I Love 'Love Frankie'

Books are a bit like a lifeline for me. I absolutely love books and am constantly adding to my TBR (to be read) list. It’s at a point where it’s probably my most expensive hobby and might be a little out of control. I don’t have room on my bookshelf for any more books - like it’s bad, folks. 

That’s not the point of this article though. The point of this article is to tell you about one of the books on my TBR list that I have actually read. This book is Love Frankie by Jacqueline Wilson. Love Frankie is a novel that centres around thirteen-year-old (but nearly fourteen-year-old, as she always points out) Frankie who certainly has her fair share of ups and downs as every teenager does. She is bullied at school, her mum has been diagnosed with MS/multiple sclerosis not to mention that her dad has left and has a new girlfriend who Frankie doesn’t particularly like. Over the course of the novel, a lot of things change for poor confused Frankie. When Sally, one of her bullies, turns out to be not-so-mean after all, they become firm friends and are suddenly spending all of their time together. But Frankie starts to wonder whether these feelings she has for Sally are stronger than her other friendships and if so, why. Might she really be in love? 

The reason why this book is so incredible to me is because I find it incredibly relatable. I feel like every teenager, particularly every LGBTQ+ teenager, has felt these feelings and has questioned whether their best friend is more than a friend and whether they’ve fallen in love. I certainly have. When I was 11 or 12 years old, I started having these funny feelings towards a female friend of mine, feelings that I’d never experienced before. It freaked me out big time - I had no idea what was happening, what these feelings were, why I felt this way and what I could do to stop feeling this way. Is it a case of you wanting to be with her, or is it just that you want to be her? I didn’t tell anyone that I had felt this way and didn’t fully accept myself as bisexual until I was 15 years old. So I know exactly how confused and worried Frankie felt about having these intense feelings for Sally which made it feel realistic and made me feel much more understood about those feelings I had felt.

I think this book will even help young girls or young people in general who are straight and feel comfortable in their heterosexuality. Heterosexuality has always been normalised in society, almost as the default, therefore meaning that any form of homosexuality has automatically been seen as abnormal or weird or wrong. Though homophobia has gotten much less in the past 20 years and it is more accepted now than it ever has been before, Love Frankie will help those who realise they are straight but will have gay love normalised for them. Seeing a topic like this addressed in popular culture will only help the fight towards homosexuality being normal and it may even change the views of some people who may have been brought up in a homophobic environment. 

It is pretty clear that a lot of other people felt the same way as I did, and critics loved it.

Praise for Jacqueline Wilson and Love Frankie:
‘I would have loved it as a younger teen. I'm so pleased for all the girls who will get to read this at the same age as Frankie and see themselves reflected in the pages.’

‘A powerful and important love story, this book explores coming of age and coming out. I hope it will give girls everywhere the courage and freedom to follow their hearts.’

‘A brilliant read that also deals wonderfully with relationships, bullying and of course what love is. An absolutely brilliant story and should be read by parents as well as teenagers.’

‘Generally, Love Frankie has a fun, enjoyable story that explores sexuality as well as a parent with a chronic illness. I’m very appreciative of the fact that there’s a queer story for young people written by such a high-profile author who is gay herself!’

Overall, I really do love this book. I would definitely recommend it to anyone who is struggling with being authentically themselves or is exploring their gender or sexuality as if 12 year old me had read this book back then, I can guarantee it would have helped me. 

Out of 5:  🌟🌟🌟🌟 and a half 

Dame Jacqueline Wilson is an English author and novelist, born in 1945, known for her popular children's literature and young people’s books. Since her debut novel in 1969 when she was only 24, Wilson has written over 100 books, including popular titles such as The Story of Tracy Beaker, Double Act, Vicky Angel, The Dumping Ground and many others. Her books have also been adapted into TV shows, plays and movies since their release. In April 2020, Wilson announced she was in a same-sex relationship. She revealed that she had been living with her partner, Trish, for 18 years.

For more information about Jacqueline Wilson or to buy her books:
https://www.penguin.co.uk/puffin/jacqueline-wilson.html
https://www.whsmith.co.uk/authors/jacqueline-wilson/
https://www.youtube.com/user/JacquelineWilsonTV

I sincerely hope that you enjoy reading her books as much as I have.

~ Kenzie

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Kenzie