This book is, at it's heart, a coming-of-age for a trans teenager. In some ways, I feel it echoed Ladybird, with the relationship between the main character and his mother, but it also really explored the realisation of someone being trans, and the struggles of finding yourself AND being yourself as a trans teenager. I think what this book does well is not only the exploration of being a transman but also the subtle transphobia you experience coming out.

When Zoe says she's okay with Dean being trans, it is partially true. She is not transphobic in the same way Blake is, but at the same time, she has an undercurrent of transphobia in how she treats Dean going forward, and she puts a lot of that under the guise of being jealous or having to adjust. And that is one thing I think the book does exceptionally well - it highlights the idea that people will say they're "adjusting", but what they are truthfully doing is trying to reconcile their internal transphobia with their love for someone. Zoe ultimately is okay with Dean being trans as his own person, but she is not okay with her still dating him - and in turn she really wants him to detransition for her sake, so she can keep loving him like she always has. Which ultimately, is not productive or kind to him.

This book isn't groundbreaking, or deeply insightful, but it is a fun and, quite frankly, needed YA novel, and for it's genre and it's purpose, I do think it is a really good read. If you're used to sad queer novels like A Little Life, then yes, maybe this book will seem a little novel, but if you are looking for a book in the YA genre, especially if you want to know what it's like to be a trans teen (if you're cis), then I really recommend it.