I received a free e-copy of this book from NetGalley in exchange for my honest opinion.

I read this book as a trans man myself. I like seeing other people's experiences, as well as kind of "fact-checking" the books available, due to seeing some well-meaning but very misinformed or misguided ones when I was questioning. I also wanted books to recommend people if they are questioning or just want more information on trans people. I feel that this is one I would recommend to people.

Many of this author's feelings and experiences in regard to being trans resonate with me. He wrote on a personal level, being very clear that other people can have different experiences, but this is the most I have seen myself in a nonfiction book as well.

Questions that trans people get asked often are all in here, as well as acknowledging common misconceptions that are growing worse in this political climate. While I do not think that this book will change the minds of the most bigoted people, I do think that it can ease the fears of parents when their kid comes out as trans. This is also a good source for the more deeply personal questions trans people get asked that quite frankly we should not be asked as often as we are.

While I do not agree with his wording sometimes (ex. saying trans men are raised as girls and trans women are raised as boys) I think the rest of the book compensates for this. This is especially true as, mentioned before, he does not look to speak for the community overall and is clear this is his own mind. Plus, this was written directed to cis people and I acknowledge the wording I'd prefer could add too much confusion.

Overall, this is a good source to use, and while only one man's experience, is at the very least a good starting point for more understanding.

This is probably the first time I've seen coral reefs mentioned with hope and not just despair for the future. It's incredibly informative, and while Berwald emphasizes a lot is still needed to be done to make an impactful difference, hope is still there. I think that's incredibly important given how most ocean science focuses on the depressing, which makes it hard to gain support to fix things.

That being said, I'm not a fan of how her daughter's struggles with mental health are included in this. She claims they're similar to coral reef struggles, but honestly I don't see it, at least not in a way it needs to be mentioned in this book. I don't know what happened behind the scenes here (nor do I need to know as that's their business), but I can only hope the daughter gave permission to be included in this, as quite frankly some aspects of her struggles could be seen as invasive or embarrassing to be shared.

Overall this is a good book, and I did learn a lot. Mental health journey aside, I think people losing hope in the environment should take a look at this book to see how they can help make a difference.

Maybe for someone else this is a good book, and the review suggest this is true, but that is definitely not the case for me. This is another book about trans pain, not joy. Perhaps some people will find comfort in that but it's not me.

I also don't think I'm quite the target audience for this. While I'm a trans man myself, I'm part of the younger generation the main character complains about several times in this book. I'm one of those people who thinks labels are good when chosen by the individual as it's easy to feel lost or broken when there is no word for what you are (as the main character feels when he can't find evidence of other trans men). I'm one of those people who thinks the t-slur should not be used in classroom settings regardless of the situation and that safe places are important. I'm also one of those people who thinks that separating trans men and cis men into two different categories is wrong. Trans men are men, and while yes that phrase gets used as a weapon in this book, that does not make the phrase any less true.

I think it important to note that there are several cases of sexual assault in this book, as well as a questionable friendship between a 23 year-old trans woman and the main character when he's a child (13-14). It is made clear there is no ill-intent, but when trans women are already seen as predators and friendships between kids and adults are seriously questionable even when both parties are cis, it does not seem like the best thing to have included in this book.

I received a free e-arc from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

This book is untraditional I would say. As the author says herself, it's a combination of sharks and social issues, which does not seem to go together but she makes work. This is hard to do and I have read other books by different authors that failed in this attempt. What I found more untraditional, however, is the style of writing. It's very personal and stream-of-thought. While it can be off putting to someone who might already be familiar with the concepts I do think it makes this book more approachable.

I did learn a bit about sharks from this book, even though I've read other shark books before. I liked that this book was hopeful compared to what it sometimes feels like with diversity as well.

Overall, it was pretty good and I think worth the read.