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Boy2Girl
Terence Blacker's brilliantly funny novel Boy2Girl shines a laser-sharp beam into the perilous territory of early teen life and gender norms, in an uproarious story of chaos, confusion, and cross-dressing.
Matthew's American cousin, Sam, has come to London to live with the family. Sam is a charismatic, funny kid, but can he be trusted to be a reliable friend? Matthew and his "mates" decide that Sam must undertake a challenge in order to prove He must start off his new year at school posing as a girl.
It turns out that Sam makes a great girl. He fools everyone at Bradbury Hill School, stepping over lines and blurring boundaries of all sorts. And the longer the prank goes on, the more outlandish the repercussions.
Matthew's American cousin, Sam, has come to London to live with the family. Sam is a charismatic, funny kid, but can he be trusted to be a reliable friend? Matthew and his "mates" decide that Sam must undertake a challenge in order to prove He must start off his new year at school posing as a girl.
It turns out that Sam makes a great girl. He fools everyone at Bradbury Hill School, stepping over lines and blurring boundaries of all sorts. And the longer the prank goes on, the more outlandish the repercussions.
304 pages, Paperback
First published May 1, 2004
37 people are currently reading
882 people want to read
About the author
Terence Blacker
118 books43 followersTerence Blacker wanted to be a jockey when he grew and up. In fact, he could ride before he could walk, and his childhood hero was the great steeplechaser Mill House (a horse). He lives in Norfolk, England.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 247 reviews
April 4, 2015
I went in to this book thinking it was going to engage all kinds of important issues with gender, which was exciting, especially in a book aimed towards a younger audience. Maybe my expectations were a bit high, but this book was nothing but disappointing.
Reading it, it feels like an effort to engage topics of gender made by somebody who doesn't know what they're talking about. When a character refers to a group of girls as "chicks" another character tells him not to be sexist, despite the entire book reducing characters (male and female) to one dimensional stereotypes for their given gender. The same character later complains about how women HAVE to share their thoughts with each other as soon as or even before a thought comes into their heads, and says "If I were a sexist (which, thank goodness, I'm not) I might say this makes them more superficial than us." Good thing SAYING you're not a sexist MAKES you not a sexist. At another point our crossdresser, Sam, (upon being referred to as a "little lady") says "We don't talk about little ladies anymore...it's what we call sexism." This leads me to believe Terence Blacker does not actually know what sexism is.
Even from their own POV's the girls are shallow and gossipy. We have a bully who, even from his own POV, is slow and stupid, and a hotshot who (in his own POV!!!) thinks he's so cool he refers to himself in third person, but is ultimately empty headed ("I groped in my mind for a killer comeback but, unusually, there was nothing there"). Almost none of the characters have depth, and seem to exist only to perpetuate stereotypes. They seem more like caricatures of real people written by someone who didn't really like them than real people.
Some more fun parts of the book are when a (male) character says "If you ever need any evidence about how pathetic girls can be, there it is" in reference to girls following fashion trends, a (male) character tells Sam his fake nails are "slutty" (as if they sleep around?), a (male) character (referring to his wife!!!) says both "Like all women, Ottoleen gets these crazy ideas in her head. I guess that simply by law of averages one of them had to be OK" and "You know, for a broad you can be pretty smart sometimes" As long as it's "smart for a girl" right?
The book ends with the line "It was no time for girl stuff" after the protagonist (? maybe, it's so hard to tell with over 20 POVs throughout the book) chokes back his tears. Because crying is for girls right? And he is a MANLY fourteen year old.
The plot is fragmented, with different conflicts for our 6(?) different protagonists, which threatens any coherence this book may have had. Sam's reason for crossdressing have nothing to do with exploring gender, and is about a prank in order to make it back into the good graces of the boys. Except instead of trying to blend in as a girl, Sam spends his time convincing them to act "masculine" by telling them it's cool, and 'American' to grab their crotches and glare at people. Despite this, his aunt and uncle think "Somehow it (his crossdressing) seemed wrong" and worry he is "...enjoying being a girl entirely too much for [it] to be entirely straightforward." They worry about him being "The G word", I guess I never got the memo that "gay" was a bad word now. Of course, they say "Not that we had anything against G-word people but, all the same, it was a bit of a worry." Again, saying you are something or you aren't something obviously makes it not true. I am not poor! I am not a student! I am actually a wizard with amazing powers!
Overall this book is a poorly written, poorly executed book about a boy who dresses as a girl. Seriously not worth the time it takes to read.
Reading it, it feels like an effort to engage topics of gender made by somebody who doesn't know what they're talking about. When a character refers to a group of girls as "chicks" another character tells him not to be sexist, despite the entire book reducing characters (male and female) to one dimensional stereotypes for their given gender. The same character later complains about how women HAVE to share their thoughts with each other as soon as or even before a thought comes into their heads, and says "If I were a sexist (which, thank goodness, I'm not) I might say this makes them more superficial than us." Good thing SAYING you're not a sexist MAKES you not a sexist. At another point our crossdresser, Sam, (upon being referred to as a "little lady") says "We don't talk about little ladies anymore...it's what we call sexism." This leads me to believe Terence Blacker does not actually know what sexism is.
Even from their own POV's the girls are shallow and gossipy. We have a bully who, even from his own POV, is slow and stupid, and a hotshot who (in his own POV!!!) thinks he's so cool he refers to himself in third person, but is ultimately empty headed ("I groped in my mind for a killer comeback but, unusually, there was nothing there"). Almost none of the characters have depth, and seem to exist only to perpetuate stereotypes. They seem more like caricatures of real people written by someone who didn't really like them than real people.
