Review: Avoids a more hostile reality
Rating: 3 out of 5
Date: 01 12, 2014
This is a good enough book as far as plot and character go, but it has several flaws.  The biggest objection I have to this book is its creation of an environment that cares about and nurtures Charlie's nature, and presents the harshness and cruelties that Charlie will soon discover.  Even his past seems sugar-coated, as his parents and friends give him none of the abuse we hear of so often in cases of gender identity.  In a way this might be the book to give a teen or pre-teen who is aware of their own nature and society's conflict with the idea.The other flaws are less important but not negligible.  Charlie's agricultural and rural background is a pastiche and not very well treated.  Cliches abound in both situations and character.  The attempt at a good approximation of dialect isn't really good.There's definitely an audience for this book, as a gentle introduction to the book's themes.  Open-minded readers may have to tolerate a few weak attempts to elevate the book to a kind of realism usually found in books by more high literary author's.