Continental Divide

by Alex Myers

Ron Bancroft comes out as a transgender man at nineteen. His parents reject him. His girlfriend rejects him. Feeling trapped and miserable, Ron decides to leave Harvard and travel west to work on a Wyoming ranch to prove to his parents, his ex, and himself that he can live unequivocally as a man. As he embarks on this journey of independence, Ron must deal with the constant fear and anxiety of being discovered as a trans man as he enters a world more dangerous than he ever imagined.

Genres: LGBT, Transgender, Fiction, Queer, Realistic Fiction, Literary Fiction

296 pages, Paperback

First published September 30, 2019

About the author

Born and raised in western Maine, Alex left his home state to attend Phillips Exeter Academy and went on from there to earn degrees from Harvard and Brown, where he studied Ancient Judaism.

Alex has taught high school English for over a decade and during this time earned an MFA in writing at Vermont College of Fine Arts. It was in this program that he started work on his debut novel, Revolutionary, which was published by Simon & Schuster in January 2014.

Currently, Alex teaches in New Hampshire.

Reviews

[Alex Myers · Rating 5 out of 5]

I'm biased, as the author, but I think it's really good.

[Jackson Bird · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book made me want to drop everything and go become a rancher in the west. At once a classic tale of youthful self-discovery on a rugged Wyoming backdrop and an investigation of masculinity, Alex Myers does an incredible job exploring tough topics without sacrificing plot or tone. The protagonist, east coaster Ron Bancroft, breaks contemporary stereotypes of trans men (to the extent that they exist) with a steady affability I found refreshing. Rather than pining for medical transition, he focuses on proving his masculinity from the inside out–learning a lot about himself, other men, and the world while he does. A captivating read for east coasters, like me, who daydream about life out west or for anyone wanting to think more about what it means to be a man.

[Peter Durnan · Rating 3 out of 5]

Ron is a trans 19-year-old who takes the bus west to Cody to prove that he can be a man. He succeeds, facing misunderstanding, hatred, and violence on the way. He also proves himself heroically and gets the girl. I really enjoyed this book. It is well structured and the pages turn quickly. We should all take the imaginative journey this book requires of us. I wish more of it -- more complexity of conclusion, more nuance of language -- but I will pass it along to the people I love because it is worth its time.

[Lauren · Rating 4 out of 5]

Hmm, 3 stars rounded up to 4 because of the content. This is a coming of age story of a 19 year old trans man, Ron, that I enjoyed and appreciated. It should be in every school library and is a valuable resource for anyone looking to gain a greater understanding of trans people and the struggles they face. I really liked this overall, with a few caveats--

1. It is written like a YA novel, from the angst to the crushes to the ongoing internal dialogue. There's nothing wrong with that; in many ways it makes the story more accessible. But that wasn't what I expected to read. It's a bit strange to read prose like that in a story full of grownups, in the west. Especially since one of them (Ron) went to Harvard.

2. The whole thing is wildly unsafe; it is almost impossible for me to imagine a person might do what Ron did IRL. And if they did, they would only accomplish it if they were white. There's no mention of race in the story, which felt odd to me since it's an obvious player in Ron's ability to "make it" in Wyoming.

3. This was what really got to me: the author thinks Ron should just be honest about himself to people upfront every time, AND he uses straight characters to get that message across with very little input from Ron. This infuriated me. For example, when Ron is "outed" at the ranch, there's this whole long scene where Ron gets a lecture from one of the workers about how he should have just told them immediately and everything would have been ok. That's obviously bullshit and dangerous and I wish Ron would have punched him in the face. Instead he's like, "oh, maybe the straight people are right and teaching me a valuable lesson!" --like, what? It was a bit precious.

I researched this author, the first openly transgender student at Exeter and Harvard, to see if this book is based on a true story. It is. He did go west to "find himself" after coming out as trans at 19. I can't help but wonder if he also hooked up with a woman 10 years his senior, as Ron did in the book. I'm gonna guess that part was fiction ;) bc what grown woman would date a 19 year old? This was perhaps the most confusing part of the book, lol.

