• It's Not Like It's a Secret

  • By: Misa Sugiura
  • Narrated by: Emily Woo Zeller
  • Length: 10 hrs and 34 mins
  • 4.4 out of 5 stars (238 ratings)

Prime logo Prime members: New to Audible?
Get 2 free audiobooks during trial.
Pick 1 audiobook a month from our unmatched collection.
Listen all you want to thousands of included audiobooks, Originals, and podcasts.
Access exclusive sales and deals.
Premium Plus auto-renews for $14.95/mo after 30 days. Cancel anytime.
It's Not Like It's a Secret  By  cover art

It's Not Like It's a Secret

By: Misa Sugiura
Narrated by: Emily Woo Zeller
Try for $0.00

$14.95/month after 30 days. Cancel anytime.

Buy for $25.19

Buy for $25.19

Pay using card ending in
By confirming your purchase, you agree to Audible's Conditions of Use and Amazon's Privacy Notice. Taxes where applicable.

Publisher's summary

"Well-paced, brimming with drama, and utterly vital." —Kirkus (starred review)

This charming and bittersweet coming-of-age story featuring two girls of color falling in love is part To All the Boys I've Loved Before and part Simon vs. the Homo Sapiens Agenda. Winner of the Asian/Pacific American Award for Literature!

Sixteen-year-old Sana Kiyohara has too many secrets. Some are small, like how it bothers her when her friends don’t invite her to parties. Some are big, like the fact that her father may be having an affair. And then there’s the one that she can barely even admit to herself—the one about how she might have a crush on her best friend.

When Sana and her family move to California, she begins to wonder if it’s finally time for some honesty, especially after she meets Jamie Ramirez. Jamie is beautiful and smart and unlike anyone Sana’s ever known. There are just a few problems: Sana's new friends don't trust Jamie's crowd; Jamie's friends clearly don't want her around anyway; and a sweet guy named Caleb seems to have more-than-friendly feelings for her. Meanwhile, her dad’s affair is becoming too obvious to ignore.

Sana always figured that the hardest thing would be to tell people that she wants to date a girl, but as she quickly learns, telling the truth is easy…what comes after it, though, is a whole lot more complicated.

©2017 Misa Sugiura (P)2017 HarperCollins Publishers

What listeners say about It's Not Like It's a Secret

Average customer ratings
Overall
  • 4.5 out of 5 stars
  • 5 Stars
    141
  • 4 Stars
    67
  • 3 Stars
    24
  • 2 Stars
    5
  • 1 Stars
    1
Performance
  • 4.5 out of 5 stars
  • 5 Stars
    155
  • 4 Stars
    42
  • 3 Stars
    12
  • 2 Stars
    4
  • 1 Stars
    0
Story
  • 4.5 out of 5 stars
  • 5 Stars
    120
  • 4 Stars
    58
  • 3 Stars
    30
  • 2 Stars
    2
  • 1 Stars
    3

Reviews - Please select the tabs below to change the source of reviews.

Sort by:
Filter by:
  • Overall
    4 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    4 out of 5 stars

YA contemporary that focused on an important topic

What did you love best about It's Not Like It's a Secret?

Wooooo....wow this book was a lot to unpack. Lots of conversations that need to be had but have never been approached like this before. I think a lot of books about prejudice and ignorance tend to focus on a very black and white lens but this one centered on prejudice in Mexican and Asian communities, which is very unique to California being that both racial groups are the largest minorities. I think the pros of this story was that it made me feel something, and it wasn't always cotton candy and comfort.

What scared me the most about this story is that it reflected my own childhood and teenage years. Sana, the main character's mother, i'm ashamed to admit that she's actually like my grandmother. She's ignorant. She says hateful things about pretty much every ethnic group she doesn't fall under and she doesn't think of anything she says as wrong. She's scared of what she considers different, and unfortunately I found myself relating to Sana for not doing the right thing and challenging her on her ignorance. It's hard to challenge people you love and raised you and make them see your point when they in their heads, feel as though they've never been wrong. I constantly ask myself, why don't people call their families out on their racist thoughts? And then I think back to every situation that's happened and has yet to happen, where I don't correct my family members for saying hurtful things. Sometimes it's just not worth it and you always feel as though you're never going to change their minds.

