Our Friend is Here! An Interview with Michelle Quach, Author of Not Here to Be Liked; On Her Feminist Debut, “Unlikeable” Characters, and Challenging Expectations

Our Friend is Here! is a guest feature at The Quiet Pond, where authors, creatives, and fellow readers, are invited to ‘visit’ the Pond! In Our Friend is Here! guest posts, our visitors (as their very own unique character!) have a friendly conversation about anything related to books or being a reader — and become friends with Xiaolong and friends.

If you are looking for your next feminist read that is as funny as it is complex with characters feel real and relatable, then I would kindly like to nudge you in the direction of Not Here to Be Liked by Michelle Quach, a young adult feminist contemporary romance that releases in September. When I read Not Here to Be Liked earlier this year, I thought to myself: finally; finally a feminist contemporary that I can relate to, that tackles head-on the intersectionality and complexity of feminism in its most human and down-to-earth form. Suffice to say, I fell in love with this book’s witty and sharp humour and how it openly and vulnerably lays out the messiness of feminism, high school politics, and love.

Book Review: Not Here To Be Liked by Michelle Quach – A Sharp and Funny Feminist Contemporary that Explores Unlikeable Characters, Double-Standards and Feminism

Synopsis:

Eliza Quan is the perfect candidate for editor in chief of her school paper. That is, until ex-jock Len DiMartile decides on a whim to run against her. Suddenly her vast qualifications mean squat because inexperienced Len—who is tall, handsome, and male—just seems more like a leader.

When Eliza’s frustration spills out in a viral essay, she finds herself inspiring a feminist movement she never meant to start, caught between those who believe she’s a gender equality champion and others who think she’s simply crying misogyny.

Amid this growing tension, the school asks Eliza and Len to work side by side to demonstrate civility. But as they get to know one another, Eliza feels increasingly trapped by a horrifying realization—she just might be falling for the face of the patriarchy himself.

I was provided an eARC of the book in exchange for an honest review.

When asked for feminist contemporary fiction recommendations, I always seem to draw a blank. When I think about feminist young-adult fiction, I think the likes of Moxie. Though Moxie is a relevant and important piece of fiction in the ways that it engaged young readers into thinking and exploring sexism, I also wondered how Moxie, a book about a young white feminist who fights the patriarchy in small town Texas, is relevant to me – an Asian woman.