A review by elwirax
A Million Quiet Revolutions by Robin Gow

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

3.0

Rep- trans, queer and hispanic MC, trans queer and Jewish MC, mentions of non-binary character, mention of lesbian couple, Black side character.

"I see your old name like a moth, dusty-winged and glowing. The name escapes out the open window and into the soupy August night, into forever."

A Million Quiet Revolutions was a great exploration of identity, love and rewriting queer people back into history. It was very touching to see Aaron and Oliver find and accept themselves and I love that this novel ended happily (it is all too often that queer and trans stories end in tragedy). There were many poetic and beautiful lines throughout. While the format didn't always work for me in terms of strong characterisation, it did enough to illustrate authentic characters and struggles. I enjoyed the main themes of identity, family bonds, religious hypocrisy and reclaiming history that worked together to really bring the story to life. There was also a further reading list at the end which I found to be a great addition on where to continue learning about trans and queer history. 

There were some questionable choices that didn't really work for me such as having sex in a cemetery and the obsession/ romanticisation of war. Admittedly, the re-enactment weren't really my thing either. I understand the importance and symbolic meanings of these things in the novel and appreciate what was trying to be communicated but the execution wasn't my thing. 

Overall, this was undoubtedly an important book particularly for trans and gender non conforming folk who get to see themselves represented. The war plot itself didn't really work for me but the representation and strong themes were great. 
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