais is the only person Virginia can talk to, the only person who understand but she is currently in London and can’t do much to help. It isn’t made any better when Virginia finds out the boy she meets is Sebastian and is Annie Mill’s brother, which only makes her more confused about the situation and whose “side” she is on. I feel that Virginia has been on Annie’s side since the beginning and that isn’t going to change anytime soon. The upside is that she and Sebastian continue talking using the code names Leela and Fry which was super cute, and she can’t feel guilty anymore since she and Froggy broke up, but the family re trying to hide for the media attention and Virginia just can’t find it in herself to sympathise towards her brother.
As we cross into the second half of the novel, Byron’s situation also takes away a lot from the rest of the family including her mother’s book deal and Virginia’s internship but she does get another job and she also plans to meet up with Sebastian again away from their local areas so there is no chance of them being caught together. Virginia and Sebastian continue their relationship even though they shouldn’t, but they seem to truly understand how the other is feeling but they still have a few awkward moments when discussing their family situations and by this time I was wondering what is going to happen between them when people find out which they eventually will.
As we approach the ¾ mark in the novel, Anais returns home with her girlfriend solidifying that the Shreves daughters are very different from their parents but Anais fits in while Virginia doesn’t. The only person she has right now is Sebastian, but she can easily lose him if someone finds out about them. As the situation with Byron draws on Virginia and Sebastian begin moving past that and realise that their life together is no one else’s business. However, if the case goes to trail I am not sure whether they will survive it even if they do truly love one another.
As we cross into the final section of the novel, not everything works out, but Virginia finally gets her parents to understand who she is and what she wants although she goes about it in a very interesting way. While we had to wait over a decade for a sequel I am hoping there is more to come from Virginia soon. Highly recommend both books in this series.

★★★★☆/★★★★★

Book Review: The Universe is Expanding and So Am I by Carolyn Mackler

Positives
🥠 Virginia
🥠 All the book references
🥠 Sea-glass-eyed, long haired artists who definitely do not skateboard, because no coordination
🥠 Growing up/growing some balls

Negatives
🥠 Somewhat predictable, but it didn't detract from the story

This super cute first person YA contemporary wasn't just fluff for the brain. Virginia is a fantastic protagonist and I can totally see her as a purple haired, kick-boxing curvaceous superhero. I loved all of the reading/book references, especially this one which had me laughing out loud:'I glance longingly at my bedside table , at the cover of Fates and Furies. I wish I could be reading right now.' Throw in a sea-eyed-eyed, long haired artist and some forbidden lust and we have a fun romp through New York as Virginia navigates her summer break (which is not going to plan) and some fairly serious issues involving her brother which could have serious ramifications for the future of her family.

Really enjoyed this, read it in two sittings - perfect summer YA read.

Thank you NetGalley and Bloomsbury for the early review copy!

I flew through this book in no time, taking my eReader with me everywhere. It was a lot deeper than I thought it would be and the plot was really interesting. The story continues from the first installment "The Earth, My Butt and Other Big Round Things" where Virginia (the MC) has to deal with the fact that her brother is accused of sexually assaulting a girl from his college. Six months later, her family is still not able to move on from this "ordeal" as the aftermath leave them struggling.

Virginia is a curvy teenage girl who deals with low self-esteem. She is confused about her romantic life, can't figure out how to feel about her brother and meanwhile her parents are obsessed with portraying the perfect family. Her mother in particular does more than hint at her disapproval of Virginia's size. In the middle of all this chaos, Virginia meets Sebastian - a guy she can't forget, but also one she should not get involved with.

You can easily pick up this book without having read the first installment, but if you want to understand all the references, I would recommend picking it up first. I really enjoyed this story and unless you are uncomfortable reading books where sexual assault is a big topic, I highly recommend this book!

I really enjoyed getting to hear more from Virginia and loved being back in her world. I read the 2 books in this series back to back and am really pleased that I did because jumping from one right to the other meant I just got the carry on the story five months after it left off. I read an early version of the previous novel and I understand that it has been updated in the last fifteen years but I found it a bit odd to jump from talking about Tower record and Sports Authority Gift cards to be talking about Brexit. So do be warned to read a later version of The Earth My Butt and Other Big round Things so you don't get the confusion that I had!



