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ajnsmiths's review
challenging
emotional
hopeful
fast-paced
5.0
Movingly written graphic novel memoir in which the author shares his childhood experiences with bullying, dealing with the deep grief at the death of his mother, and his feelings around coming out as gay. A truly heroic effort that reaches a hand out to any child dealing with the same issues and lets them know they are not alone.
bickie's review
Important and heart-breaking. Illustrates the harm done with non-inclusive language (such as talking about "moms" when "adult at home" would also be accurate), harm done by binary and rigid gender-related behavior expectations, and how much difference an up-stander or word of kindness can make.
Explores dark times and also ends on a hopeful, positive note when Damian describes his joy at finding many more people like him living in the world.
CW:
Explores dark times and also ends on a hopeful, positive note when Damian describes his joy at finding many more people like him living in the world.
CW:
Spoiler
Mother was found by her daughter in their home after having been stabbed 27 times; brief non-graphic suicide ideation; emotional and physical bullyingex_libris_volantes's review against another edition
challenging
emotional
hopeful
reflective
sad
fast-paced
5.0
jwinchell's review against another edition
5.0
I really loved this graphic memoir about the author/illustrator’s elementary years and 7th grade in particular. As I know from parenting my own 7th grade boy, a lot happens in this year and my parenting and this book has given me a lot of compassion for this age. This is a great coming out book and deals with bullying too. Highly recommended.
jadenalex's review
This book felt like it was geared towards a younger audience and was somewhat shallow and simplistic in its approach and tone. Overall I wasn’t feeling engaged.
thenextgenlibrarian's review
5.0
This is a fantastic MG graphic novel about what it means to think of yourself as different and then to go to love who you are. It deals with the issues of poverty, being LGBTQIA+, starting a new school/trying to make friends, and being bullied. So many students will connect with this book.
CW: homophobia, bullying
CW: homophobia, bullying
sparklemaia's review
3.0
This is a memoir about a tender-hearted kid who has decided, as the new 7th grader at school, to just not speak to anyone -- if he never says anything, no one will have any reason to bully him. Unsurprisingly, this strategy doesn't work as well as Damian hoped it would. Friendless and introspective, he struggles in silence with C-PTSD and the confusion over his burgeoning attraction to boys, who as a whole have bullied him his whole life. His silent sojourn through middle school is frequently interrupted with flashbacks to a turbulent childhood, foregrounded by the violent murder of his mother by his father when he was a baby and defined by being the weird "girly" boy being raised in a small low-income apartment by his loving but aging grandparents. Through it all, Damian's sweetness and sensitivity shine through, and he begins to understand that being "different" IS normal. Would recommend for fans of Flamer and A-Okay.