Luna (National Book Award Finalist)

"At first, I wasn't too fond of reading the story through the main character’s perspective. She made rash decisions, had no real depth, was often selfish, and displayed many character flaws. The only thing that made her interesting and relatable, is that she was very self aware of those flaws and expressed a self deprecating attitude. Then I remembered that most of us experience a series of issues linked to stress, anxiety, identity crises, and depression during high school. As the story unfolds, not many good things occur and we see the main characters struggle to cope with those situations. However, during the last few chapters, I realized that this was a reality that many transsexual teenagers experience. I felt so confused as to how the people in this story could be so transphobic, because it disrupted the peace and happy ending that I desired, as a reader. Therefore, it hit me like a ton of bricks to think about the sheer reality of how terrible it must be for transsexual individuals who actually endure this suffering. The ending was what truly made me fall in love with the book, in all of it's melancholic glory. It made me realize that happiness doesn't come from being accepted by others, but from truly accepting yourself. #Igbt #family #teen #trans"