I was sent a copy of Under the Rainbow by Celia Laskey to read and review by NetGalley. I really enjoyed this novel. It well written in the first person by all the different characters, which is unusual as with this style of writing it is generally only the protagonist that is treated in this way. I felt that this was a great way to tackle the issues surrounding this small town (Big Burr, Kansas) that was reputed to be “the most homophobic town in America”. It gave a more believable edge to each different person’s story coming from their own minds and words. The LGBTQ aspect was treated with respect and without any sensationalism on a very personal level, coming from many varied viewpoints. While this is a novel it gives an important message: that of whatever your views and preferences on gender and sexuality we are all individual people and should be accepted as such - with respect.

Thank you to the publisher and NetGalley for providing me with a copy of this novel in exchange for an honest review. It is set to be published in December 2021.

"Under the Rainbow" by Celia Laskey is not your usual LGBT novel, and I would be hard-pressed to pinpoint a genre for it, but maybe we all need to focus less on what a book's genre might be and more on the book itself.
It's certainly one of the most original novels I've read this year.
I'll admit the first chapter didn't impress me - the interactions between Avery and Jake felt contrived, unnatural: no real high school student speaks that way - but after that, the book improves fast, and quickly makes up for a bit of an awkward beginning. By the end of chapter one, I was intrigued; a handful of pages into chapter 2, I was hooked.
It's a very original idea to have a different protagonist (and narrator) in each chapter, alternating between members of the queer task force and the honest, God-fearing citizens of Big Burr, "the most homophobic place in America".
Not living in America myself, I have to wonder how much of this is true to life and how much of it is just the author going overboard to make her point.
It was certainly a thought-provoking read--sometimes touching, sometimes funny, and consistently thought-provoking.
It reminded me a bit of "Nothing Can Hurt You" by Nicola Maye Goldberg, in that "Nothing Can Hurt You" is also a choral novel told by all different narrators, one for each chapter, and it's also been heavily criticised because of the author's highly unusual narrative choices.
Overall, I really enjoyed "Under the Rainbow"--I think it's a must-read for anybody who is queer or wants to understand queerness and how to support queer people.
I'm definitely going to keep an eye out for the author's next works because her original writing style is very promising.

I struggled with this one. Though I really enjoyed the concept - it seems like an odd HBO show that Adam McKay would be attached to produce - I wasn't so fond of the execution. With so many characters to contend with, no one becomes particularly developed or gets much of a journey. Me being me, I also lost track after a while of just who was who. It's a novel, I think, that just skims the surface, rather than digging deeper down in, leaving much to be desired by the end. Not for me, I don't think.

An interesting story about a social experiment and facing the difference.
It's a collection of story, mostly poignant and emotionally charged, all interesting and engrossing.
I liked the style of writing and how the author manages the voices of the different characters.
I look forward to reading other books by this author.
Recommended.
Many thanks to the publisher for this ARC, all opinions are mine.

After the publisher offered me a review copy, I chose Under the Rainbow by Celia Laskey. The blurb sounded good and is like other books I have read previously.

Under the Rainbow is a slightly odd read. A small Kansas town called Big Burr has been voted the most homophobic town in the US. So the queer activist group 'Acceptance Across America' (AAA) moved in and lived in Big Burr to help educate the community and bring more acceptance.

Each chapter is told by a different character and their point of view, which is exciting but feels a little disjointed in places. It's like a collection of short stories. This has an interesting premise, and the activist group are amazing, but the book doesn't flow as well as it could. You need to really think a lot to keep up with whom the chapter is focusing on,

There are a lot of characters and perspectives in this. However, no character is wholly developed due to the alternate chapters, which vary between the activists and the residents.

The characters are somewhat cliched, but I enjoyed the teens' perspectives the most. I liked reading about the different perspectives and, in some cases, the reasons for their views. I also appreciated that some managed to change or be more accepting despite social pressures not to.

The conclusion is lovely. A lot of the loose ends are neatly tied up, and it provides a happily ever after. It was nice to visit ten years later and see how things had changed over the longer term.