While I didn't think Sana was a traditionally likable heroine, I did however relate to her. I think what would have made this book a five is if it would have centered more on the f/f relationship and not so much the drama her parents were going through. It was so distracting and all I wanted was a love story. I also needed Sana to own up to her privilege and admit that all the hurtful things she said about Latinos were wrong and that she needed to learn more about things she wasn't knowledgeable enough about before she spoke. Overall, we need more ff books with no white gaze and this was a step forward in that direction.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

10 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    3 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    3 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    3 out of 5 stars

Just okay

Overall, the story was okay. At the beginning, I definitely wanted to get a refund on my credit. I have only done that once before, so I really try to stick with a book and see it through. I'm probably not the target audience. So without giving too much away, it's basically an "instalove" story. It's somewhat predictable. The book discusses a lot of stereotypes... and frequently. I was able to get to a point where I cared about the characters enough to where I didn't hate myself for "wasting" a credit.
It does have some positive messages and maybe some insight to certain situations and cultures. That's a plus.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

6 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

AMAZING STORY

I loved everything. The impressions were on point. The story warms my hearth. At the age of ten I get to see young romance and different cultures being treated in different ways. It shows us it’s ok to be different. My family has bad traits of miss judging people because of how they look, and who they date. It pisses me off. This story had suspense, like what’s gonna happen with Jamie, and poor Caleb is he okay? This story was an amazing trip to read along with the audio.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

3 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

REALLY RECOMMEND

I, as a 14 year old mixed, lesbian, fulllly recommend this book! It tackles lots of real life problems and the way that people overlook and stereotype each race. Not only that but, it shows the emotions of loving the same gender, and learning to be okay with that. Plus the narrator was amazing and conveyed so much emotion that helped tie the whole book together. I love this book, and it’s definitely one of my favorites now.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

1 person found this helpful

  • Overall
    4 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    4 out of 5 stars

Was a little tough to get through, but I am glad

I finished it. I had to take multiple day long breaks through the middle of the story. I would get so worked up at Sana's friends being so pushy about certain aspects of her love life and weirdly dismissive of her sexuality. It feels gross to hear anyone say things along the lines of "Maybe you only think you're gay because you haven't been with the right man." I would
get even more worked up at Sana's giving in to the weird pushiness and making very obvious bad decisions.

I was pleasantly surprised by the direction the story took with Sana's conflict with her parents. It was a genuinely pleasant surprise how it all worked out.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

Dive into the whirlwind of the teenage mind

To step into the whirlwind mind of a teenager. The insecurities, the convictions, the learning, the honesty. It’s all there in this beautiful YA story. I listened to the audiobook version and Emily Woo Zeller’s narration brought the story to life and added to it the ultimate extra dimension of creating a believable internal world.

16-year old Sana has never fit in. Growing up as a Japanese teen in Wisconsin, she has always been the odd one out. When her family moves to California, she is suddenly not the only Asian kid anymore.

Through the first months at the new high school she finds new friends who look like her. Finds out a heart wrenching family secret and finds herself when she meets the girl of her dreams in Jamie.

Misa Sagiura doesn’t shy away from difficult topics like racism, cultural believes, betrayal and ultimately, love. She takes your hand and puts you on a chair in the corner of a teenage girl’s mind. She portrays the insecurities and learning curve of a teen beautifully. So much so, that despite the questionable choices Sana makes at one point, you can’t stop yourself from liking this girl and rooting for her.

The story gives a glimpse into a culture (Japanese) that was unfamiliar to me. As a reader it opened my mind to a new experience while turning the pages/ listening.

Dive into the muddy waters of teenage life. You will not regret it.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    4 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

I love It

This book was so good, the plot was great dealing with LGBTQ pride and the topic of racism. I think that there could have been more variation in the voices of the characters. They all sounded very similar. Other than that I can not find flaws in the story or it’s plot. All the facts are accurate and the situations realistic. I loved it as a member of the LGBTQ family It had great representation! I hope the author has more books.🤩🤩🤩

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

Loved it

Really awesome book! Enjoyed the storyline and characters. Fantastic writing as always and Emily did an amazing job narrating

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

the best ymi book I've read

the narration was amazing. the story was complex. I read reviews about the middle being slow and I disagree. they touch on really complex topics I'm guessing people may want to tune out and get back to the main plot

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

  • Overall
    3 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    3 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    2 out of 5 stars

ok

got bored and annoyed half way through but stuck it put. it gets better near the end.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!