Some more fun parts of the book are when a (male) character says "If you ever need any evidence about how pathetic girls can be, there it is" in reference to girls following fashion trends, a (male) character tells Sam his fake nails are "slutty" (as if they sleep around?), a (male) character (referring to his wife!!!) says both "Like all women, Ottoleen gets these crazy ideas in her head. I guess that simply by law of averages one of them had to be OK" and "You know, for a broad you can be pretty smart sometimes" As long as it's "smart for a girl" right?
The book ends with the line "It was no time for girl stuff" after the protagonist (? maybe, it's so hard to tell with over 20 POVs throughout the book) chokes back his tears. Because crying is for girls right? And he is a MANLY fourteen year old.
The plot is fragmented, with different conflicts for our 6(?) different protagonists, which threatens any coherence this book may have had. Sam's reason for crossdressing have nothing to do with exploring gender, and is about a prank in order to make it back into the good graces of the boys. Except instead of trying to blend in as a girl, Sam spends his time convincing them to act "masculine" by telling them it's cool, and 'American' to grab their crotches and glare at people. Despite this, his aunt and uncle think "Somehow it (his crossdressing) seemed wrong" and worry he is "...enjoying being a girl entirely too much for [it] to be entirely straightforward." They worry about him being "The G word", I guess I never got the memo that "gay" was a bad word now. Of course, they say "Not that we had anything against G-word people but, all the same, it was a bit of a worry." Again, saying you are something or you aren't something obviously makes it not true. I am not poor! I am not a student! I am actually a wizard with amazing powers!
Overall this book is a poorly written, poorly executed book about a boy who dresses as a girl. Seriously not worth the time it takes to read.
September 1, 2016
LOOOOOOOOOL this was HILARIOUS, entertaining and amazing!!!!!!!!!!loved it!!!!!!
Tyrone: That's him? Bit of a titch, isn't he?
Jake: And get a load of that hair
Matthew: It's like I told you. He's a hippy.
Jake: Looks more like a girl to me
Matthew: You wait
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
"Over the next few days, as we showed Sam around what he insisted on calling 'the hood', he talked about his life back home."
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Jake: Crash. Bit of a weird name, that isn't it
Sam: Waddaya mean weird?
Jake: What's he got-a couple of brothers called Bang and Wallop?
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Sam: trust you to have a sister without size gazungas
Tyrone: I know what we could do. I’ll bring a couple of socks tomorrow. You can shove them down your front.
Sam: you know what, fat boy; you can shove them where the sun don't shine.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
"We took our seats, Sam slumping down beside me with all feminine poise of a boxer taking a break between rounds."
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Mathew: We've got to go
Sam: All right, I’m fixing my hair, ok?
Jake sighed: Women.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Old lady: Are you all right, love?
Matthew: Excuse me?
Old lady: I'm not talking to you boys. Are these boys bothering you, dear?
Sam: Nah
Old lady: That's all right then
Sam: Lady, I could whop their sorry asses any time
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Jake: Oh, and there was something else. My sis uses one of these.
Same held the band between two fingers and gazed at it with a look of total, unbelieving disgust, and for a moment I though jakes was on the way to getting his other eye blackened.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Sam: So what's the deal then? Apart from trying to make me look kind of dumb, that is
Matthew: We don't want to make you look dumb. We just need to get our own back on the Bitches. Show them up. Get to know some of their sad little secrets.
Sam: Hey, come on, guys, all this to put one over on a bunch of chicks?
Tyrone: They're not chicks. Just because we hate them it doesn’t mean we have to be sexist about it.
Sam: Hey, who's wearing the skirt around here? From here on, I decide what's sexist, right?
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Sam: And will you guys stop looking up my skirt
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Elena: ....And frankly, I hadn't left a packet of Always in her locker for it to be used as an offensive weapon.
------------------------------------------------------- ------------------------------------------------------
Sam: so when we going shopping?
Mum: Shopping?
Sam: And I don’t want no low-class tat. Simone likes to accessorize, right?
Mum: I’ll give you £100. That’s quite enough for you boys to get a nice dress, a blouse and some shoes.
Sam: £150, I want a bag too. Maybe some make-up.
Mum: You’re far too young for that
Sam: 150, please
Mum: I think I preferred you as a boy
---------------------------------------------------------------
Sam: Tyrone likes to pretend he’s not serious about his ambitions and that he’s just a party guy-a babe magnet who all the girls want to go out with-but once you get to know him, you realize there’s more to him than just looks.
Tyrone’s mum: babe magnet? Isn’t he a bit……….big for that?
Sam: fat’s the new thin, Mrs. Sherman. Flesh is hot, hot, hot. I have to fight the other girl off Tyrone. They call him T-bone because there’s just so much of him.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
LOOOL XD
Tyrone: That's him? Bit of a titch, isn't he?
Jake: And get a load of that hair
Matthew: It's like I told you. He's a hippy.
Jake: Looks more like a girl to me
Matthew: You wait
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
"Over the next few days, as we showed Sam around what he insisted on calling 'the hood', he talked about his life back home."
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Jake: Crash. Bit of a weird name, that isn't it
Sam: Waddaya mean weird?
Jake: What's he got-a couple of brothers called Bang and Wallop?
----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Sam: trust you to have a sister without size gazungas
Tyrone: I know what we could do. I’ll bring a couple of socks tomorrow. You can shove them down your front.
Sam: you know what, fat boy; you can shove them where the sun don't shine.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
"We took our seats, Sam slumping down beside me with all feminine poise of a boxer taking a break between rounds."
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Mathew: We've got to go
Sam: All right, I’m fixing my hair, ok?
Jake sighed: Women.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Old lady: Are you all right, love?
Matthew: Excuse me?
Old lady: I'm not talking to you boys. Are these boys bothering you, dear?