Laskey has captured the pressures of living in a small town well and the horror of homophobia. However, I liked how some people changed and had more honest opinions. Interestingly the older woman, who was initially one of the most sceptical, became more open and willing to learn.

Many thanks to the publisher, author and Netgalley for an Advanced Review Copy in exchange for an honest review. All thoughts and opinions are my own and are not influenced in any way.

Big Burr, Kansas, has been named the homophobic capital of America by a non-profit, and they send a task force of 15 people into the town to change minds and educate the locals. Narrated by several voices from the task force and the community, this novel looks at what happens when the two groups clash, and the secrets that are brought up for everyone. I did like the style, the first chapter is almost YA as we meet Avery, furious at moving away from LA with one of her mums, convinced her mum isn't happy she's not come out as a lesbian after all.

Things do get dark quickly as we encounter the overt homophobia, fear and hatred - some characters do understand, including Linda, who finds new purpose and friendships after the death of her son labels her in the town, but many do not, and there's an unpleasant (but I can see it's not entirely gratuitous) subplot involving a resident taking an activist's pet cat (the cat doesn't survive, this is signposted, but there's nothing described in detail). There is some quite strong detail about an accident and a teen party, and one elderly man's obsessive thoughts about his wife's new lover are a bit much.

My full review https://librofulltime.wordpress.com/2021/12/06/book-reviews-someone-elses-dream-and-under-the-rainbow/

The blurb on the book sounded very interesting but very disappointed in it.

Big Burr is classed as the most homophobic town in the US, so a group of activists move into the town to try and make a difference.

Did not like the writing of the book, started off interesting then kept jumping to other stories which didn`t seem to connect, so was very confusing for me and I couldn`t keep interested so didn``t finish the book.

Thanks to Netgalley for the ARC in exchange for my honest review.

Posted to Goodreads

Okay so I didn’t like this book.
However!
It was a brilliant book: well written, well executed, and my opinion of it is based on a personal plot note.

It was an unpleasant story. It was uncomfortable, occasionally horrible, and full of negativity.
The book set me on edge. I know people like every character in this novel, and I was genuinely in fight or flight mode the whole time I was reading.
But, if that was (as I believe it to be!) the intended tone then truly, it was amazingly well done!

Now for the positives:

The final chapter? Glorious. I waited and prayed for a chapter like that to come, and it was everything I had wanted for the book. I loved it.

It was also very well written, easy to read (as in flowed perfectly, not a breezy read!)
Full of well-fleshed characters. even though we only got to know each character over a chapter, they were all complete human beings!

So much of the story was rooted and developed in pain and suffering, and the characters’ experiences were things that happen in the real world. Laskey was incredible at showing that for what it is.

Most of this novel felt like a queer book intended for non-queer, non-allies to read and start their understanding. It was raw, poignant, and painful, and put a spotlight on LGBTQ+ experiences that stem from small towns.

Overall, it was a tough read. A good book, but difficult to digest.

It wasn't what I thought it was going to be, but I still enjoyed it. Big Burr has been identified as the most homophobic town in America and a group of LGBT activists move to the town to see if they can make a difference.

What follows is essentially an anthology of short stories and meditations from a spectrum of people all across the town.

It looks at all sides of the 'argument' and tries to understand why some people think the way they do.

The first viewpoint is a teenage girl, so it starts off like a Young Adult book, but if you're not a fan of YA, don't let that put you off, as it grows into something more.

It's a thought-provoking book and an enjoyable read.

I'll be sharing the following review on December 8th as part of the blog tour:

