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Summary and Reviews of Super Fake Love Song by David Yoon

Super Fake Love Song by David Yoon

Super Fake Love Song

by David Yoon
  • BookBrowse Review:
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  • First Published:
  • Nov 17, 2020, 368 pages
  • Paperback:
  • Jul 2021, 384 pages
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About This Book

Book Summary

From the bestselling author of Frankly in Love comes a contemporary YA rom-com where a case of mistaken identity kicks off a string of (fake) events that just may lead to (real) love.

When Sunny Dae--self-proclaimed total nerd--meets Cirrus Soh, he can't believe how cool and confident she is. So when Cirrus mistakes Sunny's older brother Gray's bedroom--with its electric guitars and rock posters--for Sunny's own, he sort of, kind of, accidentally winds up telling her he's the front man of a rock band.

Before he knows it, Sunny is knee-deep in the lie: He ropes his best friends into his scheme, begging them to form a fake band with him, and starts wearing Gray's rock-and-roll castoffs. But no way can he trick this amazing girl into thinking he's cool, right? Just when Sunny is about to come clean, Cirrus asks to see them play sometime. Gulp.

Now there's only one thing to do: Fake it till you make it.

Sunny goes all in on the lie, and pretty soon, the strangest things start happening. People are noticing him in the hallways, and he's going to football games and parties for the first time. He's feeling more confident in every aspect of his life, and especially with Cirrus, who's started to become not just his dream girl but also the real deal. Sunny is falling in love. He's having fun. He's even becoming a rocker, for real.

But it's only a matter of time before Sunny's house of cards starts tumbling down. As his lies begin to catch up with him, Sunny Dae is forced to wonder whether it was all worth it--and if it's possible to ever truly change.

From New York Times bestselling author David Yoon comes an inventive new romantic comedy about identity, perception, and how hard it can feel sometimes to simply be yourself.

Excerpt
Super Fake Love Song

Gray's door was always open, because that's how Gray liked things. The door to my room was always shut, because that's how I liked things.

My door was blank and unadorned. My door could have led to anything—a linen closet, a brick wall, an alternate universe.

You only get one chance to make a first impression, Mom liked to say. It was characteristically shallow advice, but there was a truth to it that I only now realized.

I followed Cirrus, heading left into Gray's room instead of right into mine.

Cirrus had already made herself at home in Gray's salvaged steel swivel chair. She drummed her fingers on her thighs, as if eager to be introduced to the room's history.

I started to say something, then stopped.

I started to say something else, then stopped.

I started to—

Cirrus eyed me with growing concern.

"So are you—" she said.

"These are guitars," I said suddenly. I craned my neck back to look at them. I stretched, sniffed, did all the...

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Reviews

BookBrowse Review

BookBrowse

Although Sunny exhibits genuine complexity and growth, and although the secondary characters are generally well developed, Yoon's novel could have been even stronger had Cirrus been a more layered character. This slight weakness aside, this is a heartfelt and often funny coming-of-age novel that will speak especially to music lovers as well as anyone who has ever felt they had to hide or apologize for their hobbies and passions...continued

Full Review Members Only (797 words)

(Reviewed by Norah Piehl).

Media Reviews

The Bulletin of the Center for Children's Books
With this delectable comedy of errors, Yoon reaffirms his place in the pantheon of authors crafting smart, satisfying romantic fare for teens…[It] offers a more complex melody by mixing in running commentary on diversity, culture, and class...A worthy read-next for fans of Jenny Han, Nicola Yoon, and David Yoon's Frankly in Love, it's a novel that strikes all the right chords.

New York Times
The fun of this engrossing read (I found myself laughing out loud and admiring Yoon's wordplay) is that underneath the slapstick lies a finely nuanced meditation on how we perform as ourselves. The real surprise is how many of our perceived shortcomings are part of a self-imposed narrative...Through romance and failed romance, passion projects and fake passion projects, Sunny and the people around him learn that being true to yourself, once you figure out what the heck that is, is the most important thing of all.

Shelf Awareness
This real-life role-playing-game YA novel addresses being true to oneself in a funny, heartfelt way…Yoon's colorful language and careful plotting enhance an effective, meaningful story about self-acceptance.

Kirkus Reviews (starred review)
Yoon captures the humor, the heart, and the universal anxieties—and possibilities—of trying on new identities in high school while also exploring microaggressions, toxic masculinity, bullying, parachute parenting, and classism...A clever, hilarious, and empathetic look at diverse teens exploring authenticity, identities, and code-switching.

Publishers Weekly (starred review)
[An] endearingly winning coming-of-age novel...Yoon challenges stereotypes and tackles the age-old theme of being true to oneself, whether that self is a rock star or a nerd.

School Library Journal (starred review)
Readers will be drawn in by the sweet romance and Sunny's hilarious narration. But in a novel filled with excellent writing, strong characterization, and abundant positive messages, perhaps the greatest strength of all is the emotional openness of the male characters. Yoon's sophomore follow-up to 2019's Frankly in Love is charming, witty, and inspirational. Highly recommended.

Booklist
[Sunny's] voice, unique and wry, is gripping. Fans of Yoon's Frankly in Love—and there are legions—will enjoy this follow-up that similarly tries to reconcile romance with identity.

Reader Reviews

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Beyond the Book



Live Action Role-Playing (LARP)

LARPers dressed in fantasy costumes weilding prop weaponsBefore Sunny Dae embarks on a rock 'n' roll career in Super Fake Love Song, he and his friends are minor celebrities in the world of LARPing, which stands for Live Action Role-Playing. If you're familiar with tabletop role-playing games like Dungeons & Dragons or online role-playing games like EverQuest, LARPing is sort of like one of those games come to life, complete with characters, settings, props and plots.

Many childhood games of imagination could be loosely categorized as LARPs, as could some improv theater games, but when most people talk about LARPing, they are referring to a fantasy game largely for adults, with established rules and structure. LARPing began in the 1960s, but really took off in the mid-1970s, evolving from ...

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Read-Alikes

Read-Alikes Full readalike results are for members only

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