This character-driven YA novel about the harmful effects of social media features a young woman learning about sexuality and empowerment.
Seventeen-year-old Lulu has curated the perfect life for her 10,000 Flash followers to admire. Her first real post, though, is an accident: Lulu sends her followers a video of her kissing a girl. When Lulu meets Cass, who doesn't care about following social rules, it's as if "the unapologetic, unadorned voice" in the back of Lulu's head has come to life. Cass takes Lulu to The Hotel, an old Hollywood building and no-phone-zone being restored to its former glory by Cass's 18-year-old mega-wealthy best friend, Ryan. There, without the public's watchful eye, Lulu feels safe to explore feelings she doesn't quite know how to name. But Lulu soon finds herself in the limelight again when Ryan's possessiveness over Cass reveals itself in a very public way.
Look is a love letter to the Selfie Generation. Zan Romanoff (Grace and the Fever) cautions against the dangers of keeping up appearances, confirms it's sometimes okay not to be okay, and encourages teens to be themselves: "Isn't it a type of normal? If it's what's normal for me?" Lulu's self-discovery teems with feminist themes. Whether it's Lulu coming to terms with what feminism means to her or a podcast examining the ways men use women's beauty to control them, Romanoff bolsters Lulu's journey to validation with much-appreciated feminist critique. Look and Lulu feel like a plea from Romanoff: stop showing the world what you think others want to see and instead show them what you are. --Lana Barnes, freelance reviewer and proofreader