A review by lesbianelvira
Between Perfect and Real by Ray Stoeve

emotional hopeful reflective fast-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Character
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes

3.5

very sweet trans theatre kid story, felt very reminiscent of like, the show trinkets, but more trans. & it’s nice that there are many queer storylines in television to refer back to, and even more possibilities in literature. though i do agree with reviews that with as many issues that are parsed through in the book via dialogue with other characters or dean’s stream of consciousness, the author could’ve and should’ve found a way to more explicitly present zoe’s experience sensitively.
we were given a window into the perspectives of other primary characters like ronnie’s and jade’s, which was done to fully form the characters And be realistic depictions for people of their identities. yet despite zoe’s conflicting feelings being a *hugely* essential part of the plot, her grappling with her love for dean and her sexuality didn't feel like it was handled in a way that felt like zoe was being written well as her own character (instead of just the romantic lead opposite our MC that disappoints him), let alone as a lesbian. frankly, the lesbian and trans communities (which aren’t two separate things) have gone through this exact scenario too many times (plus this author said they had sensitivity betas, so what gives) for us to have to write about the experience poorly  
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