Over spring break, I read How It All Blew Up by Arvin Ahmadi. This realistic fiction novel is about 18-year-old Amir Azadi who is faced with the reality of coming out to his Iranian American family. During his senior year of high school after moving to a new school, he secretly dates another boy, Jackson Preacher, for the first time, but when two classmates, Ben and Jake, plan to blackmail him by showing a picture of him kissing Jackson to his parents on graduation day, Amir decides to run away to Rome. In Rome, he meets a community of young queer men and begins to feel more comfortable with his identity. He even considers what it would be like to stay long-term. Meanwhile, his younger sister, Soraya, investigates to find out why Amir ran away and where he is. After she spills the news to their parents, everything comes crashing down on Amir and he and his family are stuck recounting their story to U.S. Customs officers.
When I started reading this book, I had no idea what to expect, but I ended up enjoying it even though there were times when I wanted to yell at Amir to stop making bad choices. I actually really felt for Amir because it seems really hard to feel like you have to keep a big secret about yourself from parents that have demonstrated that they have conservative views due to their culture and upbringing. I absolutely loved that he ran away to Rome, though, because I myself visited Italy less than two years ago. As I was reading, I definitely felt like I was back there. I also thought it was interesting how the story reveals that the lives of Amir's new friends aren't as perfect as he originally thought. He learns to see them as people who have struggles, too. Additionally, I really adored Soraya because she was sassy and immediately accepting of Amir after she learned about his sexuality. She's an amazing younger sister and I could tell how much she and Amir care about each other even when they were reluctant to admit it. While Amir's dad was frustrating at times, I did understand the perspectives of him and Amir's mom. I think it can be hard for parents to learn that their children have hopes and dreams that differ from their expectations. Amir's relationship with his mom seem to be in a good place at the end of the story, but his dad definitely still has room to grow. I don't want to say too much, but the very last chapter was bittersweet, as well. It made me wish Amir was still in Rome. Due to swearing and some suggestive content, I recommend How It All Blew Up to mature readers who enjoy friendship and family stories that have a dash of romance.
