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bookishmillennial's review
emotional
funny
hopeful
reflective
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
disclaimer if you’ve read other reviews by me and are noticing a pattern: You’re correct that I don’t really give starred reviews, I feel like a peasant and don’t like leaving them and most often, I will only leave them if I vehemently despised a book. I enjoy most books for what they are, & I extract lessons from them all. Everyone’s reading experiences are subjective, so I hope my reviews provide enough information to let you know if a book is for you or not, regardless if I add stars or not. Find me on Instagram: @bookish.millennial or tiktok: @bookishmillennial
I adore Robin Gow !!! This is only about ~120 pages but it was full of teenage angst, introspection, and discovery. Two teenage boys start their journey of figuring out their trans identities, and they come across two soldiers, who are named Oliver & Aaron, so they adopt those names! Aaron moves away so they navigate being long-distance on top of so much identity searching.
Robin actually grew up in Kutztown, the town where Oliver & Aaron's story begins, which I thought was so neat. Robin was inspired by the fact that women dressed as men to be soldiers to be part of the Revolution, and that many of them went on to live as men after the war. Robin wants to remind us that trans and genderqueer or nonbinary folks have always existed in history, but it was just up to whomever was telling the stories and documenting this afterward (which we know of course has been predominantly cishet white men). They also provide a great further reading list at the very end, on trans*, gender-nonconforming, and the two-spirit people's history.
I adore Robin Gow !!! This is only about ~120 pages but it was full of teenage angst, introspection, and discovery. Two teenage boys start their journey of figuring out their trans identities, and they come across two soldiers, who are named Oliver & Aaron, so they adopt those names! Aaron moves away so they navigate being long-distance on top of so much identity searching.
Robin actually grew up in Kutztown, the town where Oliver & Aaron's story begins, which I thought was so neat. Robin was inspired by the fact that women dressed as men to be soldiers to be part of the Revolution, and that many of them went on to live as men after the war. Robin wants to remind us that trans and genderqueer or nonbinary folks have always existed in history, but it was just up to whomever was telling the stories and documenting this afterward (which we know of course has been predominantly cishet white men). They also provide a great further reading list at the very end, on trans*, gender-nonconforming, and the two-spirit people's history.
"Really, I just thought the group
might make me feel even more weird and lonely
and like I didn't belong anywhere.
It was totally not any of those things
which was fucking refreshing. I didn't know
queer groups like Spectrum existed.
I've learned so freaking much from my friends,
and I'm not the only Latino for once!
I know it sounds selfish
but I don't think it really is selfish
to want to feel
like a family
It makes me think about
how much more I would like history class
if we talked more about queer people
and people of color
and people with disabilities
and people with different religious backgrounds
instead of just teaching about them
as side facts in a white guy's history.
What would a class about
the Revolution look like
thinking about those groups?
Content Warnings
Graphic: Homophobia, Transphobia, and Deadnaming
Moderate: Dysphoria
Minor: Sexual assault, Antisemitism, Religious bigotry, and Sexual content
averyprettyboy's review
challenging
emotional
hopeful
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.5
Content Warnings
Graphic: Transphobia, Deadnaming, and Homophobia
Moderate: Dysphoria, Religious bigotry, and Sexual assault
Minor: Pedophilia, Antisemitism, and Sexual content
kazzmed's review
adventurous
emotional
hopeful
inspiring
sad
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? N/A
5.0
This is such a beautiful story about self-exploration and finding yourself. At times it was definitely emotional and a little close to home, but it’s so important for these stories to be shared so others with similar stories don’t feel so alone. I loved the style of writing and wish we could have heard more from Aaron’s perspective.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Transphobia and Dysphoria
abitbetterbooks's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
inspiring
reflective
sad
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
5.0
Content Warnings
Moderate: Sexual assault, Deadnaming, and Transphobia
Minor: Pedophilia, Dysphoria, and War
ang_mendoza's review
emotional
inspiring
lighthearted
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.5
Content Warnings
Moderate: Transphobia, Death, and Homophobia
Minor: Dysphoria, Antisemitism, War, Deadnaming, and Sexual assault
caseythereader's review
challenging
emotional
hopeful
reflective
sad
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
5.0
Thanks to FSG Young Readers for the free copy of this book.
