Image: The Quantum Weirdness of the Almost-Kiss by Amy Noelle Parks, Amulet Books (2021). Cover illustration ⓒ 2020 Andi Porretta and book design by Hana Anouk Nakamura. Photograph of audiobook taken by me. Image used by on this blog under the “Fair dealing for criticism or review” provision of the Commonwealth Copyright Act, 1968.
I chose to read this book because of the cool title. That’s how superficial my reading decision making process is. But I have no incentive to change it now because the book was so, so enjoyable. Side note: quantum weirdness is an actual scientific thing, not just a cute title.
Evie is a maths genius who finds it difficult to read other people’s emotions and has a lot of social anxiety. Caleb has been her best friend since they were five, and they both attend a boarding school for super-smart maths and coding kids. Caleb has loved Evie for years, but Evie’s not ready for romance: hence the almost-kisses of the title, as Caleb holds off making his feelings known in fear of scaring Evie away. But now the cute new boy and his elegant maths solutions are making Evie feel all tingly. Has Caleb missed his chance?
This book just rips along. The plot is very believable and the characters have a lot of charm and wit. It’s told alternate narrator style, which suits the narrative. I enjoyed all the maths in it (even though I’m not very mathsy). According to her Goodreads profile, Amy Noelle Parks is “a professor of elementary education at Michigan State University, where she helps future teachers recover from the trauma inflicted on them by years of school mathematics” and she certainly sounds like she knows what she’s talking about.
It’s loads of rom-com fun, but also explores the barriers faced by women and minorities in STEM, and depicts a neurodivergent character striving to overcome her social anxiety in order to achieve her goals.
Title: The Quantum Weirdness of the Almost-Kiss
Author: Amy Noelle Parks
Cover design: Cover illustration ⓒ 2020 Andi Porretta and book design by Hana Anouk Nakamura
First published: Amulet Books, Abrams (2021)
Audiobook: narrated by Elizabeth Cottle & Nick Mondelli, Dreamscape Media
Genre: rom-com, sweet romance
Representation: neurodiversity & girls in STEM (main character); BIPOC (supporting characters)
Suitability: years 7-12
Fyi: controlling mother, an attempted drugging, reported sexual harrassment, a couple of blink-and-you’ll-miss-them sexual allusions, one f-bomb
Themes: love, friendship, coming of age, neurodiversity, anxiety, girls in STEM, gifted & talented, family, school
Literary features: first person alternating point of view, epistolary (chat room) sections, maths/physics motifs, intertextuality, witty writing, well plotted
NSW syllabus: genre study (romance); wide reading
If you like this, try: Love, Simon: Simon vs. the Homo Sapiens Agenda by Becky Albertalli
MEANWHILE, BACK AT THE LIBRARY... 
Leave a comment