Look Both Ways and Bisexual Representation in YA Literature

I have to say, I did enjoy this book. Brooklyn is a high school senior coming from a family full of talented thespians. She's been pushed into acting, and she knows that her summer stint at Allerdale Playhouse will be pivotal for her future on the stage. The only problem is, Brooklyn isn't sure she's a good actor. She's not even sure she likes to act. 

I really enjoyed this portion of the novel. It's hard when your family has such strong expectations for you. Brooklyn stumbles her way into her "secret" talent, and it was fun to see her blossom and grow. 

Her relationship with roommate Zoe proves to be more problematic. Zoe is bisexual and apologetically dating her boyfriend from back home. Zoe and Brooklyn's relationship seems sweet at first, but then said boyfriend comes for a visit, and Brooklyn is pushed out of the way. It's assumed that she'd be okay with Zoe not being exclusive, even though Zoe expects (more or less) Brooklyn to be true just to her. 

And this is where the book derails. 

I agree one thousand percent that Zoe is not the right person for Brooklyn. Brooklyn wants to be dating someone exclusively, Zoe doesn't. Brooklyn also (selfishly) wants her romantic person's world to revolve around just her, and Zoe's not the right kind of personality for that. So yes, they don't belong together. 

Instead, Brooklyn decides that she's straight. Platonic friend Russell is pushed to the forefront as an ideal match: they both have some theatrical interests and strengths, after all! But their relationship is also so platonic that they spent several nights together in the same dorm room, and Brooklyn merely felt cozy. There's zero sizzle. Why is Russell a default choice, at least a "maybe?" Is it because Brooklyn's mom pushes her toward reconciling with Zoe, having some kind of strange agenda for her daughter to have a girlfriend?

There is a bit of a tepid moment where Brooklyn concedes that she might not be 100% straight, but it comes too little, too late. 

Maybe Brooklyn is asexual? There's mention of a previous boyfriend, but there isn't really any context there, other than him not fitting into her thespian family. I couldn't tell if Brooklyn felt something for him physically. I think exploring Brooklyn as an asexual would have been quite interesting, but instead we devolve into either/or categories here, queer/not queer. 

Zoe as a bisexual rep is also problematic. She's a stereotype of bisexuals being overly sexualized and overly greedy. It seems almost obvious that a lot of Brooklyn's issues with Zoe stems from Zoe's commitment to her boyfriend, and her unwillingness to make things with Brooklyn public. Yet it quickly devolves into Brooklyn "realizing" she's not attracted to Zoe (or any girls!!) after all. How much is this realization tied into Brooklyn's feelings being hurt? Hmmm. 

So I'm torn about this book. It's a nice summer read, but the representation here is flawed at best. I'm bi myself, and it's uncomfortable to find the same old misunderstandings about bisexuality reflected in YA novels. 

Do you have recommendations for great bisexual characters in YA?