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You ever read a book and you’re like, “I came to have a good time and I’m honestly feeling so attacked right now?!” Because that’s how I felt about Not Like the Movies. Kerry Winfrey’s follow up to Waiting for Tom Hanks circles Chloe and Nick in the aftermath of the revelation that the romcom Annie’s been writing is about them. Both books are a lot of fun, full of banter and pop culture references, but this one struck a major chord with me because of Chloe’s characterization: someone who’s a young caretaker, whose family is a bit of a mess, who’s a little lost and lonely and never stops moving because if she does, she’ll fall apart. She feels like everyone is moving on while she’s in stasis, and while she’s genuinely happy for them, she’s grappling with what that means for her. WHO GAVE YOU THE RIGHT, KERRY? Beyond that though, Chloe and Nick’s sunshine and grump dynamic is so much fun to watch - I’ll listen to them bicker over Yacht rock any day - and it was great to see some bisexual rep where it’s a totally normalized part of the character’s identity. Overall, I really enjoyed the duology and I’m definitely looking forward to the release of Winfrey’s new book! ⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀ TW: parental abandonment, Alzheimer’s ⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀ ID: I’m holding a kindle displaying the ebook cover of Not Like the Movies against a cream colored wall. via Instagram https://instagr.am/p/CQ8n-M5LdSL/