From its dedication, which read, “For anyone who has ever gotten into a pool with their shirt on,” I knew this book was for me. I haven't found a book that spoke to me so directly in a while.
At school, Felipe is teased constantly about his weight. He knows there are people in his home country of Brazil with bigger problems, but he can’t think about those because of the constant abuse he takes from his classmates, even the stares from people on the street. He's just so tired of being self-conscious all the time.
Winter break is nearly here and he’s looking forward to two weeks away from the hell of school, of doing little but binge-watching Netflix. But that excitement dies quickly when he learns that Caio, a boy who lives in his apartment building, will be staying with Felipe and his mother while his parents are on vacation.
Felipe has had a crush on Caio for as long as he can remember. They even used to be friends when they were younger, until Felipe became self-conscious about his weight. But Caio is handsome and there’s no way he’d be interested in him. For Felipe, who is painfully shy about how he looks, to have to share a room with his crush for two weeks, will be torture. Or will it?
Having struggled with my weight for most of my life, especially in high school, I felt this story so strongly. I loved these characters and their laughs and struggles and fears, what it feels like to be the target of ridicule and even better, how magical it feels to click with someone.
Like with rom-coms, you know what will happen here but you enjoy the journey of getting there. Vitor Martins created such a terrifically beautiful story. This was just so special, funny, and lovely. I'll be thinking of Here the Whole Time for a long time!
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