ARC Review: Girl Code

Title: Girl Code

Authors: Andrea Gonzales & Sophie Houser

Genre & Age Group: Memoir, young adult

Goodreads Synopsis:

Perfect for aspiring coders everywhere, Girl Code is the story of two teenage tech phenoms who met at Girls Who Code summer camp, teamed up to create a viral video game, and ended up becoming world famous. The book also includes bonus content to help you get started coding!

Fans of funny and inspiring books like Maya Van Wagenen’s Popular and Caroline Paul’s Gutsy Girl will love hearing about Andrea “Andy” Gonzales and Sophie Houser’s journey from average teens to powerhouses. Through the success of their video game, Andy and Sophie got unprecedented access to some of the biggest start-ups and tech companies, and now they’re sharing what they’ve seen. Their video game and their commitment to inspiring young women have been covered by the Huffington Post, Buzzfeed, CNN, Teen Vogue, Jezebel, the Today show, and many more.

Get ready for an inside look at the tech industry, the true power of coding, and some of the amazing women who are shaping the world. Andy and Sophie reveal not only what they’ve learned about opportunities in science and technology but also the true value of discovering your own voice and creativity.

Source: Thanks so much to Indigo Books & Music Inc. for providing me with a physical ARC of this book!

How I Found Out About It: Indigo newsletter

I don’t read many memoirs. To me, books are an escapism from reality, and memoirs and other non-fiction books are the complete opposite. Because of this, I became kind of reluctant after I requested this book and found out it was a memoir, but I still dove in with high hopes- hopes that were definitely met!

For a brief summary, Girl Code revolves around Sophie and Andrea, who at first are more or less normal teens who like many of the same things other teenagers do. But then they decide to give coding a try at a special camp, and this is where they meet and become close friends. Together they create a game called Tampon Run, and even though they were only expecting a few people to play it, it ended up going viral, and this is the story of how it came to be and what followed.

I loved pretty much everything about this book, and I can’t really find anything negative to say about it. From the relatable authors to the basic code manual, there is something awesome in this book for everyone!

Sophie and Andrea are two completely different people with completely different interests, but coding is the one thing they had in common which brought them together. They both went through many struggles while learning to code as well as creating and broadcasting their game, but they persevered so well and never gave up, even if their brains were urging them to. It definitely takes a lot of patience and determination to code (trust me, I even got frustrated when I tried out the easiest coding site), and those are two things both Andrea and Sophie had a lot of! I believe that they have the potential to inspire and move many people with their lovely story, making them realize that practice always makes perfect!

This book also empowers readers in so many other ways such as showing girls that they can be anyone they want to be, no matter what stereotypes are out there. Most people have fallen for stereotypes at least once, even unknowingly, and this book definitely shows that you are free to break that box anytime you want to! Coding is mostly seen as a boys’ thing, but Sophie and Andrea defied the odds and wowed the world with their amazing, uplifting game. I could go on and on with all the morals, but I think that by now you all get the idea of how fantastic this pair’s story is.😉

There is a *basic* code manual on the last pages of the book, and I enjoyed trying it out and seeing what it was like for Sophie and Andrea on their first days of coding. Although some of the directions did get a tiny bit frustrating at times, I still found it to be so much fun to try!

All in all, Girl Code was an amazing memoir, and I just know that it will inspire so many readers once it comes out. Sophie and Andrea are two very relatable girls, and I was able to find a little bit of myself in both of them. So, if you’re looking to be empowered and moved, then mark March 7th on your calendar, and then rush out to get your copy of this beautiful book!💞

*I received an advanced reader copy of this book from Indigo Books & Music Inc. in exchange for an honest review.*