I think this story of a young girl who wants to be a young man could have been so much better. There just wasn't enough character or plot development in the book. And while I sympathized with J, I thought his approach to trying to act like a man, or believing that injected testosterone would solve everything, was sloppy, unrealistic and could be confusing for someone who already doesn't understand the transexual population. I didn't understand why the author put so much emphasis on J "trying" to act like a man, instead of him just being himself (whether that be more feminine or masculine, or whatever). I understand wanting to look like a man if you believe you are a man. But why was the walk important, why was the voice important, why are what strangers think of you on the subway important? If we are born to be who we are, it shouldn't come across as an act- and I didn't like that about the book because I think it misrepresents what many gay activists have been speaking on for years. I also thought that J's elation when people think she is a man to be interesting.
Now, the author herself is gay. And she is raising a transexual child. So, perhaps this "act" impression I'm getting wasn't intentional-or I just don't get it. I understood J's need to fit in, and to have love, and to be accepted. And I thought the strong points in the book were how his relationships with his parents and best friend are changed by his decision. With all the resources available today, especially in New York City where this book takes place, it was interesting to see how J could still feel so alone and so ostracized.
I don't know what to think about the points I brought up in the second paragraph. But I know I didn't like this book. I think its important to have literature out there like this, but I still don't recommend it.
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