Reviews with content warning for Child death - The Passing Playbook

Reviews tagging 'Child death'

The Passing Playbook by Isaac Fitzsimons

12 reviews

dogoodwithbooks's review against another edition

4.5

The Passing Playbook is definitely a great book to be reading. Fitzsimmons eases readers into the plot and is able to keep me engage. I really liked Spencer's character development throughout the book. Even though he does have several supportive friends and family, it's interesting to read about how Spencer ultimately finds himself and to stand up for his right to exist. I definitely think that helps add a crucial element to the plot, especially when it comes to the relationship between Spencer and Justice.

If you like sport romances featuring a trans MC or are looking for a book about being able to advocate for yourself, you will enjoy reading The Passing Playbook.

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winglesswarrior's review against another edition

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emotional funny hopeful inspiring lighthearted 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? It's complicated

4.5

A solid adorable read that I LOVED reading. Informative and yet still with a load of heart. It reads easy and tackles tonight topics without getting too painful or sad.

A warm hug from a queer friend.

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elwirax's review against another edition

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challenging lighthearted fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? It's complicated
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? No

2.5

Rep- Black queer trans MC, Gay LI, non-binary SC, Black autistic SC, bi SC.

"Whether you come out tomorrow or in five years, or thirty years, I guarantee that the fight will still be going on in some form or another. And I promise that when you join us, we’ll welcome you with open arms.”

This book dealt with many difficult issues namely transphobia, homophobia and religious bigotry but it also chose to focus on moments of queer/ trans joy and acceptance which was such a great message, LGBTQIA+ youth deserve happy stories.

However, this was very clearly a debut, the juvenile writing style often conflicted with some of the more serious themes in this book. Though, I don't think that it was necessarily poorly written as I still enjoyed how easy it was to get into and through the book.

I think that Spencer's crush on Justice was a bit insta-lovey but the romance itself was a slow burn which I was glad for. I though their love was sweet and I appreciated seeing consent especially in a book of the YA category. However, I do think that the victim blaming was an aspect where their relationship wasn't as well represented as it could've been. It was a shame to see Spencer breaking up with Justice over not standing up to his homophobic family. I feel like it could've been handled in a healthier and more sympathetic manner.

The friendship/ family dynamics in this book were good and I was glad that Spencer's teammates not only had his back in football but also outside of it (Macintosh and Coach Schilling were great). I do wish that some of the secondary characters such as Theo where a bit more developed. I though that he was used as more of a tool to make Spencer seem like a better character rather than a person in his own right. Hence, his representation as an autistic individual may not be as authentic as it should have been.

Overall, this was a good book, not particularly memorable in terms of plot but very much so in terms of transgender representation. I'm glad that trans individuals are receiving the representation they deserve.

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criticalgayze's review against another edition

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emotional hopeful inspiring medium-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

3.75

I read this in preparation for a discussion on the 2022 Lambda award nominees, and I came away really enjoying my reading experience. This one really highlights the importance for marginalized people to be on the forefront of telling their stories because there's an intense specificity in the detail of Spencer's interior monologue about homosexuality and self and external transgender body politicking.

This does suffer from some of the "stereotypical" attacks lobbed at "Young Adult" literature, which I believe are just the key faults of any poorly edited book. First, it has a big problem with being overstuffed on points. First, I think focusing on both transgender athleticism and homosexual dating as a transgender person is a lot in one book. This likely should have been developed as a series, akin to the Darius books by Adib Khorram, where each issue could be tackled in its own text.

Further, I think that including a closeted dating relationship that includes intense religious bigotry being faced by the love interest was too much for a book that was really a single-perspective story. Fitzsimmons does not give the time here to truly flesh that out, and it ends up with this weirdly rushed, "But it's all mostly alright!" ending.

For me personally, there are also some issues with hokey canned "I realize I was being small minded" one-liners, and, given the sociopolitical aspects of the story, Justice's acceptance of Spencer's gender identity seemed maybe a touch beyond logic.

But this is all me with my critical English teacher/scholar brain. This one is very cute, and I think could be really helpful and necessary for Queer (particularly trans) youth, especially in our current moment. Put it in your classroom library!

Quotes:
As if Spencer’s thoughts were sending out a homing beacon, Justice looked over in his direction, making eye contact, and Spencer understood what Gimli saw when he gazed upon Galadriel. (30)
Just because the onus always fell on trans and queer people, didn’t mean it should. (262)
Spencer didn’t want to be tolerated. You tolerated a bad smell. You tolerated a leaky faucet until it got fixed. (278)

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aromarrie's review against another edition

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emotional hopeful reflective medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes

4.0

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prongs_little_king's review against another edition

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funny hopeful informative inspiring fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Plot
Strong character development? It's complicated
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

5.0

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mme_carton's review against another edition

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emotional funny hopeful lighthearted relaxing 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? It's complicated

2.0

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bookcrushin's review against another edition

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adventurous emotional hopeful inspiring 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? Yes

5.0

Gosh I loved this book. Finished in one day and I haven’t done that in a long time. So important especially with all the anti-trans bills in schools and sports. Just let people play sports!!

I also loved that we had supportive parents and even though that can also be a detrimental to teens at times too. Super important narrative and I will hold this book in my heart for sure.

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lauren07's review against another edition

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emotional hopeful lighthearted reflective 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? Yes

3.75

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moonyreadsbystarlight's review against another edition

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inspiring lighthearted

Plot- or character-driven? Plot
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes

4.0

As I am writing this review, it is 4:30 AM because I couldn't bring myself to put this book down. This was a joy to read in so many ways. There was an adorable romance, a great best friend, and family that played an active role throughout the story. Seeing trans representation like this is almost surreal -- seeing someone transition at such a young age and receive the level of support that Spencer does. While he does encounter a lot of issues, there are also many things that don't end up being issues which is incredibly important and wonderful to see. There was a lot of complexity thematically regarding experiences of queer people in affirming vs non-affirming environments, including roles that religion can play. As someone in a state in the "Bible belt" that is one of the leading states in anti-trans legislation this year, both the aforementioned joy and themes really hit home.

I do think that the ending was a bit rushed. There were some great scenes that I think could have been made even more effective if the last quarter of the book had been longer. And there are a few characters that I loved, but would have liked to see explored more. Over all, this was a great read that tackles some very important issues and I thoroughly enjoyed it!

Thank you to Penguin for sending me this ARC to read and review!

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