Sam: Nah
Old lady: That's all right then
Sam: Lady, I could whop their sorry asses any time
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Jake: Oh, and there was something else. My sis uses one of these.
Same held the band between two fingers and gazed at it with a look of total, unbelieving disgust, and for a moment I though jakes was on the way to getting his other eye blackened.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Sam: So what's the deal then? Apart from trying to make me look kind of dumb, that is
Matthew: We don't want to make you look dumb. We just need to get our own back on the Bitches. Show them up. Get to know some of their sad little secrets.
Sam: Hey, come on, guys, all this to put one over on a bunch of chicks?
Tyrone: They're not chicks. Just because we hate them it doesn’t mean we have to be sexist about it.
Sam: Hey, who's wearing the skirt around here? From here on, I decide what's sexist, right?
---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Sam: And will you guys stop looking up my skirt
------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Elena: ....And frankly, I hadn't left a packet of Always in her locker for it to be used as an offensive weapon.
------------------------------------------------------- ------------------------------------------------------
Sam: so when we going shopping?
Mum: Shopping?
Sam: And I don’t want no low-class tat. Simone likes to accessorize, right?
Mum: I’ll give you £100. That’s quite enough for you boys to get a nice dress, a blouse and some shoes.
Sam: £150, I want a bag too. Maybe some make-up.
Mum: You’re far too young for that
Sam: 150, please
Mum: I think I preferred you as a boy
---------------------------------------------------------------
Sam: Tyrone likes to pretend he’s not serious about his ambitions and that he’s just a party guy-a babe magnet who all the girls want to go out with-but once you get to know him, you realize there’s more to him than just looks.
Tyrone’s mum: babe magnet? Isn’t he a bit……….big for that?
Sam: fat’s the new thin, Mrs. Sherman. Flesh is hot, hot, hot. I have to fight the other girl off Tyrone. They call him T-bone because there’s just so much of him.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
LOOOL XD
January 9, 2019
This book was the absolute. Worst. I randomly picked it up in the library because the title made it seem like it would be a book with LGBT+ rep in it. I was expecting like… a coming of age story where the cross dressing dude, Sam, realizes he’s gay or maybe a trans girl. There was none of that. In fact, I remember several of the parents explicitly being against their children being gay or trans. However, there was a small bit I remember where Sam apparently felt more confident presenting as a girl (though I don’t remember how that was addressed because it’s been a while since I’ve read this), and I think there was a part where a girl had an implied crush on Sam while he was presenting as a girl. However, I’m sure it pulled one of those, “but wait, it’s not gay, ‘cause they were the other gender the entire time!!” bull. (But we all know those characters are at least bi, because… C’mon. If you’re a girl who’s attracted to a crossdressing cis guy who passes as a girl, I’d count that as pretty gay. But I digress.)
Note how I said “I’m sure they pulled that bull.” That’s because I couldn’t even fricking read through the entire thing. While the plot was bad, the writing was just awful. It was simple, and although easy to read, highly annoying. It had switching POVs… In first person. Sometimes the switches would be only several sentences. Additionally, it just dragged on. The story could be told in half its length and the story wouldn’t be affected. I also remember skipping ahead and I didn’t miss much of anything.
Anyways, yeah. This was a huge disappointment and not even close to LGBT+ rep. I didn't finish the whole thing because I just utterly hated it (though I did skim over the last couple pages to see the conclusion), so if the book ended where Sam ends up realizing she's a girl or something, then that's my bad. (But from what I've read from the last pages I don't think it ended that way?? Unless I forgot about it lol)
Note how I said “I’m sure they pulled that bull.” That’s because I couldn’t even fricking read through the entire thing. While the plot was bad, the writing was just awful. It was simple, and although easy to read, highly annoying. It had switching POVs… In first person. Sometimes the switches would be only several sentences. Additionally, it just dragged on. The story could be told in half its length and the story wouldn’t be affected. I also remember skipping ahead and I didn’t miss much of anything.
Anyways, yeah. This was a huge disappointment and not even close to LGBT+ rep. I didn't finish the whole thing because I just utterly hated it (though I did skim over the last couple pages to see the conclusion), so if the book ended where Sam ends up realizing she's a girl or something, then that's my bad. (But from what I've read from the last pages I don't think it ended that way?? Unless I forgot about it lol)
October 10, 2015
Ironically this is the first novel I’ve made it through this year. The irony part of it is that it pissed me off quite hard. I think the biggest factor behind that is that I found it on the ‘rainbow shelf’ at the library, a shelf meant for LGBTQ+ related books. And yeah, this book vaguely relates to cross-dressing, even if it’s because of a dare, because at some points the character involved in that discusses the ‘freedom’ it allows him to behave differently than when he’s dressed in his normal clothes. But the rest of the book is so offensive that it’s hard to see the overall relevance to the theme.
It is in fact so offensive that it feels like it HAS to be intentional. I mean, how can you accidentally make almost every single character a sexism-spewing stereotype? Is this social commentary or am I just really wanting to see that and interpreting the story that way as a pure defense mechanism against stupidity? I guess I’ll never know the truth. The problem for me is that nowhere in the story is it suggested that the characters aren’t to be taken seriously. And since this is a book aimed towards young adults in the younger section, with characters around thirteen who are just hitting puberty, it feels like there has to be a lot less subtlety if this is to be used in an ironic or discussion provoking kind of way. Because as it is I’m left with the impression that the characters actually ARE to be taken seriously, and that is a big problem for me.
