Morgan and Eric are best friends, born on the same day in the same hospital, and they’ve spent every birthday together. At the beginning of this beautiful book, it’s their thirteenth birthday and Morgan thinks about telling Eric the truth: that she (I’m going to use she/her pronouns for Morgan here, though characters throughout the book use he/him) is a girl and not the boy everyone assumes she is. Many years and many misunderstandings pass by before this fundamental truth of her identity is revealed and properly understood (by Eric OR Morgan), and in the meantime you read about both of them trying to understand one another even though they know each other better than anyone. Morgan’s journey of discovery is handled beautifully and heartbreakingly well, and the realities for many (sadly, most) trans kids are not swept under the rug. This will be an important book for many people.

I will be honest: despite the brutal parts here, there is also a little rosy colored edge on the proceedings. I’m not against a book with a happy ending, but it almost feels a little too happy. It’s nice to see good things happen to worthy people and it’s nice to see a trans girl get her love story. There’s honesty to it based off the way Eric and his genuine love and respect for Morgan are portrayed from the time they’re both children, but things slot into place maybe a tiny bit too quickly and tidily. It’s not really a complaint; just an observation. I’ll be ecstatic to sell this book.