Jamie Rambeau is a happy 11-year-old non-binary kid who likes nothing better than hanging out with their two best friends Daisy and Ash. But when the trio find out that in Year Seven they will be separated into one school for boys and another for girls, their friendship suddenly seems at risk. And when Jamie realises no one has thought about where they are going to go, they decide to take matters into their own hands, and sort it all out once and for all.
As the friends' efforts to raise awareness eventually become a rooftop protest against the binary rules for the local schools, Jamie realises that if they don't figure out a way forwards, they might be at risk of losing both their friends forever.
I haven't looked, but I'm guessing there are already reviews out there complaining about this book being 'too woke' and 'pandering' and all the other things people say when what they mean is 'I don't understand it and it scares me'. Don't listen to them. This is a wonderful, touching, heartfelt read with a fantastic moral.
Jamie is a wonderful character and left me with a lot to think about. As a bookseller I'm already used to explaining to people that no, we don't have 'girl books' and 'boy books', we just have 'books', but I hadn't thought about the multitude of other ways our world is divided along the gender binary. I'll be paying better attention in future.
This is a great read that I really enjoyed, and it needs to be in every school library and on as many bookshelves as possible. Brilliant.
"When you start thinking about everything that needs to change, it's too much. It's like looking directly at the sun - you shouldn't do it. But you're not doing this on your own, Jamie, ok? We've been doing this for a long time, me and my friends and their friends and all the way back through history. Changes can be fast or slow, they're unpredictable. But they do come. You don't have to change the world, but if we can get you into a school that won't make you call yourself a boy or a girl to get through the door, that's a good change. That's a small change that'll become part of a big one. Eventually."
"What if I mess it all up?" I asked.
Stevie laughed. "You won't. I promise. There's nothing wrong with wanting to be treated equally. For wanting people to accept you exist. This stuff on social media ... it just proves that you're not alone. That there are people outside this little town who are rooting for you and want you to succeed. We cheered for you on the ground during your protest and we'll be cheering you on as long as you want us to. Because if you win, everyone wins. And then we'll all be celebrating."
Jamie publishes on the 30th of March, 2023. I received a free copy and am giving an honest review.
No comments:
Post a Comment