Stay Gold by Tobly McSmith

From the publisher: Debut author Tobly McSmith delivers a coming-of-age teen love story about a transgender boy who’s going stealth at his new Texas high school and a cisgender girl who is drawn to him, even as she’s counting down the days until graduation. Perfect for fans of David Levithan, Becky Albertalli, and Jenny Han.

Pony just wants to fly under the radar during senior year. Tired from all the attention he got at his old school after coming out as transgender, he’s looking for a fresh start at Hillcrest High. But it’s hard to live your best life when the threat of exposure lurks down every hallway and in every bathroom.

Georgia is beginning to think there’s more to life than cheerleading. She plans on keeping a low profile until graduation…which is why she promised herself that dating was officially a no-go this year.

Then, on the very first day of school, the new guy and the cheerleader lock eyes. How is Pony supposed to stay stealth when he wants to get close to a girl like Georgia? How is Georgia supposed to keep her promise when sparks start flying with a boy like Pony?

Funny and poignant, clear-eyed and hopeful, Stay Gold is a story about finding love—and finding yourself.

Please note that this review is coming from a middle aged cisgender woman. 

This is a book I'd been looking forward to for awhile now, and I was happy to see it show up in a pandemic-delayed delivery of ARCs (advanced reading copies). While the basic premise is as described in the publisher's blurb above, this is much less of a fluffy rom-com than indicated. Those aspects and tropes are definitely present, and wonderfully done, but this is an #ownvoices story, and current reality is unfortunately very present in the form of transphobia, homophobia, slurs, dead naming, dysphoria, violent bullying, suicidal thoughts, and public outing, among other content and trigger warnings. Two of the characters closest to Pony, Georgia and his friend Max, react negatively to him going stealth in different but hurtful ways. Readers should definitely be aware of what they're getting into before starting this one.

That being said, I really did enjoy this story and some of the characters. I absolutely adore Pony and was very much cheering for him. I also enjoyed the dialog between him and Georgia. Unfortunately, I just couldn't like Georgia all that much. I felt she was written rather one-dimensionally; when we do get to see more of her than the facade she's erected for herself, you see the potential for character development. Regrettably, this comes only in the latter half of the book. The ending does come together a bit too neatly, but certainly fits within the rom-com format. In fact, most of the criticisms I have with Stay Gold would be par for the course if it were more firmly rooted in that genre. Despite my critiques, this book had me turning pages to see what happened next, and I'm very glad to see more #ownvoices stories out there. I definitely recommend Stay Gold with the warnings mentioned earlier, and I look forward to reading Tobly's next book.

Galesburg Public Library will be obtaining a copy of Stay Gold in the near future.   

Exit, Pursued by a Bear by E.K. Johnston

I will be honest - I read this book because of the cover. I was intrigued by it from the first time I saw it. Realistic fictional YA novels, especially those narrated in the first person, are not high on my preferred reading list. But this is one of the best I've read lately.

I liked the book. It had a strong main character and good narrative flow. I think this could be a fine reading choice for any young woman feeling judged. There were many good secondary characters who helped Hermione through her trauma.  When Hermione tells her minister that she is scheduled for an abortion, for example, he says, “If someone starts throwing around stupid words like ‘It’s a gift,’ or ‘It’s in God’s plan,’ you come right here, and I’ll find you ten ways in which it isn’t.” (p. 129) 

The cover photo turned out to be a perfect choice for the book as well. It's an excellent representation of the story inside. The cheerleader on the cover is both at the top of her game and extremely vulnerable, partly in sunlight and partly in shadow.

The publisher description is misleading, I think. The thing I would emphasize most when describing this book is not the relationship between Hermione and Polly but how Hermione stays strong, grows into adulthood, and capably handles her traumatic experience.

A “reveal” about three fifths of the way in was hinted at from the first chapter and didn't come as a surprise, nor did I think it really added to the story. It's not enough to write an issue book these days, you must write an issues book. 

I originally thought it was too soon to have a teen heroine named Hermione, but that didn't end up bothering me at all. One thing I didn't feel was the connection to Shakespeare's The Winter's Tale, aside from the character names. It’s cute that the team name is the Golden Bears, but some of the language trying to tie this book to the plot of The Winter’s Tale is quite belabored.

That aside, I recommend this to readers of realistic young adult fiction, especially readers looking for empowering messages for young women about rape and choice.