- My official review of A MILLION QUIET REVOLUTIONS is as follows: 😭❤️😭❤️😭❤️
- Seriously, this book is so good. It’s heartbreaking but also hopeful. I wanted to hug Aaron and Oliver so tightly.
- I love how this book talks about how queer people and people of color have been simply wiped from so much of our history, and how empowering it can be to find yourself in the past, or to write yourself into history.
- My official review of A MILLION QUIET REVOLUTIONS is as follows: 😭❤️😭❤️😭❤️
- Seriously, this book is so good. It’s heartbreaking but also hopeful. I wanted to hug Aaron and Oliver so tightly.
- I love how this book talks about how queer people and people of color have been simply wiped from so much of our history, and how empowering it can be to find yourself in the past, or to write yourself into history.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Transphobia, Cursing, Deadnaming, Dysphoria, and Sexual content
Moderate: Sexual assault
moonyreadsbystarlight's review
emotional
hopeful
reflective
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
4.5
This speaks beautifully about trans love and the importance of being able to see yourself in history.
Told through poems, this YA romance focuses on two teens, Aaron and Oliver, who are long time best friends and secretly dating. Both are coming to understand their trans identities and by digging further into Revolutionary War history, may have found trans soldiers who had fallen in love. They are thrown for another loop when Aaron moves away, and they decide to exchange letters instead of texts in honor of their revolutionary namesakes.
This is about first love, growing up, and contending with identity and history. I was a little concerned that this might dip into the ahistorical patriotic fevor that so often surrounds the founding of this country, but I was pleasantly suprised that there was some nuance and discussion about some of the issues (particularly through the Puerto Rican MC, Aaron).
There were some small parts that I could, perhaps, critique but over all, I really loved this. The descriptions of the love and tenderness in this story absolutely made me cry in the best way. And there were so many details about transness (some of which were different for each character) that I think were well done and important.
Told through poems, this YA romance focuses on two teens, Aaron and Oliver, who are long time best friends and secretly dating. Both are coming to understand their trans identities and by digging further into Revolutionary War history, may have found trans soldiers who had fallen in love. They are thrown for another loop when Aaron moves away, and they decide to exchange letters instead of texts in honor of their revolutionary namesakes.
This is about first love, growing up, and contending with identity and history. I was a little concerned that this might dip into the ahistorical patriotic fevor that so often surrounds the founding of this country, but I was pleasantly suprised that there was some nuance and discussion about some of the issues (particularly through the Puerto Rican MC, Aaron).
There were some small parts that I could, perhaps, critique but over all, I really loved this. The descriptions of the love and tenderness in this story absolutely made me cry in the best way. And there were so many details about transness (some of which were different for each character) that I think were well done and important.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Homophobia, Religious bigotry, and Transphobia
Moderate: Dysphoria, Sexual content, Sexual assault, and War
greenlivingaudioworm's review against another edition
emotional
hopeful
lighthearted
reflective
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
3.0
Content Warnings
Moderate: Dysphoria, Pedophilia, Sexual assault, Transphobia, Deadnaming, Antisemitism, and Religious bigotry
foreverinastory's review against another edition
emotional
hopeful
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Thank you to Pride Book Tours and Fierce Reads for a finished copy in exchange for an honest review and promotion. All opinions are my own.
I am very emotional after reading this.
A Million Quiet Revolutions is a YA contemporary novel in verse that follows the journey of two trans boys who are best friends and fall in love with each other. When they find the story of two trans men in the Revolutionary war, they adopt their names: Aaron and Oliver. Just as they feel like their relationship is blossoming, Aaron is forced to move away. The two continue to write letters to each other and cling to the hope of love, identity and finding their place in history.
