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its_vendetta's review against another edition
emotional
hopeful
inspiring
reflective
fast-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? Yes
3.75
Content Warnings
Graphic: Religious bigotry, Transphobia, and Homophobia
Moderate: Bullying
Minor: Dysphoria, Hate crime, Misogyny, Injury/Injury detail, Racism, Deadnaming, Violence, Outing, and Toxic friendship
fanboyriot's review against another edition
emotional
funny
inspiring
lighthearted
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? No
5.0
Read For:
⚽️ Gay Sports
🫥 Hurt/Comfort
🫶 Supportive Family
👨🏽❤️💋👨🏾 Secret Relationship
🤝 Wholesome Friendships
Amazing. Absolutely such an amazing book, the plot, the characters, the relationship, and all the teammates made it wonderful to read.
I was fully invested in this story, it was so wholesome and heartwarming. Spencer’s parents were adorable and doing their best. The coach too was the absolute best. The found family and wholesome family vibes this book had was like a warm hug.
Spencer going for what he wanted in life, finding the right people to be on his side and help him along the way. He had trouble with his old school but his new school had his back, his teammates supporting him, it was all written so well.
Rating: ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ (5/5)
Release Date: 31, March 2022
POV: Third Person
Spice: 🌶️ (mentioned lightly)
Rep: Black Transmasc (MC), Autism (MC’s brother), Nonbinary (SC), LGBTQIA Characters
Content Warnings
Graphic: Bullying, Hate crime, Religious bigotry, Homophobia, Outing, and Transphobia
Moderate: Panic attacks/disorders, Injury/Injury detail, and Ableism
Minor: Deadnaming and Dysphoria
rockythefreak's review against another edition
emotional
hopeful
inspiring
lighthearted
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? Yes
5.0
A wonderful read! I wish I had this book when I was a kid. As an adult, there were a few parts I might have cringed or yucked at (I do NOT want to read about teens exploring sexually, no matter how brief) but I think for teen readers, these moments are important and perfectly done.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Homophobia, Outing, Transphobia, Child abuse, Hate crime, Mass/school shootings, and Emotional abuse
Moderate: Addiction, Dysphoria, Religious bigotry, Ableism, Outing, Medical content, and Abortion
Minor: Slavery, Injury/Injury detail, Racism, Deadnaming, and Sexism
emily_mh'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? No
4.25
When I picked this book up I was looking for a tropey high school romance with a bit of cheese, and this book delivered on all fronts. The American high school setting satisfied my nostalgic cravings (think cafeterias, sports games, and biking to school). The chemistry between Spencer and Justice was great; I particularly liked how they started off on the wrong foot, but that they were also clearly into each other. My critique here is that I wanted to know more about WHY they were into each other. I also wanted the tension between them to have been better resolved. But overall their romance was sweet and ultimately happy.
I loved Spencer as the MC! I was fully invested in his story. His bravery in coming out and standing up for himself considering the transphobia in his history (and present), was incredible. Like, I was a mess as a teen, how are these kids doing it? Through Spencer’s character, Fitzsimons demonstrates how being both Black and trans impacts playing soccer. I loved seeing Spencer’s development in realising he wanted to come out again, that the cons of being in the closet outweighed the pros for him personally.
Something I haven’t read a lot about in fiction is religious bigotry, which is a major theme of this book. Justice, the LI, comes from a bigoted religious family so we really get to see “behind closed doors” with this. We also gain insight into the complex situation this leaves Justice in, as he must ensure his personal safety as a gay teen dependent on and at the mercy of the very people who seek to oppress him. Another topic Fitzsimons approached that I was gripped by was the lack of solidarity within the queer community when it comes to marginalised identities. This manifests in Spencer’s QSA not caring to fight for trans rights at their school. It was a great example of how queer people can still have privilege and work consciously or unconsciously to oppress other queer people on the basis of that privilege.
By the way, if you, as an autistic reader, are worried about the autism rep in Spencer brother, don’t be. It was characterised with care. Spencer being a glass child might be a little triggering if you are disabled with siblings, but this is a very small part of the book and I believe it was handled with care and without ableism. On a lighter note, don’t let the soccer focus put you off. I was also worried by this but Fitzsimons included this content in a very engaging way!
So this was a solid read. The reason why I docked 0.75 stars was because of my early critique of the romance, and also because the pacing did get away from Fitzsimons in the last third. It was too rushed and it felt like we needed more time fleshing out the resolution of each plot point. But overall this was a heartwarming and hopeful queer story and I look forward to see what Fitzsimons writes next.
Rep: queer trans Black MC, gay LI, Black autistic SC, Black SCs, East Asian SC
Content Warnings
Graphic: Abortion and Religious bigotry
Moderate: Bullying, Homophobia, and Transphobia
Minor: Death of parent, Excrement, Fire/Fire injury, Racism, Death, Blood, Injury/Injury detail, Violence, Grief, Medical content, Outing, Ableism, Alcohol, Deadnaming, Drug abuse, Vomit, Addiction, and Pregnancy
Minor: menstruation, chronic pain, loss of a loved one (child)vlmollylv's review
emotional
funny
sad
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
4.0
Content Warnings
Moderate: Homophobia and Transphobia
Minor: Blood and Injury/Injury detail
ana_the_frog's review against another edition
emotional
funny
hopeful
lighthearted
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? It's complicated
5.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Homophobia, Religious bigotry, and Transphobia
Moderate: Bullying
Minor: Injury/Injury detail, Drug abuse, Medical content, and Outing
megelizabeth's review
emotional
hopeful
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
4.5
“Listen, here’s the thing: People like you and me are going to have to work a million times harder, be a million times better, and do it without upsetting anybody in order to be successful. It’s not fair, but that’s just how it is."
