Heather

Solid and Grounded Wish Fulfillment

Reviewed: 12-16-22

I had a good time with this one, blitzed it in about 4 days. I think it'll hit different the closer you relate to August (religious parents gang rise up), but overall it was nice. It's the school you wanted to go to, with friends just like you that accept you instantly, and struggles that, while difficult, work out in the end as you succeed at the hobby you're passionate about. I had a lot of single "HA-!" moments at the audacity of some of these characters and their actions, but was also able to empathize quite strongly with the emotional moments, and felt like the book itself was calling me out in a couple of places.

There were a couple of parts that pulled me slightly out of the story (one of the background high schoolers was called out as being the Bachelorette, the classes felt like college classes), and I felt that the author was going for more of a college vibe while not wanting to sacrifice the hypothetical control August's parents would have over him as a minor. Overall though I enjoyed the plot and the characters. I felt that Ana was being set up as a slight commentary to people that get involved and more passionate about trans issues than trans people themselves, and was hoping for some resolution between her and August regarding the discomfort August felt at a couple of her comments, which either I did not see or I missed. I enjoyed August's growth overall, and it was fun following him through the story.

There were also a couple of parts where I feel like August was taking sidebars to specifically name drop and explain specific resources in the text itself, and some of the characters talked in a more manner of fact and knowledgeable way about certain issues and tips, it felt like they were dropping character to drop advice and adages I've heard a lot in the community. Not a bad thing though, just felt a bit odd.

There were also a couple of parts where the narrator seemed to not read ahead before delivering a line, a character would be said to be yelling a line and the narrator would deliver it in a singsong voice, or the text would say the character was upset but the narrator sounded a cheerful neutral, but it was only a couple of parts, on the whole Shaan did a wonderful job.

Overall I had a good time! Not the perfect book for me, but solid and worth the purchase and listen if you're looking for a pleasant, trans sensitive, and spunky New York romp where everything ends up ok.

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