By Anelis Torres-Alfinez ‘24
Heartstopper is a sweet but quick read. It is a story about a boy named Charlie Spring. He attends an all boy school in England. Charlie came out as gay during his freshman year. Now in his sophomore year he meets Nick Nelson, a junior, in his new homeroom class. This is a year of new things for Charlie as he joins the rugby school team.
The author of the Heartstopper series is Alice Oseman. In a few interviews Oseman explained that she wrote Heartstopper because of the homophobia that she experienced in school. She wants the book to inspire others to express themselves and not be afraid of who they are.
Charlie and Nick become friends because their homeroom teacher decided to sit them next to each other. At first they don’t talk much, but eventually they start talking more and more. Soon they become close friends, and Nick convinces Charlie to join the rugby team. The two are always together.
Heartstopper is a graphic novel in which Alice Oseman created the illustrations herself. She did an amazing job at portraying the characters emotions through the illustrations. The main character, Charlie, seems to be an anxious person by the way his feelings are shown in certain parts of the book. In a particular scene Oseman does a great job showing that Charlie and Nick are both flustered by the situation they are in.
The story that Oseman wrote is relatable. Being a student in high school is not easy. There are a lot of students who get bullied for being different like Charlie. A lot of it feels real, as if you could be in the situation yourself. In the book you see Charlie having a crush and talking to his friend about it. That is something that most people relate to, as well as Charlie’s feelings throughout the book.
Overall the book was a good read, and I cannot wait to read the rest of the books. There is also a show based on this book series. I will definitely watch it after reading the books, since I heard it is a good watch. I would recommend this book to readers who enjoy looking at images and being able to finish a book within a day. It is not for those who are not interested in reading about love stories.