Thank you to HQ Stories and Netgalley for approving me to read 𝗨𝗡𝗗𝗘𝗥 𝗧𝗛𝗘 𝗥𝗔𝗜𝗡𝗕𝗢𝗪 by Celia Laskey, and for having me along on the blog tour 🥳
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“𝗟𝗲𝘀𝗯𝗶𝗮𝗻𝘀? 𝗜 𝘁𝗵𝗼𝘂𝗴𝗵𝘁 𝘁𝗵𝗲𝘆 𝘄𝗲𝗿𝗲 𝗰𝗹𝗼𝘁𝗵𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗺𝗼𝗱𝗲𝗹𝘀 𝗼𝗿 𝘀𝗼𝗺𝗲𝘁𝗵𝗶𝗻𝗴.”
“𝗘𝘅𝗮𝗰𝘁𝗹𝘆. 𝗧𝗵𝗲𝘆’𝗿𝗲 𝘁𝗼𝗼 𝗽𝗿𝗲𝘁𝘁𝘆 𝘁𝗼 𝗯𝗲 𝗮𝗰𝘁𝘂𝗮𝗹 𝗹𝗲𝘀𝗯𝗶𝗮𝗻𝘀.”
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I want to start by saying how much I LOVED Under the Rainbow.
Although the story is a work of fiction - following the impact of the arrival of a social activist group (called Acceptance Across America) in Big Burr, the most homophobic town in the US - it depicts so many realistic LGBTQIA+ stories.
The characters feel so legitimate and authentic; both in regards to the LGBTQIA+ activists and the residents of Big Burr.
Also, the name of the town 🐻🤎🧡💛🤍🖤
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𝗜 𝘀𝘁𝗮𝗿𝘁 𝗯𝘆 𝗮𝘀𝗸𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗵𝗼𝘄 𝗲𝘃𝗲𝗿𝘆𝗼𝗻𝗲 𝗶𝘀 𝗳𝗲𝗲𝗹𝗶𝗻𝗴. 𝗜’𝘃𝗲 𝘄𝗿𝗶𝘁𝘁𝗲𝗻 𝘀𝗼𝗺𝗲 𝘄𝗼𝗿𝗱𝘀 𝗼𝗻 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗰𝗵𝗮𝗹𝗸𝗯𝗼𝗮𝗿𝗱 𝘁𝗼 𝗵𝗲𝗹𝗽 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗴𝗿𝗼𝘂𝗽 𝗲𝘅𝗽𝗿𝗲𝘀𝘀 𝘀𝗽𝗲𝗰𝗶𝗳𝗶𝗰 𝗲𝗺𝗼𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻𝘀 ...
“𝗜 𝗳𝗲𝗲𝗹 𝗯𝗹𝗮𝗺𝗲𝗱,” 𝗖𝗵𝗿𝗶𝘀𝘁𝗶𝗻𝗲 𝗣𝗲𝘁𝗲𝗿𝘀𝗼𝗻 𝘀𝗮𝘆𝘀, 𝗵𝗲𝗿 𝘃𝗼𝗶𝗰𝗲 𝘀𝗵𝗮𝗸𝗶𝗻𝗴. “𝗕𝗹𝗮𝗺𝗲𝗱 𝗳𝗼𝗿 𝗯𝗲𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝘀𝘁𝗿𝗮𝗶𝗴𝗵𝘁, 𝗹𝗶𝗸𝗲 𝗶𝘁’𝘀 𝘀𝗼𝗺𝗲𝗵𝗼𝘄 𝗺𝘆 𝗳𝗮𝘂𝗹𝘁 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗜 𝘀𝗵𝗼𝘂𝗹𝗱 𝗯𝗲 𝗮𝘀𝗵𝗮𝗺𝗲𝗱. 𝗜 𝗰𝗮𝗻’𝘁 𝗵𝗲𝗹𝗽 𝘁𝗵𝗮𝘁 𝗜 𝘄𝗮𝘀 𝗯𝗼𝗿𝗻 𝘁𝗵𝗮𝘁 𝘄𝗮𝘆.”
