So what is normal? The title of this book suggests a certain level of performance - being normal is an 'art' - which I thought was really interesting, as lots of theorists suggest that gender norms are just social constructs that we put on and play the part. The idea of social and gender norms is developed on the cover of the book where the traditional male and female icons (typically seen on the doors of public toilets around the world) are used to depict a girl breaking out of her masculine mould.
David and Leo are two outsiders: David has longed to be a girl since he was 8 years old; Leo is the new kid at Eden Park School, from the wrong side of town. Told through the dual narrative of these two characters, we see their relationship develop after Leo defends David against the school bully, and David accompanies Leo on a mission to find his absent father. Williamson writes so truthfully and compassionately about her characters, that I couldn't help but compare her writing to that of the legendary Rainbow Rowell; the dialogue is authentic, and issues of friendship, bullying, family, class and gender are all handled sensitively.
Where the storytelling differs from that of Rowell is in the almost-entirely feel-good ending. Everything comes together rather neatly, but this is in no way a criticism. Books featuring trans characters are few and far between, and I think it's really important to show these characters achieving a happy ending where they are accepted and loved by the people that are important to them. Williamson knows first hand how important this acceptance is after spending some time working as part of The Gender Identity Development Service, an NHS service for people working out their gender identity. It is from this experienced and knowledgable position that Williamson is able to write such a thought-provoking and emotionally-affecting story that I'm certain will leave teen readers, however they identify, feeling uplifted and hopeful.
It is no surprise that this book has been nominated for the YA Book Prize, and has already been selected as Waterstone's Children's Book Prize winner for the Older Fiction category, as it is quite simply one of the most enjoyable and compelling books I have read this year - I have literally told EVERYONE I have spoken to in the last few weeks about it - if you've not done so already, I urge you to read this book, and if you have already read it, why not read it again? Heck, you don't need me to tell you to do that... You're already looking for it on your shelves, aren't you?! I loved this book so much, it's made it's way onto my YALC 2016 bag, which features my current top 6 YA reads:
Rating: A fully deserved ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
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