If I Was Your Girl

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But it is not the only part of the novel, and I wanted to critique the whole book, not just the thing it is most known for. Reading it I realized that I’ve read an appallingly low number of these books myself and should really start seeking out more LGBTQIA etc characters to read about.

It's aspects like this that enable you to tell that it's a debut novel, but they are also factors that can be improved with more writing experience and time, so I'm definitely more understanding of these faults. Even though her transition is complete, and - being straight, feminine and a trans woman who passes - Amanda now has things fairly easy for the most part, there are still difficulties ahead. Her parents decide that she should move away from Atlanta to Lambertville, a place where no one will know her history. Any images belonging to the author should be regarded in the same way as the previously mentioned written content and should not be used without permission. I found it difficult to like them at times because there were scenes where they were just making the entire situation about them, mourning their son even though they’ve got a SUPER FAB daughter in front of them.The majority of homophobic violence is perpetrated by people who aren’t secretly gay, and straight people have to hold themselves accountable for their complicity. There, Amanda’s dad assumes that it was Grant who hurt Amanda, and he storms away to Grant’s house to confront him. Amanda is easily relatable, but I found that was because she didn't have a very distinct personality. I'm not going to talk much more about the plot, because I don't want to spoil things, but this is such a beautiful and moving story. It’s a wonderful introduction into LGBTQ literature and would be a great place to start for people who may not have many LGBTQ connections in their own lives.

But the story focuses on a trans female and her relationship with other people and how she copes with wanting to tell her significant other but also wanting to hide the truth. When Meredith is not busy writing she can be found reblogging pictures of cats and babies, reading fan fiction and fantasy novels, arguing with strangers about social justice, and raising her two amazing children, Vivian and Darwin. Meredith Russo's If I Was Your Girl is a universal story about feeling different and a love story that everyone will root for. We want to see our triumphs, our adventures, our conflicts over non-gender-related shit, our loving relationships or happy single lives, our sci-fi thrillers and space operas, our epic fantasy quests and paranormal romances, our happily-ever-afters.

Additionally, because I am cisgender, it isn’t really my place to talk about how I feel about Russo’s portrayal of a trans person. But, by high school, her parents are divorced, and Amanda has been living with her mother in Atlanta where she is subject to horrible bullying. So Bee’s reaction, her attempt to let Amanda set the boundaries while also showing that she is open to learning (instead of making assumptions), is refreshing. There is such a beautiful, gorgeous scene where Amanda comes to love the body she is in, a scene where she realises this body she has hated for so long is a body that can bring her such joy.

The popularity and profile of If I Was Your Girl is not a turning point of acceptance and representation of trans people in literature and is not a reason to pat ourselves on the back.I’ve also read Some Assembly Required by Arin Andrews and Rethinking Normal by Katie Rain Hill, which are a pair of memoirs by two trans teens who were formerly in a relationship with each other. Amanda is surrounded by accepting people, despite being in small town Tennessee, where everyone is a Baptist and many of them have homophobic bumper stickers. This book too had an open ending; Amanda had tied the loose ends, but her relationship with Grant was confusing and left open. Her hands covered in flour folded on the table in front of her, too many biscuits in the oven because she was used to cooking for two.

Anyway, Amanda moves to her new school and is immediately welcomed by a group of girl friends as well as ogled by the hormonal boys.Nevertheless, the book addresses the trans experience with sensitivity and the first-person knowledge that comes from the author’s own experiences with her trans identity. The story jumps back and forth between Amanda now, with some flashbacks to when she was a child and then the incidents leading up to her transition. It's in an important place right now and it should (and probably will) pave the way for more books featuring transgender characters.