HE MUST LIKE YOU

Libby just wanted to make enough in tips to save for college, not be the sacrificial victim of her small town’s #MeToo moment.

After discovering that her parents ended up spending her college fund, Libby, who aspires to work in a museum—an ambition her father considers frivolous—has no choice but to earn as much as she can as quickly as she can. A scant few months into her waitressing job, 18-year-old Libby has already dealt with a proposition from obtuse co-worker Kyle and an unwanted butt grab and leering ridicule from Perry, a rich older man. Libby’s short-lived retaliation against Perry gets her fired—and infamous on the internet. Worse, she’s coping with trauma from two other sexual assaults and her father’s dysfunctional dominance. As Libby receives guidance from Dahlia, her school nurse, the town mobilizes against Perry for harassing servers, and Libby soon faces an agonizing choice. The novel takes on the topic of nonconsent and how deeply it is baked into male-female interactions in American society, a subject as fraught as things can get. Libby’s frank, wisecracking narration bolsters the reader through difficult scenes and occasionally uneven pacing. Though the story ends on a hopeful note, its honesty can be brutal. Mental health and racism are touched upon glancingly. Most main characters are white; Dahlia is brown-skinned, and Libby’s best friend is Chinese American.

A thoughtful indictment of white, cisgender, heterosexual rape culture.