If the characters in fact ARE to be taken seriously that would mean that instead of exploring and dismissing gender binaries, this book actually promotes the idea of gender as something completely binary. I mean, this end page quote alone is a little alarming (I don’t think it’s spoilery, but if you will this is your chance to skip ahead!!) : “They discovered what some folks take a lifetime to learn – that there is no point fighting the difference between guys and girls. In fact, maybe it’s the difference that makes life kind of weird and interesting.” Now, this quote on its own would be nothing worrisome, but after having spent a whole book discussing ‘girl things’ and ‘guy things’ as something that never correlates, and ‘girl behavior’ and ‘guy behavior’ as two completely different things… it is. What’s also alarming if the characters are to be taken seriously is the way the book paints women and girls… and also in a few places homosexuality. And at one point a shaken mother is talking about Sam, the cross-dressing guy and sort-of protagonist, as being “the G-word” and I actually don’t know if it’s worse if she’s treating ‘Girl’ or ‘Gay’ as a cuss-word.
I don’t have too much to say about the format of the story. It’s quite easy to read and told in short choppy sections from 15+ different perspectives, everyone and their mother (literally) gets to tell a part of the story, except Sam, who the book is ostensibly about, and they all sound pretty much the same. A few of them are unreliable narrators, which again gives me some hope about the purpose of the story; but it’s pretty faint at this point. The theme of the book really overrides the plot for me. I didn’t find the plot too interesting, and because of the way the story is told it didn’t really feel like the focus was on a linear plot as much as on how all these characters related to the “main character”, Sam. I guess it had some kind of point to make, but I was too busy focusing on all the other things the story was saying, possibly without meaning to. This book made me confused and angry, but hey, at least I managed to read it!
It is in fact so offensive that it feels like it HAS to be intentional. I mean, how can you accidentally make almost every single character a sexism-spewing stereotype? Is this social commentary or am I just really wanting to see that and interpreting the story that way as a pure defense mechanism against stupidity? I guess I’ll never know the truth. The problem for me is that nowhere in the story is it suggested that the characters aren’t to be taken seriously. And since this is a book aimed towards young adults in the younger section, with characters around thirteen who are just hitting puberty, it feels like there has to be a lot less subtlety if this is to be used in an ironic or discussion provoking kind of way. Because as it is I’m left with the impression that the characters actually ARE to be taken seriously, and that is a big problem for me.
If the characters in fact ARE to be taken seriously that would mean that instead of exploring and dismissing gender binaries, this book actually promotes the idea of gender as something completely binary. I mean, this end page quote alone is a little alarming (I don’t think it’s spoilery, but if you will this is your chance to skip ahead!!) : “They discovered what some folks take a lifetime to learn – that there is no point fighting the difference between guys and girls. In fact, maybe it’s the difference that makes life kind of weird and interesting.” Now, this quote on its own would be nothing worrisome, but after having spent a whole book discussing ‘girl things’ and ‘guy things’ as something that never correlates, and ‘girl behavior’ and ‘guy behavior’ as two completely different things… it is. What’s also alarming if the characters are to be taken seriously is the way the book paints women and girls… and also in a few places homosexuality. And at one point a shaken mother is talking about Sam, the cross-dressing guy and sort-of protagonist, as being “the G-word” and I actually don’t know if it’s worse if she’s treating ‘Girl’ or ‘Gay’ as a cuss-word.
I don’t have too much to say about the format of the story. It’s quite easy to read and told in short choppy sections from 15+ different perspectives, everyone and their mother (literally) gets to tell a part of the story, except Sam, who the book is ostensibly about, and they all sound pretty much the same. A few of them are unreliable narrators, which again gives me some hope about the purpose of the story; but it’s pretty faint at this point. The theme of the book really overrides the plot for me. I didn’t find the plot too interesting, and because of the way the story is told it didn’t really feel like the focus was on a linear plot as much as on how all these characters related to the “main character”, Sam. I guess it had some kind of point to make, but I was too busy focusing on all the other things the story was saying, possibly without meaning to. This book made me confused and angry, but hey, at least I managed to read it!
March 6, 2009
I often look for books that play with gender stereotypes. This book did just that. A young and very tough teen finds a sense of freedom and power when he decides to go to his new school dressed as a girl. I did like this book, but the author just couldn't seem to let go of most of the stereotypes about boys and girls. The girls were backstabbing gossips and the boys were emotionally stunted. Even the main character who was crossdressing was still unable to break free from stereotypical boy behavior and in the end I think it just reinforced the idea that all boys are like this and all girls are like that. I would love to see a book that really breaks the stereotypes, but I have not found one yet.
April 14, 2015
This book deserved a five star rating because it made me laugh out loud so often. It was a brilliant book and I loved Blacker's use of narrative voice. It is a multiple first person narrative which allows the reader a close and personal account of the characters feelings and emotions, this is particular interesting as there is a mixture of both adult and child characters. The book gives the reader a wonderful insight into gender and demonstrates the way in which gender is socially constructed. It also shows how children can be attracted to other children regardless of gender. As a whole, children are influenced by other children, by characteristics, by confidence and by personality. Children are often put into boxes and treated differently because of gender, this book breaks the rules and it genius. I would highly recommend this book to both adults and children as it may just demonstrate how alike we all are and how society is often too eager to put us into groups.
January 10, 2011
I was recommended this book by a teen patron who loves John Green. I can see why kids would like it, but it must have just not been my thing, because it took me FOREVER to get through it (and it's not a hard book). It was funny, but not quite funny enough to make me laugh out loud -- clever, but not quite clever enough to make me think. I did like the way the author chose to tell the story, as if each of the characters in the book were being interviewed about Sam throughout the novel, but I thought that more could have been done with the conceit to bring across the point about how people's perception of a person really does affect their personality. Not bad, but not good enough to say I really liked it that much, either.
April 29, 2013
Oy. Really? A pre-teen straight boy learns life lessons and has fun passing as a pre-teen girl, with no real danger, social repercussions, gender confusion? Why are so many YA books about gender written in the psychological-fantasy genre?
