Book Review: Give Me a Sign by Anna Sortino
[ID: A light green book with illustrated figures of two teens on the cover signing in ASL. The one on the left is a teen girl with a purple hearing aide and a light pink tank top. The one on the left is a teen boy with a yellow sweatshirt. The book sits on a spread of book pages and a light pink shawl. Scrabble tiles are scattered behind and greenery surrounds the book.]
Thank you so much to @PenguinTeen for sending me an early copy of Anna Sortino’s debut novel GIVE ME A SIGN! I’ve been waiting eagerly for this book and I can thankfully say it did not disappoint. This might just be my new favorite summer read!
[ID: A light green book with illustrated figures of two teens on the cover signing in ASL. The one on the left is a teen girl with a purple hearing aide and a light pink tank top. The one on the left is a teen boy with a yellow sweatshirt. Lily pads and other greenery are behind them with a lady bug crawling on the leaves. Both characters have many friendship bracelets on their wrists. “Give Me a Sign” is written at the top in white paint-like font.]
Give Me a Sign by Anna Sortino
Representation: Deaf main characters written by a Deaf author
Summary: Lilah is stuck in the middle. At least, that’s what having a hearing loss seems like sometimes—when you don’t feel “deaf enough” to identify as Deaf or hearing enough to meet the world’s expectations. But this summer, Lilah is ready for a change so she becomes a counselor at a summer camp for the deaf and blind. Her plan is to brush up on her ASL but once there, she also finds a community and sparks fly with a dreamy Deaf counselor. Romance was never on the agenda, and Lilah’s not positive Isaac likes her that way. But all signs seem to point to love. Unless she’s reading them wrong?
My thoughts: This was a wonderful book that I couldn’t put down. Lilah is a relatable main character that you want to protect and fight for. I’ve never been to summer camp myself but I enjoyed living vicariously through Lilah’s experiences as she went through a journey of self-discovery. Her feeling of living between two worlds was compellingly portrayed.
I do wish it had been a tad bit longer with more introspection and character development in the last third. It would’ve been nice to see more of the younger campers and side characters. For a debut writer, I think the writing was solid but needed more fleshing out.
The ending was both satisfying and realistically open. The message of belonging, identity, and first love was really poignant. I’m very excited to see what the author writes next and I need everyone to go out and buy this book! (But also please check out content warnings in the comments!)
When you’re lounging by the pool or wishing you were on vacation, check out this book for all your summertime needs!