This has today's relevance running through it in an abundance of ways. Start with a small town where tension, both political and religious, simmer beneath the appearance of tranquility. Top that with a girl named Phoebe whose curiosity about sex was lit on fire when a gynecologist retired in her neighborhood and she bought all the woman's textbooks and models at a lawn sale. She's read much of her hoard, and her increaded knowledge led her to start an online blog called Circle Within the Square. It was a place to sort out her thoughts and save information, but then it went viral. Now she's faced with a dilemma...keep it low profile, or run with it because there's certainly plenty of interest and teens who comment are definitely eager to know the right answers to sex questions. Then a woman who those in Maine would most likely compare to someone named LePage, (or fill in any hard-wired religious fanatic), goes on a witch hunt, trying to root out the blogger. That fanaticism escalates to the woman running for mayor, using threats, quite possibly supporting violence against enterprises she dislikes in town, using possibly illegal tracking software, and even going as far as bribing a boy that Phoebe liked and respected, who is editor of the school newspaper she writes for. Sadly, that boy shows his weakness right when Phoebe needs support. Fortunately, she has her best friend, the best friend's geeky boyfriend, and a football player who shows surprising integrity, also right when Phoebe needs it most.
This might seem a bit long for a review, but there are so many aspects/hot buttons in here that teens, especially girls, are dealing with right now that I wanted to do it justice. It's a no-brainer choice for school and public libraries. ( )

Thank you, TBR and Beyond Tours, for the chance to read a really great young adult book that tackles an important topic without making it cringy or dull.

Which of us has ever had a really informative talk with our parents? What we know, generally speaking, comes from pop culture, things we google in secret and porn. I live in a country where we ask if a woman is married to check if she’s sexually active or not. For me, the talk was just about periods and just that this happens to a woman as she grows older. I was then accidentally given a book on teen health that everyone thought would convince me to eat healthier and lose weight but instead answered the other question that plagued my mind; can a guy pee inside you when you’re having sex?

Sex education is still a controversial topic in most places. For some reason, people think it will involve showing young kids porn and encouraging kids to do it, and not as we will tell young people that STDs are a real thing, you can get pregnant the very first time, and what is good touch and bad touch. Let’s not even get into the joy of sex. It can be about pleasure and not just something for men to thirst for and women to put up with.

So when the sign-ups for On The Subject of Unmentionable Things went around, I was curious. This could either be really good or really bad, and I’m happy to say it fell into the first category.

I had a brilliant professor in my freshmen year. She was a labor historian in Pakistan. I may not remember her exact words, but she talked about people who commented on why she was researching labor in Pakistan and not women because she was a woman. Her answer was, simply put, because I’m interested in labor.

I thought of this because On The Subject of Unmentionable Things reminds us that a woman’s interests are political. A woman’s choice to study something not directly related to women is political. And we have Phoebe right here writing a blog and managing a Twitter page on the most political thing of them all; sex. She writes about sex not from a place of fear or because she’s having loads and thinking about facts turns her on; she writes about it because the human body, and sex, are fascinating things. You can be incredibly interested in them for no reason than that.

Julia Walton’s book was excellent. She touches on subjects that impact many of us; misinformation, fear-mongering, racism, sexism, homophobia, and how people can just be assholes without making this book feel preachy or boring. She writes well and has a plot, and I’m disappointed with Random House for not marketing this book better because she only has 3 reviews on amazon.

Phoebe has friends who don’t know the truth, parents trying to figure out how to manage their business and political preferences, people whose loyalty is up for rent, and a trump like woman who wants to make her town great again.

You get where the author leans politically, and I love that about her. This is not her first book on teens, but her third. She seems to genuinely care about younger readers because while this book didn’t hold back, it wasn’t a graphic read. Phoebe does get slut shamed; the town is vandalized; she is stolen from. And yet you have a character that comes through with dignity and self-respect. Julia Walton writes about a character more mature than most of the older ones, a reminder that only the young can run.

An exciting and compelling story with engaging, genuine characters I cared about.

What a fantastic story! For most of the book, I had a smile on my face as I followed Phoebe through her days and evenings of maintaining her blog and anonymity. Phoebe is intelligent, curious, and brave for putting herself and her research out there to share with others who didn’t have this vitally needed information. I loved how she had a real idea of what she wanted in her future (veterinarian ballerina was hilarious.) She’s amazingly comfortable talking about all the unmentionable things; however, she’s been working on her research and blog for two years by this time, so I was good with that. The back and forth with her delightful friend, Cora, was a joy to watch. They were a mighty duo, having each other’s back like they did.

But the story isn’t all light and fluffy by any means. There are real issues brought into the open: sexuality and knowing one’s own body. Some of the questions posed may appear so simple to adults, but they are real unknowns to the young. The answers to the blog questions were outstanding, very well thought out, and strictly adhered to presenting facts and not opinions. I liked that the author pointed out the differences between possible responses.

There are romances for Phoebe and Cora. Phoebe has two boys she is interested in, and they turn out to be very different from each other. I liked how the author has Phoebe learn that there is more than one way to approach intimacy, and she must trust herself to know which one is right for her. I also really appreciated that the typical football hero turns out to have some hidden depths. He was just an all-around great guy.

The characters, old and young, all make mistakes. Some take responsibility for them right away, some delay but step up, and others never do, just like in real life. The characters and the story felt genuine.

There are occurrences of strong profanity at particular (and appropriate) points in the book. However, if that is something you’re concerned with, it doesn’t happen often, but the words used are the big ones.

With its genuine and engaging characters and compelling storyline, I read this book in just a little over one day; I didn’t want to put it down! I recommend ON THE SUBJECT OF UNMENTIONABLE THINGS to young adults and readers of young adult fiction.

I voluntarily reviewed this after receiving an Advanced Review Copy from the author or publisher through TBR and Beyond Book Tours. ( )