August 14, 2015
I love this book so much, it is extremely hilarious and so different from what you usually read! I love the characters and the whole story all together.
September 14, 2024
Hanebüchen des Grauens, dennoch mit guten Elementen. Dieses Buch hat sich 2 Sterne hart verdient. Ich könnte auch 3 Sterne geben aber irgendwie war mir vieles zu quatschig. Sorry
October 3, 2024
sentimientos encontrados. te venden este libro (o por lo menos a mi) como un libro que trata sobre temas lgtb (por el titulo y la premisa intuyes que trata sobre una persona trans) para tirarlo todo por la borda. es entretenido, pero hay muchas partes que no me matan. ademas tiene una de misoginia interiorizada que apesta. pero sam mi bebé gordo, le amo.
May 25, 2018
At first glance, the premise of this novel reads like a silly, adolescent comedy film (think Sorority Boys, e.g.). But as you read into it deeper and more resonant themes surface.
In order to get into a gang of youths he’s offended, Sam Lopez has to play at being a girl for five days at the school he’s enlisted. The reasons are a tad convoluted.
Sam attacked one of the English boys who inadvertently insulted his father and, before they let him back into their crowd, he’s got to be a girl as penance. Also, the boys are engaged in an ongoing squabble with a group of girls called The Bitches, a petty war that’s mostly a battle of insults that both sides have been caught up in since they were all kids. So Sam’s got to play at being a girl, infiltrate the Bitches and learn their secrets so the boys can retaliate.
Sam is the ultimate outsider, an American who’s been transported to England. He doesn’t understand why the Brits don’t let the attack go; fighting is simply one of the ways American guys bond with each other. The politeness of the British is something he can’t handle and he retaliates in mean-spirited fashion—from the sloppy way he eats to his sullen, verbally abusive attitude to his repudiation of British living (according to him, everything English sucks)—and it’s wearing on the nerves of his English cousin, Matthew.
The events of the novel touch on a wide variety of issues: sexism, nationalism, crime, gender reversal and culture clashes. Sam’s gender switch is actually the least jarring aspect of his presence in English society since only he and Matthew’s friends are aware of it in the beginning. It’s funny and startling to see the way he acts upon the English girls he meets. From influencing their fashions to the way they act around boys—Sam brings a jaw-dropping jolt of fresh air to his new English gal pals. The whole society is set topsy-turvy by Sam’s pretense, which is wholly convincing and discomfits the boys who initially proposed it as revenge.
The novel is told via the various viewpoints of everyone around Sam and the author is masterful at letting us into everyone’s heads. The voices are spot-on—they really do seem like different people with differing thoughts and agendas. We get to see how the various girls are moved, charmed or irritated by Sam’s behavior. Sam himself grows more and more “feminine”, becoming quieter, introspective and girly in his mannerisms, much to the puzzlement of the boys.
Sam’s growing attachment to both his male and female friends forces the reader to question just what is male and female behavior and whether both genders don’t have something positive to learn from the other. The girls grow more forthright in their opinions, belching and breaking wind without apology, speaking up more boldly in class. The boys discover that there’s nothing wrong in sharing feelings and that it can be a wonderful relief to let your mates know just what is going on inside your head.
The only glaring omission in this novel is the subject of Sam’s sexual identity. Sam’s sexual preference isn’t touched upon, perhaps because he’s a teenager still. The girls don’t ask him if he’s a lesbian and the boys don’t ask if he’s queer, even when he wears his skirt outside of class. (Then again, it could be typical British reticence that keeps everyone from asking “is s/he or isn’t s/he?”) Perhaps this is something the reader is meant to guess about, too. The whole novel raises questions but in gentle ways rather than as scathing social commentary.
The action snowballs riotously as, through a series of misadventures and mistaken identities, Sam becomes a “girlfriend” for three different boys, takes the helm as the leader of an all-girl band and has to dodge the return of his volatile ex-convict father, Anthony “Crash” Lopez, who’s sniffing around for Sam’s inheritance. Ye gads. This is one waggish novel, insightful, amusing and a genuine delight. It’s far more than the sum of its parts and head and shoulders above many an adolescent comedy movie. Then again, maybe it should be made into a teen comedy. Heck, I’d pay to see it!
Whether you’re American, British, male, female, straight, gay or bi, trans or “whatever”, as Sam would put it, Boy2Girl is the kind of novel that will appeal right across the board. Cheers, mate.
In order to get into a gang of youths he’s offended, Sam Lopez has to play at being a girl for five days at the school he’s enlisted. The reasons are a tad convoluted.
Sam attacked one of the English boys who inadvertently insulted his father and, before they let him back into their crowd, he’s got to be a girl as penance. Also, the boys are engaged in an ongoing squabble with a group of girls called The Bitches, a petty war that’s mostly a battle of insults that both sides have been caught up in since they were all kids. So Sam’s got to play at being a girl, infiltrate the Bitches and learn their secrets so the boys can retaliate.
Sam is the ultimate outsider, an American who’s been transported to England. He doesn’t understand why the Brits don’t let the attack go; fighting is simply one of the ways American guys bond with each other. The politeness of the British is something he can’t handle and he retaliates in mean-spirited fashion—from the sloppy way he eats to his sullen, verbally abusive attitude to his repudiation of British living (according to him, everything English sucks)—and it’s wearing on the nerves of his English cousin, Matthew.
The events of the novel touch on a wide variety of issues: sexism, nationalism, crime, gender reversal and culture clashes. Sam’s gender switch is actually the least jarring aspect of his presence in English society since only he and Matthew’s friends are aware of it in the beginning. It’s funny and startling to see the way he acts upon the English girls he meets. From influencing their fashions to the way they act around boys—Sam brings a jaw-dropping jolt of fresh air to his new English gal pals. The whole society is set topsy-turvy by Sam’s pretense, which is wholly convincing and discomfits the boys who initially proposed it as revenge.