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The plot depicts experiences of the LGBTQIA+ community that feel so true and honest, but the book doesn't solely focus on the experiences of receiving hate and vitriol; more importantly, the book focuses on joyful stories and experiences too.
It shouldn't even need to be noteworthy, but the fact that a book like this exists, to portray what feels like genuine lived experiences of real queer people in such a mainstream way, is just so amazing to me, as it is still such a rarity.
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𝗔𝘀 𝘆𝗼𝘂 𝗴𝗲𝘁 𝗼𝗹𝗱𝗲𝗿 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗺𝗼𝗿𝗲 𝗯𝗮𝗿𝗿𝗶𝗰𝗮𝗱𝗲𝗱 𝗯𝘆 𝗳𝗮𝗺𝗶𝗹𝘆 𝗹𝗶𝗳𝗲, 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗮𝗺𝗼𝘂𝗻𝘁 𝘆𝗼𝘂 𝘁𝗮𝗹𝗸 𝘁𝗼 𝗳𝗿𝗶𝗲𝗻𝗱𝘀 𝗮𝗯𝗼𝘂𝘁 𝗿𝗲𝗮𝗹 𝘁𝗵𝗶𝗻𝗴𝘀 𝘀𝗲𝗲𝗺𝘀 𝘁𝗼 𝗱𝗲𝗰𝗿𝗲𝗮𝘀𝗲 𝗯𝗶𝘁 𝗯𝘆 𝗯𝗶𝘁 𝘂𝗻𝘁𝗶𝗹 𝗼𝗻𝗲 𝗱𝗮𝘆 𝗶𝘁’𝘀 𝗮𝗹𝗹 𝘄𝗼𝗿𝗸 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝘄𝗲𝗮𝘁𝗵𝗲𝗿 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝘃𝗮𝗰𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻𝘀. 𝗪𝗵𝗲𝗻 𝗺𝘆 𝘄𝗶𝗳𝗲 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗜 𝗵𝗮𝗱𝗻’𝘁 𝘀𝗹𝗲𝗽𝘁 𝘁𝗼𝗴𝗲𝘁𝗵𝗲𝗿 𝗶𝗻 𝘄𝗲𝗲𝗸𝘀, 𝘁𝗵𝗲𝗻 𝗺𝗼𝗻𝘁𝗵𝘀, 𝘄𝗵𝗲𝗻 𝗜 𝘁𝗵𝗼𝘂𝗴𝗵𝘁 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗽𝗿𝗼𝗯𝗹𝗲𝗺 𝘄𝗮𝘀 𝘀𝗲𝘅 𝗶𝗻 𝗴𝗲𝗻𝗲𝗿𝗮𝗹 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗻𝗼𝘁 𝘀𝗲𝘅 𝘄𝗶𝘁𝗵 𝗺𝗲 𝘀𝗽𝗲𝗰𝗶𝗳𝗶𝗰𝗮𝗹𝗹𝘆, 𝗜 𝘄𝗼𝗻𝗱𝗲𝗿𝗲𝗱 𝗶𝗳 𝗮𝗻𝘆 𝗼𝗳 𝗺𝘆 𝗺𝗮𝗹𝗲 𝗳𝗿𝗶𝗲𝗻𝗱𝘀 𝘄𝗲𝗿𝗲 𝗴𝗼𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝘁𝗵𝗿𝗼𝘂𝗴𝗵 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝘀𝗮𝗺𝗲 𝘁𝗵𝗶𝗻𝗴. 