A Thoughtful and Powerful LGBT Book

-- "Yeah, I loved her. I couldn't help it. She was my brother," --

Luna is a normal teenage girl. But she's not. Emerging only at night in her sister Regan's room, she dresses up and becomes her self. But, by day, she's forced to be Liam, the boy that covers who she truly is. Regan has covered for her all these years, but now Luna wants things to change. She's ready to show the world who she truly is underneath Liam. Is Regan ready for this? Are Liam's friends? His parents? Compelling and truthful, this novel captures you from the beginning and shows you that there's more to being a transgender person than just what you see.

To start off, I want to say that this was one of the first LGBT books that I have read. It totally surprised me. LGBT books are way out of my bubble, and I think that this was a perfect launch for me. It wasn't told from the transgender character's point of view, but his sister's, as he said, "the girl I always wanted to be". I felt that this was both good and bad. Regan is telling the story from a really interesting point of view. I feel like the author set it up so readers could compare the difference between Luna and Regan, a normal, genetic girl, and a secret, trans girl. Regan faces life like many high schoolers would, boys, things like that, while the author also shows how Luna's life is. But I also feel like Regan is sometimes a little self-centered or her situation just doesn't really connect to the struggles that Liam/Luna is having.

The author still puts many elements into the story that still shows how Luna/Liam feel about themselves and shows what other people may be thinking when this happens. For example:

“I’m strangling her. She’s not the one I want to eliminate. All this suppressing and holding her down, keeping her caged, perpetuating this fraud, this sham. I can’t do it anymore.” He shook his head. “I can’t.” He raised his chin and looked at me. “It won’t go away. No matter how much I wish or pray, she’s always with me. She is me. I am her. I want to be her. I want to be Luna.” “You”

This is a quote from Liam's point of view. In this quote, he is discussing to Regan how he feels about his identity. I kind of liked it from another person's point of view though, because you can't really see what emotions he is feeling underneath, and you kind of have to think about why this is so. But, if you were to look at this situation from another perspective, you may want to see how Liam feels about what he said. It mainly depends on the reader, and what they need to really enjoy the book. If you really want to be in contact with the transgender person's emotions, then this might not be the perfect book for you. If you can handle imagining or giving books thinking space, this book might be better for you.

Another thing that I didn't like was that the author was sympathizing with two characters, both Regan and Luna/Liam. This made the book more confusing for me because I felt like that since it was an LGBT book, it should focus more on Luna and how she feels as a girl, and Liam, and his struggles to cover who he really is. For example:

“Me? I had no dreams. No longings. Dreams only set you up for disappointment. Plus, you had to have a life to have dreams of a better life.”

Yeah, it was a good quote, but it really makes you feel more pity for Regan while the story should mainly be circulating around Liam/Luna.

This novel didn't have a lot of action or things happening, for the most part, it was basically Liam/Luna reaching out to the world and dressing up. I see how this represents being transgender, and I respect the author's choice for writing it like that, but I just wasn't as into this book as I could be. I'm glad though that the author did add in some snippets of Regan's life, to show how it contrasts with Luna's. I feel like it also filled some blank spots where things kept repeating almost.

“My name, from his lips. It still made my heart leap.”

This was Regan describing a boy that she meets later on. I felt like this description also showed how Luna would have wanted to felt, and maybe does feel. Regan's feelings usually helped me see what the other characters may have been thinking.

TO Wrap this up, I wanted to say that this book carried a super powerful message that could apply to anyone, really. It's not wrong to be different, but you shouldn't have to hide under a rock for the rest of your life just to show the world your true colors (haha, Trolls). And then, for people like Regan, it's not wrong to reach out and help others. They may not need it physically, but emotionally, the fear and doubt that they face can only be assured by someone that you trust.

I would recommend this to people just beginning to read LGBT books and young adults. 4 stars for being a really great book, but there were many cons I had while reading this that slightly wavers my opinion. Definitely a book you should read in your lifetime.

I would recommend for ages 10+ There is language and other references that more mature people should handle.

She lowered her eyes. "You said it: I had to. I had to test myself. To see if I could go through with it. I needed to know that I had the self-confidence, the will to do it every day."