Catching up with Virginia was great and since she conquered the idea that fat people don't deserve love and relationships in the previous novel, we now see her with many more potential love interests, this added a whole other layer to the story. Her love of fashion and her ambition has also developed and so we get to have a lot more fun with the clothes that she wears and the adventures that she goes on- I loved it.



This book does revisit the issues that came up with Virginia's brother in the first novel but things get a lot deeper and darker in this book so if you found that triggering then you should definitely heed the warning with this novel. I admire the courage of this author though to take that deeper and err on the darker side of things because it is something that needs to be talked about and as we know, that is not something that Virginia's family like to do!



I really enjoyed the fact that not much time has passed between the two novels but that Virginia has done a great deal of growing up in the times across the two books. This really reflects the rate of development during this pivotal time in any young person's life, things change just as much day to day when you are a teen as when you are a toddler and not enough books reflect that. I really recommend this book and reading both books back to back. I especially recommend this to people in the same situation as Virginia but if you are older than a teen and have ever been called fat as an insult then I know this will ring true with you as much as it did with me!

The Universe is Expanding and So Am I follows Virginia and her complicated relationships with boyfriend Froggy, new boy Sebastian and antagonistic family. It’s a rollercoaster of emotions and teen angst as Virginia isn’t sure she loves Froggy anymore (or even like him), while at the same time dealing with a major family secret.

Virginia is an interesting character, although I’m reluctant to call her a role model. She’s confident in her appearance, despite being repeatedly criticised by her mother and peers, and is passionate and articulate. However, at times I also found her irritating and condescending. She’s not above body shaming or belittling other people, which Virginia herself is subjected too, making her come across as unsympathetic and self involved at times. Probably a lot like a stereotypical teenager, but unfortunately I just found her quite childish. The short length of the novel, although great for plot pace, also hinders any proper character development, and I found that by the end of the novel Virginia hadn’t really improved much, despite the various incidents that happen to her and her family.

Although the novel covers some interesting and topical subjects - such as rape, bullying and body shaming, I found it didn’t quite reach its full potential in terms of exploring the emotional impact of these social issues. In particular, the rape aspect covers an interesting angle not often depicted in novels, and could have really showcased a wide range of emotions and character development. Instead it sort of peters out, with a conclusion that I found predictable at best.

This was a quick read, but largely without any real substance - which was a shame given the potential.

This is a story that prove appearances don't matter, even when it comes to love because what matters most is what's in a person's heart and how sincere they are. This book deals a lot with sensitive topics such as body positivity and rape.

I'm not sure if it's just me because nowadays when it comes to starting a new book, I would usually end up losing my interest so fast. This shouldn't be happening but it is and I can't stop it. The first chapter of this book, I read with a lot of determination and eager to find out what happens next but by the time I reach the second chapter, it all floats away.

I'm not sure what Virginia's brother was thinking and why his parents would back him up with something horrid that he's done but it's not okay. He's done something wrong but they're acting as though what he has done is a small matter instead of getting close to rape a woman who in that situation becomes a victim. It's not okay. Rape is never and will never be okay. It's a good thing that Virginia thought better than that and voiced out her opinion even to her family's dismay.

This was an okay read for me and I really wished that I had even a smidge of interest more towards it but I can't help it that I don't.

There were a few subjects that caused me to hesitate before reading this book. But because it included an overweight and LGBT character I really really wanted to read it anyway. I'm very glad I did. It's not necessarily a feel good book, but it does teach you how to turn things around. Which is something I really needed right now.

«The Universe is Expanding and so am I» was not the worse contemporary, but it lacked something for me. There were a break-up and a new love, family and friends drama, first job and insecurities, but I would be much more satisfied with a lesser amount but of well-developed plot steps.

Virginia is now 16. She has a boyfriend and she doesn’t hate her body as much as she used to. We learn this from the very first pages, and Virginia adds “I’ll never be a twig, but I’ve learned to embrace my curves”.

She might have “embraced her curves” as she says, but her family didn’t. Or maybe it is all in Virginia’s head, but I didn’t like a single person from Shreves family (and there are another 4 Shreves, mind you!).

