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A review by halfwaytoaugust
Always the Almost by Edward Underhill
5.0
This is a fast favorite and let me tell you why.
Miles' boyfriend breaks up with him when he comes out as trans, but Miles has a plan to win him back. Not only that, but he wants to win the biggest piano competition in the Midwest. But will his plans stay on course when the new kid in school catches his attention?
This book is unapologetically trans. And it is amazing. We watch Miles socially transition by changing his name & pronouns, there are open discussions about binding & what Miles wants in the future regarding his transition, we see Miles struggle with dysphoria and find moments of euphoria, and there's even a character who asks his pronouns first.
But I want to put a warning out there for my trans friends - the transphobia is a bit heavy. We see it subtly within his family, explicitly on online forums, there are instances of misgendering, and Miles is referred to by his birth name in any pre transition parts of the book. Please be aware of this and if you need to, set the book down until you're ready.
Another reason I love this book is Eric. Miles and Eric are precious and deserve to be protected at all costs. I would have loved some more exploration with Eric's character & his relationship to gender (no specifics to avoid direct spoilers), or even another book dedicated to him would be ideal??
Anyway, everything was just done very well - the characters, the details, the conflict, the growth. I was hooked from the start and could not put it down.
Rep: trans MC, gay MC, pan SC, lesbian SC, Chinese SC, Latine SC, SC with Down Syndrome
CW: deadnaming, misgendering, transphobia, homophobia, racism, bullying, trauma, dysphoria, infidelity
Rating system:
5 - absolutely love, little-to-no dislikes that did not impact my reading experience
4 - great book, minor dislikes that did have an impact on my reading experience
3 - good/decent book but for some reason did not hook me or there were some problematic things that just were not addressed or greatly impacted my reading experience
2 - is either a book I did not click with and did not enjoy, problematic aspects are not addressed and severely impacted my reading experience, or I DNF'd but think it has potential for others
1 - is very problematic, I would not recommend the book to anyone
Thank you to Netgalley & Wednesday Books for an eARC in exchange for an honest review. Expected pub date: February 14, 2023.
Miles' boyfriend breaks up with him when he comes out as trans, but Miles has a plan to win him back. Not only that, but he wants to win the biggest piano competition in the Midwest. But will his plans stay on course when the new kid in school catches his attention?
This book is unapologetically trans. And it is amazing. We watch Miles socially transition by changing his name & pronouns, there are open discussions about binding & what Miles wants in the future regarding his transition, we see Miles struggle with dysphoria and find moments of euphoria, and there's even a character who asks his pronouns first.
But I want to put a warning out there for my trans friends - the transphobia is a bit heavy. We see it subtly within his family, explicitly on online forums, there are instances of misgendering, and Miles is referred to by his birth name in any pre transition parts of the book. Please be aware of this and if you need to, set the book down until you're ready.
Another reason I love this book is Eric. Miles and Eric are precious and deserve to be protected at all costs. I would have loved some more exploration with Eric's character & his relationship to gender (no specifics to avoid direct spoilers), or even another book dedicated to him would be ideal??
Anyway, everything was just done very well - the characters, the details, the conflict, the growth. I was hooked from the start and could not put it down.
Rep: trans MC, gay MC, pan SC, lesbian SC, Chinese SC, Latine SC, SC with Down Syndrome
CW: deadnaming, misgendering, transphobia, homophobia, racism, bullying, trauma, dysphoria, infidelity
Rating system:
5 - absolutely love, little-to-no dislikes that did not impact my reading experience
4 - great book, minor dislikes that did have an impact on my reading experience
3 - good/decent book but for some reason did not hook me or there were some problematic things that just were not addressed or greatly impacted my reading experience
2 - is either a book I did not click with and did not enjoy, problematic aspects are not addressed and severely impacted my reading experience, or I DNF'd but think it has potential for others
1 - is very problematic, I would not recommend the book to anyone
Thank you to Netgalley & Wednesday Books for an eARC in exchange for an honest review. Expected pub date: February 14, 2023.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Bullying, Dysphoria, Transphobia, and Deadnaming
Moderate: Racism, Homophobia, and Infidelity