A New York Times, USA Today, and Indie bestseller!
Critically acclaimed and bestselling authors Becky Albertalli and Adam Silvera combine their talents in this smart, funny, heartfelt collaboration about two very different boys who can’t decide if the universe is pushing them together—or pulling them apart.
ARTHUR is only in New York for the summer, but if Broadway has taught him anything, … apart.
ARTHUR is only in New York for the summer, but if Broadway has taught him anything, it’s that the universe can deliver a showstopping romance when you least expect it.
BEN thinks the universe needs to mind its business. If the universe had his back, he wouldn’t be on his way to the post office carrying a box of his ex-boyfriend’s things.
But when Arthur and Ben meet-cute at the post office, what exactly does the universe have in store for them . . . ?
Maybe nothing. After all, they get separated.
Maybe everything. After all, they get reunited.
But what if they can’t nail a first date even after three do-overs?
What if Arthur tries too hard to make it work and Ben doesn’t try hard enough?
What if life really isn’t like a Broadway play?
But what if it is?
What if it’s us?
Plus don’t miss Yes No Maybe So, Becky Albertalli’s and Aisha Saeed’s heartwarming and hilarious new novel, or Infinity Son, the first book in Adam Silvera’s epic new fantasy series, both coming in 2020!
more
4.5 stars
This was ADORABLE!!! That’s really the one word that popped up in my mind throughout the entire story.
In this realistic YA fiction novel, everything from beginning to end was adorable, cute, heart-warming and just REAL!! The feelings between Arthur and Ben were realistic, flawed, and emotionally all consuming.
Arthur was my favorite character!!
He was OTT dramatic, enthusiastic, lovable, and just awesome. He made me smile, laugh out loud – and I mean out loud, and took my heart by storm. If I had a chance I would hug him and never let go. He was adorable!!!! And his enthusiasm for all things, but especially for BEN left me with the best FEELS imaginary. I loved hime so much!! His distinctive voice was the best things since sliced bread!! I could have listened to him for hours – which I did, but still, he was so enthusiastic about everything, and when he started blabbering there was no stopping him, and I was sitting there grinning from ear to ear.
Arthur and Ben’s story was wonderful!! An adorable meet cute and dates that needed do-overs all the time to get the perfect first date. They weren’t matched perfectly, and that just underscored how realistic this story was. Because when do you find a partner that fits 100%? Every relationship or even friendship requires work and compromises, of course it helps having a lot of things in common, but not even that was a given. Arthur and Ben really worked on all of it, and it didn’t come easy. But their willingness to try again made this story so wonderful.
Now about the ending: (beware of spoilers)
It did leave me hanging – kinda!! I understood how they both had to do their own thing, because of them being both minors and just because life opens doors and opportunities at different times. But I loved how close they still were. Best friends, and maybe more? I needed the ‘maybe more’.
BUT, I must admit the authors did a fabulous job in creating two characters that made a perfect couple after putting a lot of work into it. Their friendship endured, grew, matured and left me speechless by being more mature than I imagined. Living different lives in different states, Arthur and Ben managed to be still best friends. And even though their friendship was just a friendship at this point (epilogue) and both were forced to move on in some way or the other the authors kept the window open for something more. And this is where I hope we’ll get a sequel, maybe a couple years in their future, when both, but especially Ben found his own place and self worth without needing anyone else.
So, all in all this is a MUST READ!!! It was so much more than I thought it would be. Especially since I knew about the ending and picked it up anyway. It made me smile, chuckle, and smile some more and just gave me a feel of happiness that never waned. And the audiobook was beyond PERFECTION!!!!!
Noah Galvin as Arthur was DEVINE!!!!
He killed it!! His enthusiasm jumped right through the phone and I loved his performance so much!!
So, go and grab it, you won’t be disappointed – much…..
I’d like to know how exactly Becky Albertalli and Adam Silvera looked into my head and wrote a book specifically tailored to my interests??
Story time: this past summer (the very summer, in fact, that this book takes place) I was living in New York City. Like Arthur, I was very much not a New Yorker, not really sure how to act, and sure I stood out as a tourist every time I stopped to take pictures of the buildings around me, even though technically I lived there. Like Arthur, I was that musical nerd walking down the streets of New York singing Dear Evan Hansen to myself and daydreaming about winning the Hamilton lottery. In fact, the day before this book begins is the day that I saw Dear Evan Hansen on Broadway. So you could say that this book was a little relatable to me.
(Also, it was wild keeping track of the dates when events in this book take place and remembering where I was in New York City on those days. There was a time that I was in Washington Square Park on the same day as the characters!)
Personal story aside, I truly loved every moment of this book. Both Becky and Adam are such strong writers who have created some of my favorite YA contemporaries, and putting them together is a recipe for perfect success. I flew through this – when I first picked it up, I don’t think I moved for three hours. I was sucked into the story and couldn’t bear to pull myself away.
The two main characters, Ben and Arthur, are absolutely precious. I definitely related most to Arthur, for the aforementioned reasons. He’s nerdy and optimistic and excited about everything and has zero chill whatsoever, which I found endearing. I appreciated that his character arc wasn’t about other people telling him to tone it down, since it’s okay to be excited about things! And Ben was also such a strong character – protective and thoughtful and slightly more insecure and pessimistic, but every bit as sweet and nerdy. He and Arthur fit so well together! Of course, they still had to work for their relationship, which was another aspect of this book that I appreciated. They didn’t always get things exactly right, but even when they weren’t perfect, they were willing to make the effort to keep trying.
This book was very much focused on the relationship between these two, but it didn’t ignore the other people in the characters’ lives. The relationship between Ben and his best friend Dylan (and later Dylan’s girlfriend) was one of my favorite parts, since it was so clear how much they care about each other despite their constant teasing. We also get a lot of both main boys’ relationships with their parents, which were complex and hard and heartwarming in different ways. Plus, Arthur’s two best friends from Georgia are a major part of his life and his character arc. So in addition to the beautiful love story, we get plenty about the worlds both of the characters inhabit!
Going into this, I wondered whether we’d get a Becky ending or an Adam ending. Anyone who has read books by either of these authors knows that Becky’s usually leave you full of heart fluff and happiness, while Adams rip your heart out. I wasn’t sure how they would write an ending that fit both of them but didn’t feel wishy-washy and caught in the middle. Happily, I’d say they succeeded. I’ll let you discover for yourself, but I thought it was the perfect way to end this book.
If you’re looking for a feel-good contemporary to make you believe in love again, look no further than What If It’s Us. Combining the heat and bustle of summer in New York City with the heart flutters of falling in love, this book reminded me of everything that I wish for in romance stories. It was chock full of nerdy references (yes, there was an entire scene in which Ben and Arthur listened to Hamilton together), laugh-out-loud moments, and some truly touching and emotional scenes. Not only was it somehow perfectly tailored to everything that I love, but I feel like this is a book that so many readers will find joy in.
*listens to Only Us on repeat while crying about Arthur and Ben*
A totally adorable little story of first love.
Adorable little story of first love.
I read this book in under 24 hours with the inconveniences of having to stop to eat, go to school, and do homework. It was AMAZING! I laughed, I cried, and I definitely fell in love with Arthur and Ben.
Warning: I hate it when a book has that kind of ending and you’re not sure what will really happen and have to guess. But in this case I understand why the writers wrote that end.
In that context, I must admit I really enjoyed this book, it was a beautiful, refreshing and fun story about the discovery of first love and the importance of trying to be with that special someone…
This was so cute