the pants project by cat clarke

What? Another blog post? IN THE SAME WEEK? 

I know. It is a true miracle. This book could not go untalked about though! I read it in about two hours, and I am honestly so happy. This book was so amazing, and cute, and I am going to gush about it more, so let's go!

Title: The Pants Project

Author: Cat Clarke

Expected Publication: March 1st, 2017

Page Numbers: 272 (Hardcover Edition)

Genre: Middle Grade/LGBT+

What I Rated It: 5+

Publishing Company: Sourcebooks Jabberwocky

Favorite Quote: "You were right last night. When you said there's nothing to be ashamed of. No one should ever be ashamed of being who they are."

Goodreads Blurb: My name is Liv (Not Olivia)... I'm not technically a girl.

I'm Transgender. Which is a bit like being a transformer. Only not quite as cool as cool because I probably won't get to save the world one day."

A Transformer is a robot in disguise. Liv is a boy in disguise. It's that simple. Liv knows he was always meant to be a boy, but with his new school's terrible dress code, he can't even wear pants. Only skirts.

Operation: Pants Project begins! The only way for Live to get what he wants is to go after it himself. But to Liv, this isn't just a mission to change the policy- it's a mission to change his life. And that's a pretty big deal.

Disclaimer: I got this book from Net Galley and was no way paid for this review.

Okay so. This book, y'all. 

It was truly so amazing and lovely, I loved it so much and I did cry a bit.

The book is about Liv, who is a boy, but he is trans (in the book, Liv is always referred to with she/her pronouns but, continuing to use those pronouns is misgendering so I'm not doing that.) and that means his gender doesn't align with how the doctor incorrectly identified him when he was born. Other people don't know this though, Liv hasn't came out to anyone else, so he is the only person who knows he is a boy.

The book follows Liv's struggle to have the right to wear pants to school, when the dress code says he has to wear skirts because everyone sees him as a girl, and how some people in the school are not exactly accepting of that, and how some aren't accepting of him having two moms, either. In his classmates eyes, he is a "freak", and his best friend, Maisie, doesn't stand up for him either. She thinks he isn't trying hard enough to fit in, and she stops being friends with him because she wants popularity, and she can't have that if she associates with Liv, which is a completely horrible thing. But, along the way, Liv meets Jacob, and him and Jacob become friends, and Jacob helps him with the Pants Project, as Liv calls it. Jacob is the first person Liv tells of him being transgender, and Jacob is very accepting and it was great. 

In the end, Liv, Jacob and some of their other friends, challenge the principal and the uniform policy, and they're successful! The policy gets changed and Liv can wear pants to school, and Liv finally comes out to his moms, and his other family members. Everything was good and happy, and cute. And I loved it.

I was skeptical going into this book, you kinda have to be with books that involve trans characters, because a majority of the time, they are written wrong and by people who are cisgender and don't and will never understand, so it's very hard to find a book with a trans character that is inclusive and really well written. This book was those things, and I'm very happy with it. 

This whole topic, being trans and coming out and misgendering, hits incredibly close to home and it's such a nice thing to see it represented properly. As I said, a lot of the books with trans characters aren't inclusive, and fit that one trans stereotype, and it's great to see that differ. It's also great to see a middle grade book talk about this, because it's showing that you aren't too young to understand this stuff, and to know who you are, even when people tell you that you're something else, or that you're a freak or disgusting. It's a step towards people not thinking this is wrong or bad and accepting it. A step in the right direction.

So, thank you for this book. 

Until next time,

Mal

running with the pack by a.m. burns and caitlin ricci

Almost two years later and I'm actually posting something! Who would've thought, huh? Truth is, I'm bored, and I remembered this old thing, and I thought well, why not? So here I am. 

I'm not sure anyone even reads my posts, I wouldn't be surprised. But, I'm doing this because I want to. I want to talk about some books, and maybe I will be silent after this post, maybe not. I don't know. 

I won't promise more reviews or more posting because of a lot of reasons. But, I can say that I want to write more on here, even if no one cares, because I care, and that's what's truly important. (That was too cheesy.)

Now, enough being extra!

I'm here right now, so onto the review!

Title: Running With the Pack

Author: A.M. Burns, Caitlin Ricci

Expected Publication: September 8th, 2016

Page Numbers: 180 (Kindle edition)

Genre: YA/LGBT+

What I Rated It: 3.5

Publishing Company: Harmony Ink Press

Favorite Quote: "I couldn't think of a single thing except for being with the two of you."

Goodreads Blurb: Finn is about to start his senior year of high school when he and his family move from Austin, Texas, to Woodland Park, Colorado. Everything is different—even the elevation—and Finn’s having a hard time getting used to his new home. Life takes a turn for the better when he meets Ivan Dubovasky at a farmers’ market. Finn finds not only a close new friend but a fulfilling volunteer position at the High Mountain Wolf and Wild Dog Center, which Ivan’s family runs. Before long Finn develops an affinity for the wolves under the center’s protection.

Things only get better for Finn when he starts a relationship with Ivan; and Ivan’s best friend, Adrian, who’s asexual, completes their small pack. But it all comes crashing down when the bully plaguing Adrian crosses the line and Adrian goes missing. Finn and Ivan are determined to bring their boyfriend home safe, but they might not be able to do it alone. Luckily there’s a special wolf ready to lend a paw.

Disclaimer: I got this book from Net Galley and was no way paid for this review.

I was very excited for this book, because polyamory and gay. Two things that are very me. This book was a very quick read, and I liked it a lot, truly. 

It starts with Finn moving to a new town in Colorado, and almost immediately he meets Ivan, which it is very easy to tell that he will later be involved with him. He meets Adrian, Ivan's friend that is clearly not just a friend, later, and again, it is quite obvious that Finn and Adrian would be romantic later on, because they have that tension. 

I can't say I was disappointed in this book, because I wasn't, I was going to read it for the gay and poly relationship, and because I needed something to help me out of my reading slump. It had all it said to have, but the writing at times got to be sort of embarrassing. Something would happen and it would be unrealistic or just ridiculous things that Finn says and I'm like "Really? Finn, WHY?" And then, there wasn't enough conflict. Like with the bullies, Esteban and Channing, it was bad, but it was resolved so quickly, as was every mountain they faced. (Mountain, get it?) Something bad would happen and just like that, it would be resolved. There was no conflict with any of the boys families, though that was sort of nice to have supporting familes, but still, there was no big conflict, really. I would've liked the book to be longer, with more conflict and angst and maybe more pining, but that's just my opinion on it. I also would've liked for more scenes of Finn, Ivan and Adrian after they became a couple, but the end scene with them was cute. 

I really liked the fact that this book had a poly relationship, because you never (or at least I've never) seen that in a YA book, and it is refreshing and nice to see something of yourself represented in something that you love so dearly. Too often have I seen people say that polyamory should be kept out of YA books because it is sexual or too adult or wrong, even, when in reality it isn't any of those things and it isn't more sexual and adult than many things that are included in some YA books. (But that's none of my business..) Why should a relationship with more than two people be considered more sexual and adult than a monogamous relationship? Same with gay relationships, it's seen as wrong or too adult as well, when it isn't at all. It is truly an amazing feeling to have yourself represented in something when the community for that tells you frequently that you and your sexuality and relationships are wrong or not suited for younger people.

All in all, it was a good and pure book, and I can see myself reading it again, but the writing was not as developed and eloquent as it could have been, though that doesn't make it entirely unlikable, it just could have been improved a bit more, I think.

Until next post (whenever that will be),

Mal