From the author of the Newbery Honor book “Too Bright to See” and the picture book “When Aidan Became a Brother,” Kyle Lukoff presents us with a novel on the queer community through the eyes of sixth grade Annabelle. When a vocal, cool binary student, Bailey, joins her class, Annabelle is instantly infatuated with them, and begins to wonder if this is actually a crush. When she brings Bailey home, Annabelle’s parents instantly act awkward and seem to be discouraging their friendship. Misreading their attitude about Bailey’s gender identity, her parents share with Annabelle that her dad is not only transgender, but a seahorse father. (He was the one who birthed Annabelle when it was discovered that her mother was unable to have children). Once this is out in the open, Annabelle, Bailey, and their families get involved in the Spectrum Families chapter in Tahoma Falls and Seattle, WA. Annabelle continues to try to “figure out which letter in LGBTQ+ applied to me, now that I know that I was something.” National Coming Out Day (NCOD) is quickly approaching and Annabelle feels pressured to figure it out soon.
From the very beginning, I saw this is as an “instructive manual” on how to “they/them” and teach terms such as butch, femme, seahorse, pan, and more. While I respect this possible motive by the author, for me, it drove the book rather than an interesting plot. I believe there are better books out there on questioning your sexual and gender identity, but if you’re looking to add to your collection, this may appeal to lower middle school students.
