Margin Notes

“I want to stop feeling like everything I am is inadequate or makes me unworthy of love because of something I can’t help” 

Tell me Again How a Crush Should Feel by Sara Farizan is a compelling and romantic coming of age story and emotional rollercoaster about an Iranian 16 year old private school student, Leila, trying to find herself while battling the struggles that come with relationships, friendships, family, ethnicity, junior year and, most of all, her sexual orientation. 

In this novel, Leila tackles themes of identity and self-complexity after the summer following ninth grade prior to her family immigrating. She spent that summer at camp where she had met Anastasia, who essentially confirmed her attraction to girls after secretly having intimate moments, only to find out that Anastasia decided she liked a boy. After some time passes, Leila is content with the fact that she’s gone nearly all the way through high school without liking anybody, but tables quickly turn after a beautiful new girl named Saskia shows up and starts showing signs of mutual attraction. 

Farizan does a sensational job of capturing the inner thoughts of the teenage characters which made the book a true depiction of what it’s like to be in high school while navigating personal struggles. The authentic view of teenagers would make this novel a perfect choice for a TV adaptation – it is easy to bring to life in the reader’s mind. By making it relatable, diverse, humorous and romantic, this heartfelt novel is a breath of fresh air for young adults or just anyone who is having a hard time with self-discovery, relationships, issues with sexuality or simply just tackling the obstacles that come with being a teenager in our modern world. 

Mia Surur is a 17-year-old attending Leo Hayes High School. She’s been surrounded by reading and writing environments for the majority of her life from enjoying getting lost in romantic fantasies to diving into nonfiction and true crime. As soon as she got her hands on a pencil she fell in love with writing no matter what the subject may be. Although Mia is a young writer and hasn’t started her future and very promising career she aspires to be working in this field one day or going into law school. No matter what she ends up doing, whether that be publishing future articles or writing up case files, Mia will always be a writer at heart.