“Seriously, will there ever be a time when people aren’t using queer people’s safety as a reason to tell them to be less queer? How about telling everyone else to be less dangerous? “Um, maybe the problem is the weapon? No target ever shot itself.”
Back to the Future, but make it gay? That’s it, I’m sold.
I’m always up for a nice spin (get it?) on a beloved story and Spin Me Right Round definitely delivered on that front. Following Luis Gonzalez, a queer, proud Latinx teen who has a reputation for being fashionable and fierce, Spin Me Right Round is the story of how Luis suddenly finds himself transported back in time to 1985 and has to find his way back home.
The biggest draw of this story is definitely the protagonist. Luis is an unapologetically queer character that doesn’t hold back in any aspect of his life—from ruling his school Antic Springs Academy to breaking dress codes with glitter foundation and trying to get his school to change the rules about prom so he can take his adorable boyfriend Cheng as partner. When he travels back in time, that translates to how he approaches his situation there—courageously, he makes new friends, tries to uplift others and create a better community for the other gay kid he meets there. Luis is so used to having a safe space in his current timeline that it baffles him just how regressive 1985 was. And as a reader, it was jarring to find the blatant and aggressive discrimination Luis experiences, especially by none other than his dad and his cronies.
I loved how we got this juxtaposition where Luis simultaneously wanted to help a boy named Chad feel good about himself and about being gay with the reality that in his own time, Chad has killed himself years before Luis was even born. It feels almost restorative in a way, to watch Luis right a wrong that should never have happened, no matter the year, time, or place. Really, while I loved every aspect of this story—the 80s references from movies to songs to fashion, the way Luis has a fabulous relationship with his English teacher both in the present and in the past (English teachers are where it’s at, y’all) and the close-knit group of friends Luis becomes part of (as well as interacting with his mother and his dad which was so weird but also so cool), I loved Luis himself most of all. He’s one of those characters that just immediately jumps off the page and feels like he could be your best friend who hypes you up when you’re feeling down, challenges and encourages you in equal measure. This story just felt really fresh and immersive and most of all, it was so entertaining. I don’t want to spoil too much, but there is quite the explosive climax that had me shedding a tear or two while simultaneously wanting to burn the whole world down and it’s mostly because David Valdes really makes you love these characters and care for their fate. The writing also flowed really well and makes me excited for what Valdes will offer us next.
With a protagonist that is charming, fierce, big-hearted and the epitome of courageous, David Valdes’ debut Spin Me Right Round takes readers on a laugh-out-loud ride back in time, perfect for fans of Lev A.C. Rosen and Robbie Couch.
Spin Me Right Round is available from Amazon, Book Depository, and other good book retailers, like your local bookstore, as of January 4th 2022.
Will you be picking up Spin Me Right Round? Tell us in the comments below!
Synopsis | Goodreads
From lauded writer David Valdes, a sharp and funny YA novel that’s Back to the Future with a twist, as a gay teen travels back to his parents’ era to save a closeted classmate’s life.
All Luis Gonzalez wants is to go to prom with his boyfriend, something his “progressive” school still doesn’t allow. Not after what happened with Chaz Wilson. But that was ages ago, when Luis’s parents were in high school; it would never happen today, right? He’s determined to find a way to give his LGBTQ friends the respect they deserve (while also not risking his chance to be prom king, just saying…).
When a hit on the head knocks him back in time to 1985 and he meets the doomed young Chaz himself, Luis concocts a new plan-he’s going to give this guy his first real kiss. Though it turns out a conservative school in the ’80s isn’t the safest place to be a gay kid. Especially with homophobes running the campus, including Gordo (aka Luis’s estranged father). Luis is in over his head, trying not to make things worse-and hoping he makes it back to present day at all.
In a story that’s fresh, intersectional, and wickedly funny, David Valdes introduces a big-mouthed, big-hearted queer character that readers won’t soon forget.
