Title: The Gravity of Us
Author: Phil Stamper
Publisher: Bloomsbury
Length: 320 Pages
Category: Young Adult/Teen
At a Glance: All in all, this was a super fun story, and a great own-voices debut from Stamper. I hope to see much more from him in the future!
Reviewed By: Jules
Blurb: Cal wants to be a journalist, and he’s already well underway with almost half a million followers on his FlashFame app and an upcoming internship at Buzzfeed. But his plans are derailed when his pilot father is selected for a highly-publicized NASA mission to Mars. Within days, Cal and his parents leave Brooklyn for hot and humid Houston.
With the entire nation desperate for any new information about the astronauts, Cal finds himself thrust in the middle of a media circus. Suddenly his life is more like a reality TV show, with his constantly bickering parents struggling with their roles as the “perfect American family.”
And then Cal meets Leon, whose mother is another astronaut on the mission, and he finds himself falling head over heels–and fast. They become an oasis for each other amid the craziness of this whole experience. As their relationship grows, so does the frenzy surrounding the Mars mission, and when secrets are revealed about ulterior motives of the program, Cal must find a way to get to the truth without hurting the people who have become most important to him.
Review: Phil Stamper’s debut novel, The Gravity of Us, has been hyped as one of the most anticipated LGBTQ YA books of the year on just about every list out there, as well as being promoted heavily by his peers; and after finishing it, I can certainly see why. The story is lovely and thought-provoking, with an original premise, and tons of relatable situations and topics to pull teens in. Readers will not only cheer for Cal’s triumphs, but will be drawn in by both Cal and Leon’s everyday struggles as well. Stamper covers a lot of ground, including family dynamics, the importance of friendships, first love, anxiety and depression, the responsibility of the media—in particular, those outlets and networks that cover reality shows—and the power of social media in today’s world.
Cal Lewis is a seventeen-year-old aspiring journalist from Brooklyn, who has gained almost half a million followers on his FlashFame account by posting live videos covering everything from current affairs to his popular regular segment giving recommendations on cool things to do around the city. Cal’s followers seem to love his take on the major news stories the most, though, particularly his coverage on NASA’s Orpheus project. However, Cal is worried about how much he’s disappointed everyone by pulling back on his reports after finding out his dad had applied to be one of the astronauts to man Orpheus V’s mission to Mars.
When Cal’s dad is chosen, and the family has to pick up and move to Clear Lake, Texas, immediately, Cal is angry and devastated. He doesn’t want to leave Brooklyn, or his best friend Deb, and he certainly doesn’t want to have to give up posting his videos, which it looks like he might be forced to do, given NASA’s deal with StarWatch, who produce a reality show all about the project and the astronauts and their families. He also doesn’t think his family will fit in with the other families. His parents have been doing nothing but fight lately, his mom has crippling anxiety, and his dad just isn’t on the same level as the other highly talented people who have been chosen. After just a couple of days in Texas, though, and meeting a certain cute neighbor and fellow “astrokid,” Cal finds himself wondering if it’s maybe not going to be so bad after all.
I loved the evolution of Cal’s character in the book. Especially the way the things he learns about NASA, and his dad’s love of the space program, start to make him see his dad in a new light. His relationship with Leon also teaches him so much about himself, including the fact that you can’t always “fix” everything, especially people. Sometimes you need to give people the space to figure things out for themselves. I also appreciated Stamper’s open discussion of mental health issues. It’s so important to keep giving space to characters with anxiety and depression in books, TV, and movies. I wish more had been said about Leon getting help with his depression, but therapy was talked about with regard to Cal’s mom, so that was good at least.
The romance between Cal and Leon was sweet, if perhaps a bit too quick, and I also loved so much the friendship between the two of them and Leon’s sister. But I really think my favorite thing about the book was the growth of Cal’s relationship with this dad. I loved when the two of them banded together toward the end to try to save the day, so to speak. And, I really did love all the NASA, history, space nerd stuff, too!
All in all, this was a super fun story, and a great own-voices debut from Stamper. I hope to see much more from him in the future!
You can buy The Gravity of Us here:
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