Gracefully Grayson

September 29, 2014
Sixth-grader Grayson has ways of getting by—he doodles abstract triangles
instead of the princesses he yearns to be, and he wears oversize T-shirts and loose pants instead of the skirts and dresses he longs for. Grayson’s aunt and uncle worry about his isolation (his parents died when he was small), and they are thrilled when he makes his first friend in years and tries out for the school play. They’re less thrilled to learn he auditioned for the lead role—the Greek goddess Persephone. Debut
author Polonsky uses the play effectively, showing the community that builds among the actors, Grayson’s connection to Persephone and her underground captivity, and the tensions swirling around the casting choice and the play’s director, a popular teacher who may or may not be gay.
Polonsky skillfully conveys Grayson’s acute loneliness and his growing willingness to open up about who he is, though the book has a dutiful feel in its efforts to raise awareness about gender nonconforming and transgender preteens. Ages 10–14. Agent: Wendy Schmalz, Wendy Schmalz Agency.

October 1, 2014
Sixth-grader Grayson realizes a dream but attracts controversy by taking the role of the female lead in the school play. When Grayson was younger, it was easier to look in the mirror and see "the long shining golden gown and the girl inside of it." Now, in sixth grade, "[m]y imagination doesn't work like it used to." (The book's first-person narration neatly avoids the problem of choosing gendered pronouns for Grayson, who is perceived as male by classmates but whose identity as female sharpens over the course of the novel.) The story takes time to get started: Grayson gains and then loses her first new friend in years; then Grayson's grandmother dies; and then, about a quarter of the way in, the school-play plot that quickly becomes central begins. Grayson's doodles of princesses and daydreams of skirts sometimes feel a clumsily obvious way to indicate that gender is the issue here. In fact, many characters feel more like stand-ins for certain ideas (Grayson's aunt's resistance to Grayson playing Persephone, Grayson's younger cousin's childlike insistence that "[i]t's just a play") than fully imagined people. Still, Grayson's journey is portrayed with gentleness and respect, and readers will root for the show to go on. A kind and earnest look at a young transgender adolescent's experience. (Fiction. 10-14)

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September 1, 2014

Gr 6 Up-In this sweet and thoughtful debut, an introverted sixth grader begins to come into her own as a transgender girl. Grayson was orphaned in preschool and lives with her aunt and uncle in Chicago. She's becoming more and more aware of a nagging feeling that she should be living as a girl, despite being male-assigned, and on a daring whim decides to audition for the part of Persephone in the school play. She has a supportive teacher and a new friend, but also has to contend with school bullies and disapproving adults. The writing is clear and effortless, with a straightforward plot and likable characters. Grayson is a charming narrator who balances uncertainty with clarity, bravery with anxiety. This title has less obvious and didactic intent than other novels featuring transgender protagonists. A welcome addition to a burgeoning genre.-Kyle Lukoff, Corlears School, New York City

Copyright 2014 School Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

October 15, 2014
Grades 5-8 Sixth-grader Grayson Sender quietly doodles princesses and castles with glitter pens during class and dreams of wearing twirly skirts and long, shiny gowns instead of his limp, lifeless track pants. Those aren't problems, but the fact that he has to repress himself is a problema big one. Despite knowing that he is a girl deep down inside, Grayson has learned to look and act like the boy he is not; his family would be furious and his classmates would bully him if they found out. But now, cast as Persephone in the spring play, he finds acceptance among the cast members. Thoughtfully told through Grayson's eyes, the story conveys his angst, hurt, loss, and emerging confidence as he struggles with a whirlwind of emotions. His new friends allow him to find the courage to become who she really is, and we are privileged to watch the transformation take place. With great courage, Polonsky's debut novel reminds us with much sensitivity that we are all unique and deserve to become who we are meant to be.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2014, American Library Association.)

January 1, 2015
Sixth grader Grayson daydreams about being a girl, despite being seen by everyone as male. Grayson keeps people at a distance until Amelia moves to town. After landing the (female) lead in a play, Grayson fights for the right to present her truest self to others--both on and off stage. Polonsky captures her protagonist's loneliness, then courage, in an immediate and intimate narrative.

(Copyright 2015 by The Horn Book, Incorporated, Boston. All rights reserved.)

November 1, 2014
Grayson, a sixth grader at Porter Middle School, passes the time doodling and daydreaming about what it would be like to go through life as a girl, despite being seen by everyone else as male. Struggling with the total isolation that comes with harboring a secret, Grayson keeps people at a distance until Amelia moves to town. The two develop a friendship that awakens Grayson's need for companionship and acceptance. When that friendship falls apart, Grayson tries out for (and lands) the female lead in the school play as a means of testing out a female persona. Facing abuse and derision from classmates and resistance from members of her adoptive family (both birth parents were killed years before), Grayson fights for the right to present her truest self to the people around her -- both on and off the stage. Luckily, an invested teacher and several open-minded cast mates offer understanding and support as Grayson begins to sort out the complexities of her own identity. Polonsky captures the loneliness of a child resigned to disappear rather than be rejected, and then the courageous risk that child eventually takes to be seen for who she is. The first-person narration successfully positions readers to experience Grayson's confusion, fear, pain, and triumphs as they happen, lending an immediate and intimate feel to the narrative. shara l. hardeson

(Copyright 2014 by The Horn Book, Incorporated, Boston. All rights reserved.)