𝗕𝘂𝘁 𝗶𝗳 𝘁𝗵𝗲𝘆 𝘄𝗲𝗿𝗲𝗻’𝘁, 𝗶𝘁 𝘄𝗼𝘂𝗹𝗱 𝗯𝗲 𝘁𝗼𝗼 𝗺𝗼𝗿𝘁𝗶𝗳𝘆𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝘁𝗼 𝗯𝗿𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝘂𝗽. 𝗦𝗼𝗺𝗲𝘁𝗶𝗺𝗲𝘀 𝗜 𝗹𝗼𝗼𝗸𝗲𝗱 𝗮𝗿𝗼𝘂𝗻𝗱 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝘁𝗮𝗯𝗹𝗲 𝗮𝘁 𝗽𝗼𝗸𝗲𝗿 𝗻𝗶𝗴𝗵𝘁 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝘄𝗼𝗻𝗱𝗲𝗿𝗲𝗱 𝘄𝗵𝗮𝘁 𝘄𝗲 𝘄𝗲𝗿𝗲 𝗮𝗹𝗹 𝗵𝗶𝗱𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗳𝗿𝗼𝗺 𝗼𝗻𝗲 𝗮𝗻𝗼𝘁𝗵𝗲𝗿—𝘄𝗵𝘆 𝘄𝗲 𝘄𝗲𝗿𝗲 𝗵𝗶𝗱𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗶𝘁.
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The story is told from multiple various perspectives, from characters who are different ages and at different stages in their lives.
The perspectives are not all from LGBTQIA+ characters, and so this adds a layer of normalcy and commonplaceness that should be true of any literary fiction story: you want the characters to seem real, and you want to feel that you can bond with them and care what happens to them.
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“𝗜𝗳 𝗰𝗵𝗶𝗹𝗱𝗿𝗲𝗻 𝗼𝗻𝗹𝘆 𝗰𝗮𝗹𝗹 𝗼𝗿 𝘃𝗶𝘀𝗶𝘁 𝗼𝗿 𝘁𝗮𝗸𝗲 𝗰𝗮𝗿𝗲 𝗼𝗳 𝘁𝗵𝗲𝗶𝗿 𝗽𝗮𝗿𝗲𝗻𝘁𝘀 𝗯𝗲𝗰𝗮𝘂𝘀𝗲 𝘁𝗵𝗲𝘆 𝗳𝗲𝗲𝗹 𝗴𝘂𝗶𝗹𝘁𝘆, 𝗶𝘀 𝗶𝘁 𝘀𝘁𝗶𝗹𝗹 𝗹𝗼𝘃𝗲?” 𝗛𝗮𝗿𝗹𝗲𝘆 𝗮𝘀𝗸𝘀.
“𝗜𝗺𝗽𝗼𝘀𝘀𝗶𝗯𝗹𝗲 𝗿𝗶𝗱𝗱𝗹𝗲𝘀. 𝗦𝗼𝗺𝗲𝘁𝗶𝗺𝗲𝘀 𝗜 𝘁𝗵𝗶𝗻𝗸 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗼𝗻𝗹𝘆 𝘁𝗿𝘂𝗲 𝗿𝗲𝗹𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻𝘀𝗵𝗶𝗽 𝗮 𝗽𝗲𝗿𝘀𝗼𝗻 𝗰𝗮𝗻 𝗵𝗮𝘃𝗲 𝗶𝘀 𝘄𝗶𝘁𝗵 𝘀𝗼𝗺𝗲𝗼𝗻𝗲 𝘁𝗵𝗲𝘆’𝗿𝗲 𝗻𝗼𝘁 𝗯𝗼𝘂𝗻𝗱 𝘁𝗼 𝗶𝗻 𝗮𝗻𝘆 𝘄𝗮𝘆.”
“𝗦𝗼 𝗳𝗿𝗶𝗲𝗻𝗱𝘀𝗵𝗶𝗽,” 𝘀𝗮𝘆𝘀 𝗛𝗮𝗿𝗹𝗲𝘆, 𝘀𝗺𝗶𝗹𝗶𝗻𝗴.
