Oh, I really liked this one.

The Gay Agenda = Survive the Evil Witch Hunters, Get Over the Ex, Have a Successful First Date, and Maybe Learn Some Magic.

Isabel Sterling weaves an excellent plot full of well-developed characters and intrigue. Don't waste any time getting your hands on this one. You won't regret reading it.

Not quite as good as [b:Things You Save in a Fire|41150382|Things You Save in a Fire|Katherine Center|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1539876418l/41150382._SY75_.jpg|64320815], but almost. This one plays out like a movie. Some parts are thought provoking, but I wished for a little bit more. Some parts are a little too easily wrapped up, but overall, I rooted for this one and for Maggie the whole way through.

4.5 Stars

I can't believe it took me so long to read this book.

I absolutely loved it. Now I can't wait for the next book to release in 2020. Hopefully I can manage to snag it early through NetGalley.

Without giving too much away, my favorite character in this book changed. I now am totally enamored with Daisuke-san and Okame-san. Their banter over the course of this book made for great comic relief in what is otherwise a very dark part of the story.

As always, Julie Kagawa's writing is superb. Her characterization and world building are top notch. If you enjoyed Shadow of the Fox, then don't hesitate to pick this one up. You're only punishing yourself by waiting.

This was a tough read, emotionally. It was draining and repetitive to show just how draining and repetitive Isra and Deya's lives were. Now, don't make the mistake of thinking that Isra and Deya represent all of Palestinian Arab culture. They don't. No singular book could encapsulate a culture. Instead, they represent a small subset, an ideology that can and has permeated different cultures over time. I would have appreciated a little more of the beauty of Islam, but I did appreciate how both main characters realize how oppression is not Islam.
I'll be thinking about this book for awhile. Isra especially will stay with me. And that's the mark of a good book. It stays with you long after you put it down.

3.5 Stars.

This was decent. Not totally memorable, but not bad in any way. I think it would have been better if we heard from Mr. Harris too. I'm not really sure. It just fell a bit flat. It read more like a junior high girl's diary for the most part and I wished it had more depth.

I do like that Dot is deaf and it's not a problem and she's perfectly happy. That part was good.

Anyway, on to the next book in my TBR stack.

This is an important book. The author does say in her author's note that Amanda's experience is fictionalized and somewhat simplified, to help the largest amount of people possible understand Amanda's experience. She does "pass" as cisgender with little to no effort. She looks and sounds feminine. She acts very feminine. This may help some people who have never been introduced to a transgender or transsexual character or person to understand a little about what those concepts mean. This may make it easier for some to understand. Amanda's identity would no less valid if she figured out her identity later in life after fully developing a male body with a deep voice. Her identity would be no less valid if she never "passed" for cisgender, if she never had any hormones or body modifications, or if she were homosexual (dated other girls). Amanda's story isn't gospel.

No one book can encapsulate the experience of all transpeople.

But this book can and does validate the experience of young adults who identify as trans. It creates allies and builds empathy in cisgender readers.

This is a story of friendship, courage, bravery, facing our fears, and of trust. It does not bash religion in any way (Amanda is a Baptist Christian, herself, according to the author). I've seen some ugly remarks about this book in my town recently because the author is coming to our local library to speak. No one should feel threatened by this book. It only uplifts people.

It's a must read for all junior and high school teachers. It's a must read for young adults, especially those in the South, like Amanda.

I read this version as an enhanced audiobook, and it was fascinating. My only complaint with the audio version is that the speed of recordings is higher than the speed of narration, so that when I speed up the narration to 1.5, recordings of testimonies, television shows, or other audio books get sped up disproportionately to 2.0 speed or higher.

But with that aside, this was a fascinating study. I'm certainly going to consider encounters with strangers more carefully after this. Whether we are programmed to default to truth or doubt, we can program ourselves to default to kindness no mater what. That's the big takeaway from this book.

A must read for teachers and basically any human who will ever come into contact with transpeople. This book isn't just about a teenager's transition, though. It's about how we all transition in some ways - we all change and grow and mature. It's also about loss and grief and the ways we self-medicate. It's about seeking help when we need it and that seeking help requires strength and is never a mark of weakness. It's about navigating relationships, mental illness, high school, parents' expectations, and first loves.

In short, it's about life. Everyone needs to read this.

This little book is amazing. It can teach so many skills to 5th-8th graders. Seriously, alliteration, plot devices, notice and note strategies, foreshadowing, characterizations and predictions, even research opportunties - these 59 pages have it all! I am in the process of creating some resources to use for this book in the classroom and will be uploading them to Teachers Pay Teachers in the next week or so. I can't wait to us this in my classroom as a supplement and counterpart to our study on Anne Frank.