I thoroughly enjoyed and adored this book. The main character, Spencer, is interesting and feels very real, and I loved getting to explore his relationships and to see him grow as a person. The developments in his relationships with his parents and with new friend/maybe more, Justice, are done well, and I also really loved the friendships he forms with his team members and how wonderfully and non-stereotypically these teenage male friendships are presented.
This isn't an easy read; Spencer and other characters have to deal with a lot of difficult and just awful things, and there are a lot of conversations about such things and about the often unfortunate experiences of trans people and people of colour. I found these themes to be addressed well, though please bear in mind that I'm talking as a white, cis person - I'd definitely recommend checking out own-voices reviews. For me, I found there to be a perfect amount of angst, tension, and drama, coupled with enough hope not to finish the book feeling entirely soul-destroyed and instead to finish it with feelings of bittersweetness and subtle hope.
My only real criticism of this book is that it feels like it's set over too short a span of time. I have no concept of what constitutes a football season, but I got the sense that it's supposed to be set over the course of one, and while that makes sense, to me it meant that everything feels like it's developing a bit too quickly, and I think setting it over the course of a school year would've made things seem more natural. There's also one thing that's alluded to but is never really addressed, and it bugged me that we never get clarification.
All that being said, though, I still absolutely loved this book, and would highly, highly recommend it.
I thoroughly enjoyed and adored this book. The main character, Spencer, is interesting and feels very real, and I loved getting to explore his relationships and to see him grow as a person. The developments in his relationships with his parents and with new friend/maybe more, Justice, are done well, and I also really loved the friendships he forms with his team members and how wonderfully and non-stereotypically these teenage male friendships are presented.
This isn't an easy read; Spencer and other characters have to deal with a lot of difficult and just awful things, and there are a lot of conversations about such things and about the often unfortunate experiences of trans people and people of colour. I found these themes to be addressed well, though please bear in mind that I'm talking as a white, cis person - I'd definitely recommend checking out own-voices reviews. For me, I found there to be a perfect amount of angst, tension, and drama, coupled with enough hope not to finish the book feeling entirely soul-destroyed and instead to finish it with feelings of bittersweetness and subtle hope.
My only real criticism of this book is that it feels like it's set over too short a span of time. I have no concept of what constitutes a football season, but I got the sense that it's supposed to be set over the course of one, and while that makes sense, to me it meant that everything feels like it's developing a bit too quickly, and I think setting it over the course of a school year would've made things seem more natural. There's also one thing that's alluded to but is never really addressed, and it bugged me that we never get clarification.
All that being said, though, I still absolutely loved this book, and would highly, highly recommend it.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Religious bigotry, Injury/Injury detail, Transphobia, and Homophobia
Minor: Drug abuse, Suicide, Bullying, and Death
a_libra_library's review against another edition
emotional
reflective
sad
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.0
My first book with a trans main character. I liked the story of our MC wanting to join the soccer team, finding a romance but also the laws and hurdles of being a trans student in high school and how that effects students. It made me think of how it effect students in real life and how I as an ally can actually help or advocate. It was a hopeful, inspiring story.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Addiction, Classism, Deadnaming, Injury/Injury detail, Outing, Abandonment, Ableism, Biphobia, Cursing, Homophobia, and Transphobia
aromarrie's review against another edition
emotional
hopeful
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
4.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Religious bigotry
Moderate: Transphobia, Injury/Injury detail, and Homophobia
Minor: Child death
beca_reads's review against another edition
hopeful
lighthearted
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? Yes
3.5
I really enjoyed this book, I listened to a copy of it through my Library. The passing playbook is full of trans joy, and is full of love. The book focuses on what it is like to come out, and how it is so important that you feel comfortable coming out to others. I appreciated that at no point did Spencer feel that he had to come out; and that you should only do so when you are ready. It further looks at the complicated relationships that trans and other queer kids face.
We follow Spencer as he moves to a new school. Spencer is then spotted and persuaded to join the school's football team, the only thing is that he is Transgender and the other's don't know this yet. At the same time Spencer is starting to have feeling's for Justice one of the boys on the team. Things get complicated when the coach has to bench him as Spencer's birth certificate states that he was AFAB. Spencer then has to choose what he wants to do, does he want to fight to be able to play on the team. It is a story of fighting for your beliefs, and not giving up.
All of the character's were well developed and had strong character Arcs. I also found that I enjoy the sports trope.
We follow Spencer as he moves to a new school. Spencer is then spotted and persuaded to join the school's football team, the only thing is that he is Transgender and the other's don't know this yet. At the same time Spencer is starting to have feeling's for Justice one of the boys on the team. Things get complicated when the coach has to bench him as Spencer's birth certificate states that he was AFAB. Spencer then has to choose what he wants to do, does he want to fight to be able to play on the team. It is a story of fighting for your beliefs, and not giving up.
All of the character's were well developed and had strong character Arcs. I also found that I enjoy the sports trope.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Injury/Injury detail, Bullying, Homophobia, and Transphobia