I do recommend this! And again, get it in your YA libraries!

[Rachel Morrison · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book made me long for the forest and wilderness! A thoughtful coming if age story that grapples with identity, masculinity, and love. Ron wasn't as angry as I would have been in the situations he's put in, but I still found him a very relatable and compelling protagonist.

[Adam · Rating 3 out of 5]

Note that I'm writing this review from the perspective of a cis white gay man, so I do not share the experiences of the author and of Ron, the main character. Note also that I read the audiobook of this work, not a physical or digital version.

I found the fiction to be compelling - I had no trouble finding momentum and interest to keep moving. I very much like the exploration of what it's like to be a forest ranger/firefighter, as well as what it's like to be on a dude ranch.

However.

Name a trope that appears in a Hallmark movie and this book had it:

Every character is morally extreme for the time - either they had absolutely no issue with Ron's trans identity or they wanted to murder and/or rape Ron for the hell of it. There was no gray area at all.

Ron was presented with a deus ex machina to go back to his original life...only for the opportunity to stay arising and the choice being telegraphed.

The metaphor of the continental divide and which side of it Ron stood on was belabored...until it suddenly didn't matter anymore.

A colleague who didn't trust Ron's ability to keep up—and who was vaguely transphobic—was suddenly okay with Ron after an emergency.

All this is to say that the book, while great at propelling the reader forward, fell into a lot of predictable tropes, which made it feel a little less compelling as a whole.

[Michelle · Rating 3 out of 5]

As a Western or a travel memoir, I recommend it. As a personal story, I enjoyed it, but did continually get the impression that the narrator was lost - that there were emotional conflicts or questions that he wasn't coming to grips with, or at times deliberately avoiding. One piece of grit that kept scratching is that, to me, it's hard to imagine a trans person heading west in a post-Brandon Teena era who doesn't genuinely worry about getting outed and beat up, and this narrator treated that concern with almost no regard or thought throughout his own adventure. Still, I went along for the ride. I loved the descriptions of the people and the land, and as a memoir, it wasn't overly-self-important or charged with a sense of coming of age. I got the impression of living through a point in a real person's life, left with a few questions but overall, enjoyed it.

[Bethany · Rating 3 out of 5]

I borrowed an ARC of this from a local LGBT youth center's library where I was helping my friend (thanks, Hannah!). Since I really liked Revolutionary, I wanted to enjoy this more. Ron was an interesting and likable main character, but unfortunately the central romance marred the story for me. (Cassie is 29, Ron is 19 almost 20... I mean, I'm only in my mid-twenties and I wouldn't date someone that young. Maturity gaps are palpable at those ages.) That personal gripe aside, the western setting was fun, apart from the transphobia which was painful to read. What's sad is I didn't realize until near the end that this book was set in the early 90s since people would absolutely still behave that way to a trans person here in 2019.

[Sara-Zoe Patterson · Rating 5 out of 5]

Fascinating and thoughtful. Like living in someone else’s head. Grown up book.

[Rebecca · Rating 5 out of 5]

I very much enjoyed this. The character development was wonderful, I was really drawn into the story and had a hard time putting it down.

[Sidarth · Rating 5 out of 5]

Yo Alex Myers could you help me on my essay about the symbolism of the continental divide in your book

[Nikki · Rating 4 out of 5]

2024 PopSugar Reading Challenge Prompt #4 - Read a fiction book by a trans or non binary author.

I found myself highlighting a lot of passages from this story. And it actually reminds me so much of the movie Boys Don’t Cry. The main character of that movie is very similar to the main character in this one. Both are very different stories indeed though. I really appreciated this story because while the main character Ron goes through struggles, we also get to witness how his struggles lead to his growth. And realizing who he is as a human being and how it only matters how he sees himself. But also learning to accept everything about himself.

