Confession time: I joined a book club under protest. I didn't really want someone else telling me what to read. But it was pandemic lock down. Mom was bored. She wanted to talk to someone if only virtually and the neighborhood book club offered that option. But she wouldn't do it alone. Yes. It's true. I got guilted into joining book group. Some of the books have lived all the way up to my fears - they're hard, terrible subject books that I want no part of. Yeah, sorry, if you're gonna pick books where kids are being raped and killed you can pretty much fuck right off forever. BUT. There are glorious gems and this one is my absolute favorite.
Felix Ever After by Kacen Callender.
It is YA. Felix is Black, transgender, and queer. I won't recap the story but the writing is fresh and deep in Felix's head and heart. It's a book that sticks with you long after you've closed the back cover. I think the thing I love most is that I've read a lot of transgender stories that dwell on the moment of coming out and on the reactions and feelings of everyone surrounding that moment. Felix's story starts long after that so instead of dwelling on how Felix's reality impacts everyone else around him, this story is about who Felix IS right now, growing up, looking for love and acceptance.
This is one of those books that I liked so well, I'll go fishing for every last thing Kacen Callender has written.
