“Dear Wendy” by Ann Zhao is a young adult novel about two aromantic and asexual college students at Wellesley College in Massachusetts. The two become rivals online as creators of popular anonymous relationship advice accounts, “Dear Wendy” and “Sincerely Wanda,”  while unknowingly becoming close friends in real life. 

The book explores themes of friendship, identity, and is described as a platonic love story. The author, Ann Zhao, is a graduate of Wellesley College, where she studied linguistics with a minor in women’s and gender studies. “Dear Wendy” is the very first novel she has published. 

This debut novel was published on Apr. 16, 2024, and has a rating of ⅘ stars. The novel begins with Sophie Chi in her first year at Wellesley College (despite her parents wanting her to go to a “real” university) and has long accepted her aromantic and asexual identities.

Sophie enjoys writing relationship advice on her anonymous Instagram, “Dear Wendy”, that only her roommate knows about. When Joanna “Jo” Ephron started her Instagram account, “Sincerely Wanda,” she never meant it as very serious, but it got incredibly popular.

The plot of this book was pretty different from other books, definitely because it’s a big break from the regular romance books that have been published over many years. One of the things that make this book such a great read is the dual point of views from the two main characters, allowing us to see from both perspectives. 

Though this book does focus on serious topics throughout it, it does have a lot of lighthearted humor with the “Dear Wendy” and “Sincerely Wanda” beef. It’s easy to get annoyed by both of these characters because of the other’s point of views, but it’s also incredibly easy to love them both at the same time. 

“Dear Wendy” was genuinely such a good book if you’re tired of all the romance books or side plots, but love to read. If you’re looking for a book with a different vibe, definitely give this book a chance.