A few highlights I made were:

“I am a man. You just don’t see it.”

“You might be right about some parts of my life being difficult because I’m transgender. Yes, some people will hate me for that reason. But that doesn’t mean I won’t be successful.”

“What was it that I wanted? Approval from an outside source? Or some feeling of satisfaction within myself? And why hadn’t I been smart enough to understand this difference until now?”

I loved how Ron never strayed from who he was. And this was a perspective I never read about before. I found it enlightening. :)

[Shalini · Rating 5 out of 5]

West is where boys become men, and where men go to die. This book has made me feel more seen than any book before. I was not just enthralled, I become Ron. A 19 year old young man who moved his whole life to the west, to prove something to himself. 30 years ago a man just like myself did something exactly as I am doing now. This book is profoundly emotional, and is exactly the mind of someone so young, trying to find himself. When you’re almost 20 standing in the mirror wondering if you can pass just the way you are for the rest of your life, because change is terrifying. When you feel sick every time you tell someone who you are. Read this book, especially if you are young and transgender. You don’t need to go out west to become a man, but the endless mountains and the cold rivers make for a better discovery.

[Kitty · Rating 4 out of 5]

continental divide left much to be desired in the prose department, and the plot is set up like any coming-of-age YA, but fundamentally it's a book i needed to read. in high school i can't remember there being any good fiction about trans people, so Myers' goal (to portray trans people as normal, everyday people) was certainly fulfilled. although it's not ground breaking, sometimes you need continental divides uncomplicated, happy ending for your trans masc cowboy (especially when juxtaposed with Haints Stay).

[Elizabeth · Rating 3 out of 5]

this book was well narrated by scott turner-schofield.

otherwise though it felt clunky and overly moralistic. i wanted good things for the main character! which helps me get through a lot. but it felt like almost no one had nuance, and also the language just didn't make sense for the time. the whole thing felt, at first, like it was written by a 26 year old imagining the past--then i looked up the author and it seems like a giant self-insert so i will defer to the idea that this is more realistic than i imagine, but it didn't sell it for me. as someone in trans communities in the 90s it just left me with a lot of question marks.

[Dan]

Not giving this a rating because I don’t feel like it’s my place to influence the average. I didn’t like this novel. I didn’t like the amount of dialogue that centered around “what guys do” and “what girls do.” I get that this was obviously central to the plot and to the main character but it felt weird to have the non trans characters saying these things so often as well. Anyway this book wasn’t for me.

[Channy · Rating 5 out of 5]

A narrative about discovering what it means not just to be a man but to be ourselves. Rob is a very relatable charecter even as a trans woman and I think anyone from any walk of life can walk away with something from this book.

[Dukie Pookie · Rating 5 out of 5]

Read this for my GSA,,, We we’re going to see the author in our town. Sadly Covid stuck and we no longer had the chance but!! Covid didn’t take away the amazing experience which was reading this book. It’s one of my favorites.

[Lexy · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5
Took me over 2weeks to read a less than 300-page book which is contributing to my rating. Once Ron went to work for the Forest Service, the book really turned around for me and I enjoyed it. I just couldn't stand the shit at the ranch.

[Bailey · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was really stressful and tense at times; I was so relieved that the big secret was only kept through the first half. Really complex characters which I appreciated—they all felt so real, for better or worse. Also I now yearn for manual labor.

[T · Rating 4 out of 5]

Page turner!!! I enjoyed it and couldn’t wait to read it each night. I loved how flawed and realistic the characters all felt. A good story with a real plot! Not perfect but awesome.

[Dawn Coffey · Rating 4 out of 5]

A good read, I'm not sure it will last long in my memory, but very enjoyable while reading. Would like to see a sequel checking in with Ron in ten years.

[Molly Smith · Rating 5 out of 5]

Honestly it was hard to put this book down. Such an honest human novel. It makes you smile, makes you think, makes you feel.

