This is the sort of book that I love. It only took me a day to read it because I almost couldn’t put it down. Great story, great writing, great characters.
Angela has just decided she is going to be Grady. Though the decision seems abrupt to her friends and family, he’s always known that inside the girl body, he was a boy. So he cuts his hair, buys some guys clothes, and starts living life as a boy.
Grady is perfectly written, even before you know what is happening, it sounds like a boy. Usually I get annoyed by too many inner thoughts, but Grady’s were perfect and expressed everything I think anyone would feel in that position. The family was a realistic mix of bumbling lovable dad, high strung mom, popularity seeking younger sister, and lazy younger brother. Each character is written perfectly and their reactions to the issue are spot on. The few friends Grady makes after the change are also well written. The one issue I had was the very short possibility of a love interest. It just didn’t seem realistic to me.
The bullying Grady faces at school was realistic without going over the edge. The students and teachers all react somewhere between totally against it to ridiculously supportive of it. The friends Grady makes help him face the bullying as does his own inner strength.
Some people have complained that there wasn’t enough of a reaction from the school or the family, but this book only takes place over a month. It’s just the tip of the iceberg of what Grady is going to face, and he knows it. It seemed to me like this was pretty realistic. I’m sure those same people who are okay by the end of the book are going to have more issues later.
Overall a really, really fantastic read for anyone.