A really sweet book, I enjoyed the back to the future play on things with a Korean family. Maureen goo continues to be one of my ya contemporary faves

This is my second Maurene Goo and her previous book was a sweet hug and YA teen film wrapped in a book, and I loved it. Throwback was the same and it was so good!

I loved the premise, as well as the characters. Was it predictable? Yes, definitely, but sometimes a good dose of sweet predictable plot is what someone needs and that was me over the last few days.

Thank you to NetGalley and Hachette Children’s Group for this ARC! I knew I was going to enjoy this but it completely surpassed my expectations!

This is a YA contemporary/romance with magical realism. Samantha Kang is in her senior year at high school and has just been nominated for homecoming queen. Her mother Priscilla is ecstatic but Samantha couldn’t care less and after Samantha’s beloved grandmother goes into a coma she and after a big fight with her mother concerning their fraught relationship, Samantha finds herself quite literally thrown back to 1995. Her mission: Make sure Priscilla Kang wins homecoming queen. While in the 90’s however Samantha starts to develop a life and romance of her own and with the clock ticking down to homecoming she finds herself not only learning more about her mother but also more about herself.

This was just so WHOLESOME. I found myself tearing up multiple times both happy and sad tears. Maurene has created such a beautiful story about the complex relationship between mother and daughter but also what it means to be a first generation Korean-American and the expectations placed on them. The struggles of their parents and how no matter how hard they may try to do the best for their children it’s not always what their children need. Watching Sam develop a real friendship with her teenage mother was so heartwarming. I also really enjoyed the relationship between Sam and Jamie, I was rooting for them the whole time.

The 90’s vibes in this were on point as well. I was born in 1997 so I don’t really remember the 90’s past mashing food into my highchair and screaming the house down when my Mum wanted to sleep but the descriptions of the shops, clothes and “gadgets” from the 90’s gave me a kind of nostalgic feeling. I also really enjoyed seeing how certain “landmarks” had changed. It’s really sad to see that white people are still cluelessly racist even to this day and that the weird comments that are supposed to be compliments are still made.

Overall I would recommend this to anyone looking for a lighthearted and wholesome but also deep and emotional read. I honestly enjoyed every minute of reading this and can’t wait to check out more of Maurene Goo’s work! This was released on 11th April 2023 so check it out now!

I really enjoyed this book. I think this will really resonate with daughters and mothers who struggle to understand each other.

An intriguing premise that I couldn't particularly get on board with. 'Throwback''s central plot is about time travel and the relationship between a mother and daughter, but that core plot point took far too long to get going - and I didn't find myself caring much about Sam's POV. Whilst Goo's writing ability cannot be questioned, I found Sam to be a rather unlikeable protaganist - and I think that's largely because she's supposed to be seventeen and I find most seventeen year olds irritating and precocious. I'm not a huge YA reader, but for a good plot, I'm usually on board. I just didn't gel with this book. There's definitely an audience for it and I think if you like hijinks, the 90s or even just mother-daughter stories told through an interesting new lens, you'll like this.

Also, it made me feel horrifically old that Sam was likely born in the 2000s.

I absolutely love Maurene Goo. The concept of this book about going back in time especially with the 80s-90s throwback seals the deal for me. How often could you go back in time and be with your mom? It was a very cool way of exploring the mother/daughter relationship and the dialogue was very well written as well. I could see this being a movie or series. It had a similar theme to Jenny’s Hahns books which I love.

Personally not for me but I see who I might recommend it for and what sort of reader might enjoy it where I didn't