The novel is told via the various viewpoints of everyone around Sam and the author is masterful at letting us into everyone’s heads. The voices are spot-on—they really do seem like different people with differing thoughts and agendas. We get to see how the various girls are moved, charmed or irritated by Sam’s behavior. Sam himself grows more and more “feminine”, becoming quieter, introspective and girly in his mannerisms, much to the puzzlement of the boys.
Sam’s growing attachment to both his male and female friends forces the reader to question just what is male and female behavior and whether both genders don’t have something positive to learn from the other. The girls grow more forthright in their opinions, belching and breaking wind without apology, speaking up more boldly in class. The boys discover that there’s nothing wrong in sharing feelings and that it can be a wonderful relief to let your mates know just what is going on inside your head.
The only glaring omission in this novel is the subject of Sam’s sexual identity. Sam’s sexual preference isn’t touched upon, perhaps because he’s a teenager still. The girls don’t ask him if he’s a lesbian and the boys don’t ask if he’s queer, even when he wears his skirt outside of class. (Then again, it could be typical British reticence that keeps everyone from asking “is s/he or isn’t s/he?”) Perhaps this is something the reader is meant to guess about, too. The whole novel raises questions but in gentle ways rather than as scathing social commentary.
The action snowballs riotously as, through a series of misadventures and mistaken identities, Sam becomes a “girlfriend” for three different boys, takes the helm as the leader of an all-girl band and has to dodge the return of his volatile ex-convict father, Anthony “Crash” Lopez, who’s sniffing around for Sam’s inheritance. Ye gads. This is one waggish novel, insightful, amusing and a genuine delight. It’s far more than the sum of its parts and head and shoulders above many an adolescent comedy movie. Then again, maybe it should be made into a teen comedy. Heck, I’d pay to see it!
Whether you’re American, British, male, female, straight, gay or bi, trans or “whatever”, as Sam would put it, Boy2Girl is the kind of novel that will appeal right across the board. Cheers, mate.
February 6, 2014
A far read - but problematic in some ways -
-The men are shown in a more balanced way - the women were almost exclusively stereotypes
-No consideration of Transgender issues - even for a moment - just 'won't it be fun if the boy dresses as a girl for a joke/to hide' - it comes so close to having something, but then fails completely (Sam saying he feels free as a girl - his improved behaviour etc)
-Pretty much no positive on any LGBT issues (Matt's parents and 'the g word')- the whole date bit is just....painful
-Male teacher who favours the girls and sees nothing wrong in their near abusive treatment of boys? Where to start?
There were some tiny random things that threw me out of it (a united v city football game in london....umm? Which ones? It played it as a local team....)
It gets 3 stars instead of my leaning towards two because I didn't want to throw it away or stop reading, and the writing was good enough to allow the narrative choices to work (going between povs all the time). It's more that aspects of the characters and the situation were awkward or just furthered dangerous stereotypes and disregard of certain issues that made it very flawed as a book.
-The men are shown in a more balanced way - the women were almost exclusively stereotypes
-No consideration of Transgender issues - even for a moment - just 'won't it be fun if the boy dresses as a girl for a joke/to hide' - it comes so close to having something, but then fails completely (Sam saying he feels free as a girl - his improved behaviour etc)
-Pretty much no positive on any LGBT issues (Matt's parents and 'the g word')- the whole date bit is just....painful
-Male teacher who favours the girls and sees nothing wrong in their near abusive treatment of boys? Where to start?
There were some tiny random things that threw me out of it (a united v city football game in london....umm? Which ones? It played it as a local team....)
It gets 3 stars instead of my leaning towards two because I didn't want to throw it away or stop reading, and the writing was good enough to allow the narrative choices to work (going between povs all the time). It's more that aspects of the characters and the situation were awkward or just furthered dangerous stereotypes and disregard of certain issues that made it very flawed as a book.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
May 22, 2009
Sam is sent over to relatives in Englad after his mom is killed. Sam has a major attitude problem and soon his cousin decides to get even with him by challenging him to dress up as a girl for the first week of school. Sam quickly finds he can be someone new when he's dressed as Samantha. Things change though when it seems Sam is enjoying himself too much as Samantha. When Sam's long lost dad returns to get him, Sam has to decide who his true family really is. I really enjoyed the characters in the book, plus the plot was a great idea, but I felt that the author rushed the ending too much. After Sam comes clean to his girl-friends that's he's really a guy, it seems the story dashes to the end without really letting the characters seem finished. A nice read overall.
December 12, 2009
This book was full of funnines (if that's a word) and comical issues.
In this book, a rebelious Sam's (he's a boy) mothe rdies in theri nice home in USA. He is moved to his aunt's house in london, england. Sadly, he's a stubborn, swearing, long haired maniac. His cosein, Matt, who is Sam's aunt's son, is not too happy about Sam's arrival. Immediatly Sam wants to fit in with Matt's completly unpopular group, The Sheds. The Sheds aren't looking for new recruits, so they make a proporstion for Sam to do if he wants to join the Sheds that they are sure he will never pass: Sam must "become" a girl and try to get on the arch enimies' of the Shed's secret: the b****es... you'll see what happens.
In this book, a rebelious Sam's (he's a boy) mothe rdies in theri nice home in USA. He is moved to his aunt's house in london, england. Sadly, he's a stubborn, swearing, long haired maniac. His cosein, Matt, who is Sam's aunt's son, is not too happy about Sam's arrival. Immediatly Sam wants to fit in with Matt's completly unpopular group, The Sheds. The Sheds aren't looking for new recruits, so they make a proporstion for Sam to do if he wants to join the Sheds that they are sure he will never pass: Sam must "become" a girl and try to get on the arch enimies' of the Shed's secret: the b****es... you'll see what happens.