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The story itself is ultimately hopeful, even with some of the serious topics it covers.
It reiterates the message of how important it is to be true to yourself, and how it is never too late to change, and to choose how you want to live your life.
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𝗜 𝗱𝗼𝗻’𝘁 𝘄𝗮𝗻𝘁 𝗵𝗲𝗿 𝗯𝗮𝗰𝗸, 𝗯𝘂𝘁 𝗜 𝘄𝗮𝗻𝘁 𝘁𝗼 𝗯𝗲 𝗵𝗲𝗿, 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗼𝗻𝗲 𝘄𝗵𝗼 𝗵𝗮𝘀 𝗮𝗻 𝗲𝘅𝗰𝗶𝘁𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗻𝗲𝘄 𝗹𝗶𝗳𝗲 𝘀𝗽𝗿𝗲𝗮𝗱 𝗼𝘂𝘁 𝗶𝗻 𝗳𝗿𝗼𝗻𝘁 𝗼𝗳 𝗵𝗲𝗿? 𝗬𝗼𝘂’𝗿𝗲 𝘄𝗶𝘁𝗵 𝘀𝗼𝗺𝗲𝗼𝗻𝗲 𝗳𝗼𝗿 𝘁𝘄𝗲𝗻𝘁𝘆-𝗳𝗶𝘃𝗲 𝘆𝗲𝗮𝗿𝘀 , 𝗻𝗼𝘁 𝗵𝗮𝗽𝗽𝘆, 𝗲𝘅𝗮𝗰𝘁𝗹𝘆, 𝗯𝘂𝘁 𝗻𝗼𝘁 𝗺𝗶𝘀𝗲𝗿𝗮𝗯𝗹𝗲, 𝗲𝗶𝘁𝗵𝗲𝗿— 𝘁𝗵𝗲𝗿𝗲’𝘀 𝗮 𝗸𝗶𝗻𝗱 𝗼𝗳 𝗰𝗼𝗺𝗳𝗼𝗿𝘁 𝗶𝗻 𝗯𝗹𝗲𝗮𝗸 𝗽𝗿𝗲𝗱𝗶𝗰𝘁𝗮𝗯𝗶𝗹𝗶𝘁𝘆, 𝗯𝗲𝗰𝗮𝘂𝘀𝗲 𝗶𝘁 𝗿𝗲𝗾𝘂𝗶𝗿𝗲𝘀 𝗻𝗼𝘁𝗵𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗼𝗳 𝘆𝗼𝘂— 𝘁𝗵𝗲𝗻 𝗲𝘃𝗲𝗿𝘆𝘁𝗵𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗰𝗵𝗮𝗻𝗴𝗲𝘀. 𝗦𝗵𝗲’𝘀 𝘁𝗵𝗶𝘀 𝗻𝗲𝘄 𝗽𝗲𝗿𝘀𝗼𝗻 𝘄𝗵𝗼 𝗺𝗮𝘆 𝗵𝗮𝘃𝗲 𝗮𝗹𝘄𝗮𝘆𝘀 𝗯𝗲𝗲𝗻 𝘁𝗵𝗲𝗿𝗲, 𝗯𝘂𝘁 𝘆𝗼𝘂 𝗻𝗲𝘃𝗲𝗿 𝘀𝗮𝘄 𝗵𝗲𝗿. 𝗬𝗼𝘂’𝗿𝗲 𝗮 𝘁𝗶𝗱𝗮𝗹 𝗽𝗼𝗼𝗹 𝗹𝗲𝗳𝘁 𝗯𝘆 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝘄𝗮𝘃𝗲 𝗼𝗳 𝗵𝗲𝗿 𝘀𝗲𝗮 𝗰𝗵𝗮𝗻𝗴𝗲. 𝗬𝗼𝘂 𝘄𝗮𝗻𝘁 𝘁𝗼 𝗳𝗶𝗴𝘂𝗿𝗲 𝗼𝘂𝘁 𝗵𝗼𝘄 𝘀𝗵𝗲 𝗱𝗶𝗱 𝗶𝘁. 𝗬𝗼𝘂 𝘄𝗼𝘂𝗹𝗱𝗻’𝘁 𝗸𝗻𝗼𝘄 𝗵𝗼𝘄 𝘁𝗼 𝗯𝗲𝗰𝗼𝗺𝗲 𝘀𝗼𝗺𝗲𝗼𝗻𝗲 𝗲𝗹𝘀𝗲 𝗲𝘃𝗲𝗻 𝗶𝗳 𝘆𝗼𝘂 𝘄𝗮𝗻𝘁𝗲𝗱 𝘁𝗼.
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I would absolutely recommend Under the Rainbow to everyone, and would encourage everyone to read it, especially if you like literary fiction.
I wish more books like this had been around when I was growing up, and I will definitely be reading more from Celia Laskey.

