A review by graceheartsbooks
Nothing Ever Happens Here by Sarah Hagger-Holt

2.0

As a person who is LGBTQ+ (asexual) I do prefer when books have casual representation or have characters accept it immediately even if they’re not entirely certain of their thoughts on LGBTQ+ characters (ie: something like in Magnus Chase: The Hammer of Thor). Having said that, I do think it is important to have representation for characters that aren’t initially accepting but learn to be later on.

Izzy is 12 and starting year 8 (which in the US is equivalent to 7th grade). She’s hoping to get into her school’s production of ‘Guys and Dolls’ but her life is upended when her dad comes out as trans.

Izzy and her older sister Megan (16), unlike their younger brother Jamie (who is 5), don’t initially accept Danielle as they are uncomfortable with what this means for their family (it is sweet though that despite her own apprehension, Danielle’s wife is accepting of her and supports her through the transition). They also live in a small town so (as far as I can tell) haven’t encountered many LGBTQ+ people before if at all. So I think this could be a good book for kids who maybe are curious about trans people or know someone who is trans and aren’t entirely sure how to react to that. 

However, despite a content warning in the description and the beginning of the book, I don’t think the transphobia in this book was handled well and could be triggering for a lot of trans people even with a content warning. There are moments where characters equate being trans to men wearing dresses and the deadnaming could be a lot for some people. I don’t know what the writing process for this book was but perhaps a sensitivity reader being involved would’ve helped (although I don’t know how long they have really been a thing tbh). From a quick glance at the author’s others works, she has written a few nonfiction LGBTQ+ books and is LGBTQ+ herself but my point still stands.

We can always keep reading and growing and improving ourselves and our ways of representing different groups. 

I also didn’t particular care for Izzy’s school issues or her friend’s crush drama but that is a very moot point.

Overall, it’s not a perfect portrayal and pretty simplistic but in my opinion, still necessary for middle grade readers (trying my best not to be too harsh as—in case it wasn’t obvious from my other reviews—I am not a trans person and not a middle grader. I cannot speak properly on whether this is the best representation for trans individuals or whether this is an enjoyable middle grade book but it was not for me so therefore it is getting two stars)
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