October 11, 2010
i loved this story! Listen, this book examines feelings and motive of teens, the whole spectrum, and what they will do to get what they need and what they do when they don't get it. The gender switch is a clever way to explore that as well as what we expect from kids. i loved the emotional bravery of the main character and how he gained insight about himself, was able to actually share it and then spoke fearlesslyh for all to see his pain, his anger, his admission of who he was. I admit, I kinda had a crush on that little boy by book's end! Encouraged me to be a little more patient and wait to see the kid beneath the obnoxious teen boys I meet.Good work, Mr. Blacker!
June 5, 2018
Very funny book about a boy descovering who he is, laughed out loud quite a couple times! I liked the way it was written from different people's perspectives but never in Sam's - the boy in question: I thought that was active touch.
Overall loved it, only reason I didn't put 5 stars was i was a bit young and some parts weren't very believable. Such as a 16 year old boy fancying a 12 year old girl, also a year 8 was expected to have boobs which is kind of funny because at that age you haven't really started puberty at all.
The humour is extremely funny, especially if you have embarrassing parents yourself.
Overall loved it, only reason I didn't put 5 stars was i was a bit young and some parts weren't very believable. Such as a 16 year old boy fancying a 12 year old girl, also a year 8 was expected to have boobs which is kind of funny because at that age you haven't really started puberty at all.
The humour is extremely funny, especially if you have embarrassing parents yourself.
November 6, 2010
Jaunty and fast-paced YA novel about a tough-talking 13-year-old California boy who moves to England to live with his aunt's family and winds up passing as a girl at his new school when a prank gets out of hand. Mild humor about gender differences, notable mainly for the author's point-of-view experimentation -- he tells the story in very short chapters through the eyes of 10 or 11 peripheral characters without ever entering the mind of his protagonist. The result is sort of a "Rashomon" or "As I Lay Dying" for the middle school set.
November 12, 2010
My story, Boy 2 girl, written by Terence Blacker has a really interesting topic. The writer has Terence Blacker’s hilarious novel, talks about the territory of an early- teen life in a classic story. This story is hilarious. The story mainly talks about a male teenager that was dared to go to a new school being a girly girl. I liked how the writer used humor all the time in this story. I recommend this story for all the people who are interested in school and family problems.
June 13, 2011
this book was kinda extreme. the game just went out of control. it was fun when it first started but this prank hurt a lot of people in the end. i didnt like how the author splits the entire novel between so many character's perspective. it made it very confusing for some time. why did Sam even agree to dress up as a girl to play with his cousin and his friends? sam seemed like a fun person to hang out with. he made everything interesting for the boys.
February 29, 2012
There are WAY too many points of view in this story, and very little plot development. There's too much time spent on seeing each incident from multiple perspectives, which would be fine if there were, say, three perspectives consistently given. But I have counted at least twenty characters whose point-of-view we see, and that makes this book hard to follow and not very interesting.
January 14, 2020
Leider wurden meine Erwartungen an das Buch aufgrund Klappentextes am Ende ziemlich enttäuscht. Alles in allem war die Geschichte sehr flach.
Die ständigen Wechsel der Erzählperspektiven haben das Lesen für mich außerdem sehr anstrengend gemacht. Habe mich selten so lange durch so ein dünnes Buch gekämpft
Die ständigen Wechsel der Erzählperspektiven haben das Lesen für mich außerdem sehr anstrengend gemacht. Habe mich selten so lange durch so ein dünnes Buch gekämpft
January 11, 2025
It was fun to read this book again! I used to love it as a kid. I noticed it has been updated to include mention of gender fluidity & Sam still being gender fluid when they're all older, which was awesome.
June 17, 2024
Had to read it for school and it was just boring… maybe there were some jokes but I didn’t understand them…
edit: 1,5 ⭐️ now i know that there’s a book that’s even worse…
edit: 1,5 ⭐️ now i know that there’s a book that’s even worse…
September 3, 2017
Firstly, this was not the book I expected. It wasn't bad, but nor was it quite the exploration of gender/identity that I was expecting. This clash between what you might think you're getting and what's there could lead to a lot of disappointed readers.
Matt has a fairly safe life. Nothing much happens, then things are shaken up when his mum is given custody of her nephew, Sam, after the death of his mother. Sam is prickly, tough, but clearly deeply upset by the absence of his father. Naturally, perhaps, this is covered up with a kind of machismo, which just irritates Matt and his friends. So they decide to set Sam a challenge - one that will have serious consequences. Sam has to spend his first week at school as a girl.
Can't see many 12 year old boys doing this, but Sam does. Of course it creates confusion, some humorous situations and a fair amount of chaos.
While there were attempts to explore issues around identity, it was itself upholding some of the sexist views it pertained to challenge.
All in all this was reasonably funny, but it left a rather sour taste as it just wasn't doing what it suggested it would.
Thanks to NetGalley for the advance copy in exchange for my review.
Matt has a fairly safe life. Nothing much happens, then things are shaken up when his mum is given custody of her nephew, Sam, after the death of his mother. Sam is prickly, tough, but clearly deeply upset by the absence of his father. Naturally, perhaps, this is covered up with a kind of machismo, which just irritates Matt and his friends. So they decide to set Sam a challenge - one that will have serious consequences. Sam has to spend his first week at school as a girl.
Can't see many 12 year old boys doing this, but Sam does. Of course it creates confusion, some humorous situations and a fair amount of chaos.
While there were attempts to explore issues around identity, it was itself upholding some of the sexist views it pertained to challenge.