I liked this book and that it followed different characters within the town, looking at the different ways that being in the task force and a member of the LGBTQIA community impacted their life or being a resident of the town and what they learnt and how their views didn’t or didn’t change whilst having the task force there.

However, for me the premise of this book held so much promise, it could have gone so much deeper into the issues that LGBTQIA people face in small town, whether that’s small town America or elsewhere, it could have delved into the politics, the struggles of coming out (some of which it did), the reasons behind the hate, the psychological impact of bullying and stigmatisation and more can have.

I just felt that there was more that this book and these characters had to offer but it was still an enjoyable read.

Amazing story with many perspectives. I really enjoyed hearing about the people of Big Burr and how their lives were impacted by living in the most homophobic town in USA.

Heartbreaking but inspirational Big Burr, Kansas is the kind of place where everyone knows everyone – or so they think. But after being labeled “the most homophobic town in America”, a group of queer activists are moving in, and everything is about to change.

Linda welcomes the newcomers. The less they know about the death of her son, the better. Avery is furious at being uprooted from her life in LA. She dreads her classmates discovering that her mom is the head of the queer task force. And Gabe, a lifelong Big Burr resident, is no longer sure about the life he's built with his wife.

I am afraid I just didn't connect with this book. I really didn't enjoy reading it, and I am quite disappointed that I did not like it .Sorry, I can only hope other readers will like it ,but it was not for me.

I thought this book was going to be a feel-good one that I would enjoy as a I have discovered that I am queer. Instead, I DNfed at around 10%, I just couldn't reading it, I was wondering how much I had read or how much was left on the chapter. The writing feels like story is told from different perspectives making it all over the place and sometimes, for me, it came across as a teen diary... The writing style of this book is not my cup of tea and I do believe I am not a part of the target audience for this book.

Under the Rainbow is a novel about what happens when a town labelled 'the most homophobic in America' has a group of LGBTQ activists live there for two years to try and change the town's mind. The Kansas town of Big Burr is labelled the most homophobic by a non-profit organisation, who sends a group of workers to live there for two years to make a difference to the town. From the daughter of the task force leader to locals with various views and secrets, a lot of people's lives are going to be touched in some way or another.

The book is told from a range of perspectives, with each character (mostly) getting a single chapter of focus before it moves on. This has clearly been done to get across a range of perspectives, as you might expect from the premise, but it does mean that you end up quite dissatisfied with the narratives you get about characters and where they end (often purposefully unresolved, and occasionally there will be a follow up line or reference later on to give more clues to what happened). Some people will find this structure a nice way to explore the town, and others will perhaps find it hard to engage with.

From the premise, I expected something quite saccharine, starting off with a lot of conflict and hate but presumably turning into proof of people's acceptance. The structure means this isn't quite how it works, with homophobic characters never really coming back properly and the pace making it feel like the time flew past without much really happening to change the town. The ending is quite fairytale, and I did like how the character got that ending, but I felt that a lot of the queer characters in the book in general had to be left behind or forgotten in the structure, which was a shame. I would've liked more about their individual motivations for being there, and how they dealt with the day to day experiences (there is an interesting bit about expectations and how a character isn't listening to the town's residents properly, which would've been good to explore further).

The thing that really hindered my enjoyment of the book, though, was just how much it depicts the pain of people who are meant to be in the town for work, without really protecting them. From the opening chapter with the house of the task force leader being egged, there's a lot of homophobia and violence presented or referred to, but due to the structure and just what is depicted, you don't really see anyone healing or dealing with this (not even when there's like a traumatic animal death) and the ending makes it seem like the queer people in the book, both who came to Big Burr and were already there, just were fine, even though at many points in the book they are not. I found it neither a light-hearted read, due to all the focus on homophobia (and transphobia, though the book focuses less on that), nor something that explores the impact of this kind of violence both physically and mentally.

Under the Rainbow has an interesting premise and some good characters, but personally I wished it could focus more on fewer main characters to follow through with their narratives and show more of the complexity and aftermaths of what happens. I'd read more about a fair few of the characters individually, but it didn't quite come together for me, and also the character who is most like me had something horrible happen to their pet, which I wasn't expecting from the tone of the book and wasn't very fun personally. For me, I would've preferred if it had explored violence and trauma more and looked at the complexity in a small town where people don't actually all have the same perspective despite appearances, but instead I found it didn't quite live up to the feel-good assumption I made about it, whilst also apparently fixing things a bit too easily.