‘Tis The Season: Authors Talk Holidays is a special seasonal feature on Pop! Goes The Reader in which some of my favourite authors help me to celebrate the spirit of the season and spread a little holiday cheer. So, pour yourself a cup of hot chocolate and snuggle in by the fireside as they answer the question: “What does the holiday season mean to you?” You can find a complete list of this year’s participants and their scheduled guest post dates Here!
Hi everyone! For today’s #TisTheSeason2017 post, Becky Albertalli was kind enough to stop by and share a Simon/Leah Christmas playlist complete with Becky’s own personal headcanon for each song selection! Please be aware there will be spoilers for Simon vs. the Homo Sapiens Agenda below, if you haven’t yet had an opportunity to read it! (Also, what are you waiting for? Please read this book. You won’t regret it, I promise.)
Please note: This playlist is separate from that of the Love, Simon film playlist.
About Becky Albertalli
Becky Albertalli is the author of the acclaimed novels Simon vs. the Homo Sapiens Agenda, The Upside of Unrequited, and Leah on the Offbeat. A former clinical psychologist who specialized in working with children and teens, Becky lives with her family in Atlanta.
Bram: *Lying on Simon’s bed with his headphones on*
Simon: What are you listening to?
Bram: *Flings phone across the room* WHAT. NOTHING.
Carter Addison and Julian Portillo are cuddled up on a sofa, watching A Charlie Brown Christmas. Martin Addison is moping around outside in the snow with his head hung, a la Arrested Development.
Cal Price dutifully records Taylor Metternich singing this for YouTube. She’s wearing a Mean Girls-style Christmas costume, but it’s a little baggy due to her epic metabolism.
Simon and Bram, age 22, fall asleep watching Love, Actually in their brand new New York apartment.
Simon quietly admires Bram’s boots.
Leah replays an Instagram story of all of her friends having a snowball fight without her, but she totally doesn’t care, and she’s not crying, it’s allergies.
A snowball hits Leah’s window. They’ve been in her yard this whole time. Pink-cheeked, snow-drenched Simon holds a sign that says, “LEAH, GET YOUR BUTT OUT HERE.”
Simon and Bram show up late to the movie theater and have to sit in different rows.
Nick Eisner, age five: This song is about…
Simon Spier, age six: Santa Claus?
Nick Eisner: (dramatic pause) Me.
Christmas Eve. Alice, Simon, and Nora (ages 8,6, and 4) perform this for the fifteenth time on the ledge by the fireplace, while their parents smile tightly with dead eyes.
The soccer boys lose a bet against the Emoji girls, resulting in a very public lunchtime lip sync of this song by Bram and Nick. Garrett (honorary Jew) is their hype man.
Leah: *Misty-eyed, pining in first period*
Simon: Leah, are you –
Leah: I’M NOT IN LOVE, SHUT UP.
Simon: Literally just asking if you were done with your homework, but okay.
Bram: *Stands on the lunch table in a blue shirt, singing this song.*
Simon: *Refreshes his email, ignoring Bram* Who’s Blue, though?
[Coming 4/24/18. Involves Bram]
As an extra, exciting bonus, Becky was able to share a couple of exclusive photos from the set of Love, Simon!
Title Leah On The Offbeat
Author Becky Albertalli
Pages 352 Pages
Intended Target Audience Young Adult
Genre Contemporary, Realistic Fiction
To Be Published April 24th 2018 by HarperCollins/Balzer + Bray
Find It On Goodreads ● Amazon.com ● Chapters ● The Book Depository
In this sequel to the acclaimed Simon vs. the Homo Sapiens Agenda — soon to be a major motion picture, Love, Simon — we follow Simon’s BFF Leah as she grapples with changing friendships, first love, and senior year angst.
When it comes to drumming, Leah Burke is usually on beat — but real life isn’t always so rhythmic.
She’s an anomaly in her friend group: the only child of a young, single mom, and her life is decidedly less privileged. She loves to draw but is too self-conscious to show it. And even though her mom knows she’s bisexual, she hasn’t mustered the courage to tell her friends — not even her openly gay BFF, Simon.
So Leah really doesn’t know what to do when her rock-solid friend group starts to fracture in unexpected ways. With prom and college on the horizon, tensions are running high.
It’s hard for Leah to strike the right note while the people she loves are fighting — especially when she realizes she might love one of them more than she ever intended.
4 Responses
This just made my entire day. ♥-♥
Hey!! Thanks, your tweet led me here
Becky! <3
wow this didn’t make me cry huh