All in all this was reasonably funny, but it left a rather sour taste as it just wasn't doing what it suggested it would.
Thanks to NetGalley for the advance copy in exchange for my review.
July 3, 2017
This is not a serious book, so do not read it if you are looking for a deep examination of gender roles/ stereotypes. This is a book to read if you want something silly and fun- something to keep you laughing the whole way through!
After his mom dies in a car crash, Sam (an American) is sent to live with his family in London. He tries to get along with his cousin Matt's friends but, after causing a scene and getting the group in trouble with the police, they decide that, if Sam still wants to hang with them, he needs to pass a test: he has to pose as a girl for the first week at his new school! As Sam gets into character, many MANY shenanigans commence!
This is a great story told by many different characters- all except Sam, who's narrative we never get to see. It's a great read and it's very entertaining to see each character's perspective of the new kid in school- just don't try and take it too seriously.
Find it at the BYU library on the forth floor in the Juvenile Collection: 823 B56371b.
After his mom dies in a car crash, Sam (an American) is sent to live with his family in London. He tries to get along with his cousin Matt's friends but, after causing a scene and getting the group in trouble with the police, they decide that, if Sam still wants to hang with them, he needs to pass a test: he has to pose as a girl for the first week at his new school! As Sam gets into character, many MANY shenanigans commence!
This is a great story told by many different characters- all except Sam, who's narrative we never get to see. It's a great read and it's very entertaining to see each character's perspective of the new kid in school- just don't try and take it too seriously.
Find it at the BYU library on the forth floor in the Juvenile Collection: 823 B56371b.
September 22, 2017
When Sam arrives in Matthew's life after his mum dies, the people around them all have their views on Sam from his jailed dad to his crazy anger outbursts.
Then Sam gets dared to start school as a girl, Sam takes the challenge, fooling them all getting friends in Elena and Charley while Gary dislikes her after she turns a him down for a date.
However, Sam has a mighty inheritance coming his way but while his jailbird dad tracks him down to Matthew's he doesn't suspect Sam is Sam the girl or Simone from Canada either as he poses with Matthew to cover his identity and soon the transition becomes permanent while his father hangs around.
We hear from lots of the characters in this book and their take on new American Sam joining their school. It was an interesting read but I did honestly find the ending very anti climactic and not how I expected. The rest of the book was fun but hard hitting at the same time as people fell trick to the gender swap not realising the truth.
Many thanks to the publishers for allowing me to review this book for them!
Then Sam gets dared to start school as a girl, Sam takes the challenge, fooling them all getting friends in Elena and Charley while Gary dislikes her after she turns a him down for a date.
However, Sam has a mighty inheritance coming his way but while his jailbird dad tracks him down to Matthew's he doesn't suspect Sam is Sam the girl or Simone from Canada either as he poses with Matthew to cover his identity and soon the transition becomes permanent while his father hangs around.
We hear from lots of the characters in this book and their take on new American Sam joining their school. It was an interesting read but I did honestly find the ending very anti climactic and not how I expected. The rest of the book was fun but hard hitting at the same time as people fell trick to the gender swap not realising the truth.
Many thanks to the publishers for allowing me to review this book for them!
February 17, 2022
This is a book about Matthew's cousin, Sam, coming to America because of his mother's passing. In an urge to fit in with Mattew's gang, Sam agrees to pretend to be a girl when at school, however it because more confusing to Sam as the book goes on. In my opinion, this story really didn't feel very real to me. It felt like one of those middle school dramas that were over-emphasized and made everyone mad. It didn't sit right. I liked some of the topics it talked about, questioning yourself, wanting to fit in, but it felt very overlooked by the drama that wasn't necessary. I did like some of the characters, like Zia and Crash, Sams's friend, and his dad. Their characters felt the most realistic and kept the plot going smoothly. I did like how they talked about gender-bending and how it really doesn't need to be a huge deal, the gender roles shouldn't be so strict. It had a good message, but the story didn't fit with that message in my opinion. In the end, it just wasn't super interesting to me, not much of a page-turner.
October 23, 2017
I was given a copy of this book from the publishers via Netgally for an honest review.
I'm not sure who the author aimed this book at. It is obviously a reluctant reader but it is way too long for a younger reader and too immature for an older reader, - it eludes to Sam swearing a few times but doesn't say the swear words - whats the point in that if not for a young audience??. I also lost the thread at the beginning of the story, too many characters having a say when you are getting use to the individual narrative text. I also wonder if the author really understood the subject he was writing about? It is very important for young people to access information that might help or inform them and i think he dressed a boy as a girl and didn't address anyone's problems or feelings - no one had a negative reaction to it, now while that is what the LGBTQ+ community strive for it is not the norm yet.
I'm not sure who the author aimed this book at. It is obviously a reluctant reader but it is way too long for a younger reader and too immature for an older reader, - it eludes to Sam swearing a few times but doesn't say the swear words - whats the point in that if not for a young audience??. I also lost the thread at the beginning of the story, too many characters having a say when you are getting use to the individual narrative text. I also wonder if the author really understood the subject he was writing about? It is very important for young people to access information that might help or inform them and i think he dressed a boy as a girl and didn't address anyone's problems or feelings - no one had a negative reaction to it, now while that is what the LGBTQ+ community strive for it is not the norm yet.
September 25, 2017
'Boy2Girl' is a wonderful novel about friendship, understanding one another, loss and finding your true self. Since it's written from different perspectives of all the book characters it is a really fast read and a really humorous one. I love the idea presented by the book that it doesn't matter if we you are a girl or a boy, you are still important to the society. The genders aren't enemies, they can help each other and they need each other in prder to find some balance in the world. From my point of view as an educator as well as a YA books lover I recommend this book with all my heart!
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