This book broke me. I am a void after reading this heartbreaking and breathtaking story of two trans boys in love. I loved how much these two boys cared for each other. I loved the exploration of queer culture, Latine culture and Jewish culture that we got in this novel. Aaron and Oliver's journeys to acceptance are different for them both, but each was powerful.
I loved watching Aaron find a community for himself, including other queer Latine people. I loved seeing Oliver dive deeper into history and finding stories of queer heroes. Oliver's home life is much more accepting and I loved how easily his parents supported him. Aaron has a tougher time, but the way his relationship with his older brother, Jose, is explored was amazing. I loved seeing these two open up to each other and how Jose was always willing to help Aaron if that's what he wanted.
Overall, this was a moving and evocative story and I loved it with my whole heart.
Jewish gay trans male MC, Puerto Rican Christian gay trans male MC, Latine queer nonbinary side character, Puerto Rican cishet side characters, various queer side characters, Black male side character.
CWs: Homophobia/homomisia, transphobia/transmisia, deadnaming, misgendering. Moderate: misogyny, consensual sexual content, sexual assault, rape, sexual violence, religious bigotry, dysphoria. Minor: Antisemitism.
I am very emotional after reading this.
A Million Quiet Revolutions is a YA contemporary novel in verse that follows the journey of two trans boys who are best friends and fall in love with each other. When they find the story of two trans men in the Revolutionary war, they adopt their names: Aaron and Oliver. Just as they feel like their relationship is blossoming, Aaron is forced to move away. The two continue to write letters to each other and cling to the hope of love, identity and finding their place in history.
This book broke me. I am a void after reading this heartbreaking and breathtaking story of two trans boys in love. I loved how much these two boys cared for each other. I loved the exploration of queer culture, Latine culture and Jewish culture that we got in this novel. Aaron and Oliver's journeys to acceptance are different for them both, but each was powerful.
I loved watching Aaron find a community for himself, including other queer Latine people. I loved seeing Oliver dive deeper into history and finding stories of queer heroes. Oliver's home life is much more accepting and I loved how easily his parents supported him. Aaron has a tougher time, but the way his relationship with his older brother, Jose, is explored was amazing. I loved seeing these two open up to each other and how Jose was always willing to help Aaron if that's what he wanted.
Overall, this was a moving and evocative story and I loved it with my whole heart.
Jewish gay trans male MC, Puerto Rican Christian gay trans male MC, Latine queer nonbinary side character, Puerto Rican cishet side characters, various queer side characters, Black male side character.
CWs: Homophobia/homomisia, transphobia/transmisia, deadnaming, misgendering. Moderate: misogyny, consensual sexual content, sexual assault, rape, sexual violence, religious bigotry, dysphoria. Minor: Antisemitism.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Homophobia, Transphobia, and Deadnaming
Moderate: Rape, Misogyny, Sexual violence, Dysphoria, Sexual content, Sexual assault, and Religious bigotry
Minor: Antisemitism
armontheroad's review
emotional
inspiring
reflective
sad
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
A MILLION QUIET REVOLUTIONS is a deeply beautiful novel written in verse. We follow two trans teen boys in a romantic relationship together. One of the boys is a white Jewish only child, the other is a Puerto Rican Catholic with an older brother. I requested this only knowing it was a T4T relationship. I’m also in a T4T relationship, my partner and I are both trans men as well, but I was surprised just how much Oliver and Aaron are like me and my partner. Aaron being a Boricua completely took me by a surprise, but it made me so happy accidentally finding representation I could fully relate to. I love the conversations had in this book. They are raw and deeply personal. From discussions of dysphoria, unsupportive family, surviving sexual assault, self-discovery, discussions on Historical events, this was all handled stunningly! I cannot recommend this enough. Obviously, tread lightly due to potentially triggering content. The only critique I have is I want to see more of these characters. I would read 12 books all about them.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Deadnaming, Homophobia, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Transphobia, Sexual content, Dysphoria, Misogyny, and Religious bigotry
Minor: Antisemitism
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