In the beginning, it seemed that her brother Byron would have a bigger arc in the book, as the whole plot revolved around the rape accusation and how Virginia and her family reacted to it. However, we’ve seen and heard very little of Byron, and the subject of rape was only introduced to collide these two families against each other, at least that’s how I felt about it.

Virginia’s sister, Anais – this perfectly beautiful, clever and selfless girl, turned out to be very judgemental and not that different from the grown-up Shreves, who, in turn, were portrayed as dull, plane and ignorant couple. Virginia didn’t have anything good to say about them, and the information that I gathered summarizes into:

MOM = LOVES TO MAINTAIN THE APPEARANCE OF “HAPPY FAMILY” AND SHOVE EVERYTHING UNDER A RUG + COUNTS THE CALORIES INJECTED BY THE FAMILY;

DAD = DROOLS OVER HOT YOUNG TREE PRUNERS + IGNORES THE WISHES AND LIKES OF HIS CHILDREN.

As to Virginia herself, she was funny, she was witty, but she wasn’t likable.

«Even though I am with Froggy and therefore off boyfriend market, I always freeze around cute guys.»


Even though the Author tried to introduce more serious subjects than cute guys, lusty boys, and bagels, I felt like they were just thrown at Virginia to see how she reacts and then readers attention would be drawn again to her love life.

Way back in time, when I was still a bookseller not a librarian, I read and loved Mackler's novel "The Earth, My Butt and other big round things" and even after all this time I instantly remembered the plot out lines of that first book.
Mackler is willing to tackle big issues, and offer partial solutions to them in a book that is always compelling and never didactic.

The characters' lives are all so different from mine that I didn't identify with them per se but I cared about them all in the way I was supposed to but without feeling manipulated. This book will be a great discussion point for older teen book groups.

I enjoyed this one, despite not reading the first book in the story. I liked all of the characters, particularly Anais. The body positivity message was a good one and done subtlety. I'd like to read what happens next.

I really enjoyed this book.

<i>The Universe Is Expanding and So Am I</i> is the sequel to <i>The Earth, My Butt, and Other Big Round Things</i>. Both books follow Virginia Shreves who mostly learns to deal with her judgy family and the almost daily criticism she gets because of the weight and body type.

<spoiler><i>The Universe Is Expanding and So Am I</i> takes place five months after <i>The Earth, My Butt, and Other Big Round Things</i> and Virginia still has some struggles in her life. Especially when her brother's sexual assault of Annie Mills shakes up the Shreves family. Virginia's relationship with Froggy also comes to a halt as Virginia has fallen out of like with Froggy. There is another shock when Virginia meet a boy who turns out to be Annie Mills's little brother.

What I like about this duology is that the Shreves family is very much imperfect. Virginia's parents very much fat-shamed her in the first book and still have some of the habit left in this book although I believe they do get better. I really like the family dynamic. Especially, the grey area Virginia's relationship with her brother Byron. I don't know how I would feel if my brother would have to stand trial. I think I'd want him to be punished for what he did but I think I'd also feel conflicted just like Virginia.

I also liked seeing Virginia's self-confidence grow. I just think it is nice to see characters grow and accept themselves more and more.

Lastly, I liked her relationship with Sebastian. It gave me those nice YA Contemporary Romance vibes.
</spoiler>

I haven’t read the prequel to this novel but I thoroughly enjoyed this one. It was witty and sweet with very engaging characters. It was everything 13 Reasons Why should be but wasn’t. Where some books deal with ‘difficult topics’ almost as a selling point (remember reading Judy Blume’s “Forever” because it had naughty bits in?) this one deals with them sensitively and in a way that feels much more important. Equally, it has balance and doesn’t allocate blame in a simplistic way. But best of all it doesn’t use gratuitous descriptions for impact (excuse: ‘it’s important not to shy away from difficult issues). Agreed; but do it like this! I should comment now there were point I really hated the parents in the novel, but luckily they became more developed as characters with their own mountains to climb as the novel progressed. I’ll definitely be happy to recommend this to the young adult audience it will appeal to, and pleased to note some positive role models in there too!