George

George by Alex Gino

Four paw prints.  George has a huge problem.  George looks like a boy to everyone around her.  But George KNOWS she is a girl.  She feels uncomfortable in boy clothes, she loves to read teen girl magazines, and she really wants the lead in the school play.  But the 4th graders are doing the play Charlotte’s Web, and the lead is Charlotte the spider...  Charlotte the FEMALE spider.  George doesn’t know what to do.  She doesn’t know who to talk to and tell her concerns.  Her teacher won’t let her try out for Charlotte, her mother doesn’t want her reading magazines for girls, her brother is “all boy”, the boys in her class make fun of her of being too “girly”, and she’s afraid to say anything to her best friend Kelly out of the fear of losing her.  It’s getting harder for George to be someone she isn’t, but it might just be too hard to be who she really is.  I didn’t know what to expect when I first started this book.  I had never read a book about a transgender student aimed for younger students.  I was very worried that it wouldn’t be very good and it would be too mature for younger students.  My only concern is that it may still be a little too mature for those Grade 3-7 students the book is intended for.  I would have prefered everything in the book remain the same but put George in 6th grade instead of 4th grade.  Then I would prefer to see the book aimed for students in grades 5-8.  This way the book is still aimed at upper elementary students, but not the younger students.  I think students reading this book need to have a little more maturity before tackling this subject matter.  I know MOST though NOT ALL of the students I work with wouldn’t be ready for this book unless they were a little older.  But I’m happy to admit...I really loved this book and I had a hard time putting it down.  To learn more about the author Alex Gino and to find resources related to transgender issues, please visit http://www.alexgino.com/.  (Please be aware, this review is based on an uncorrected proof copy of George.  George is not expected to be released to the public until August 2015.  There may be some changes to the final book at this time.)