The book is like a big apology for the things people didn't like about the first one. There's a major character who's trans, Wade is still a huge asshole (but it's on purpose this time), the walls of text referencing things are all gone, and there's even legitimate attempts at themes and symbolism. Still not a good book, but it's the difference between someone who sucks but gets popular without even trying and someone who seems to be trying their best but isn't very good.