[Roger A Smith · Rating 5 out of 5]

It’s the early 1990s. Ron Bancroft is 19 years old, an obsessive list maker, and transgender. In the previous few weeks, he has come out to his parents (who were unaware even of his lesbian stage), been kicked out of the house, broken up with his girlfriend, and had his familiar life at Harvard yanked away from him.

Like generations of young men before him, Ron decides to head out West to find himself. As his bus approaches Cody, Wyoming, his list is short. “Find a job. Settle down for a year. Prove to the world (myself?) that I can live as a guy.” He quickly lands a job working in the kitchen of a dude ranch, surrounded by people who are oblivious to his secret and frequently use the word “faggot” as an epithet.

Ron has a lot of advantages going into his test. He has a great work ethic. He’d been a tomboy all his life. He is blessedly tall, a runner, and not hard on the eyes. He played basketball into college until he announced he was transgender and quit the team.

Of course, there are the obvious disadvantages. He wears a tight compression top to flatten his chest. He has to plot out the timing of his shower so he isn’t interrupted by his homophobic roommates. And then there is the big one: what - and when - does he tell individuals who he becomes close to? Individuals who deserve to know who the real him is?

Eventually, working past missteps, misunderstandings, and downright maliciousness, Ron comes to terms with the real him. I felt privileged to accompany Ron as he progressed on his journey. I have observed Ron’s dilemmas as they were acted out by my own transgender son. I feel that this book has taught me truths that my son and I have never mined in our many conversations about trans issues.

There were parts of Continental Divide that were difficult for me to read. It is set seven years or so before Matthew Shepard was beaten to death near Laramie Wyoming for being gay. That event is never referenced in the book, but it added a layer of real-life peril that was hard for me to ignore. Author Alex Myers has constructed a few scenes of hateful malevolence. His bad guys are really bad, and the only way I knew that Ron was going to get out of his fix was because he is the book’s narrator. I thank author Myers for choosing this first-person method of storytelling, because otherwise I might have put the book down.

I encourage you, the reader, to take up this book. It’s a great read. It’s a coming-of-age story that transcends gender issues. It will likely help anyone, including those who have trans loved-ones, to gain a greater understanding and empathy for the trans experience.

[Steve · Rating 4 out of 5]

A female to male transexual moves to the wilds of WY after his life kind of falls apart on the East Coast when he announces to friends, and femalew/lesbian lovers, and family, thathe plans to live as a male from then on. I knew I was gonna like this as soon as Gus did not buckle up his seatbelt. Yep, that IS WY!
A tale told simply (but not simplistically) and straight forward, it moves along quickly. And asks some good questions about himself, others, and the world as well.
Other readers have had an issue with the age difference (29 vs just turned 20) of the possible couple, but that was fine with me. But while Myers gets the setting of WY down well, it takes awhile before he informs you that this is in the '90's. Autobiographical fiction, he was either extremely brave, or stupid, to have moved here! But glad he enjoyed it so much, I have as well.
Nice explanation of how a forest fire is fought. But, a Harvard student does not know what the Continental Divide is? But I do like the way Myers uses it, and a message in a bottle, as metaphors for the questions about his new life.
The other reviews here on Goodreads have been really helpful and enjoyable. Thanks all!
Myers is doing a tour of WY in the next few weeks (03/2020), and to high schools as well - I am looking forward to hearing him speak. I am proud to say that I put in an ILL to our local PL to get the book from another WY PL for me to read, and they bought it instead! Good, it should be a part of an WY library collection! A little odd (but good) that it is published by the U of NOLA Press.
A good read on any number of levels. I'll take a look at his other book, "Revolutionary", later.

[Alex · Rating 4 out of 5]

I loved this book. I read it flat out in a few days. It made we want to see the wilderness Wyoming.

It was great to read a book about the US and I loved Ron's journey and self discovery. Its lovely to read about other trans men.

[James · Rating 4 out of 5]

Trans experience written by a trans man...but clearly for the cisgender gaze. I guess there's nothing wrong with that. I just hope someday we have our own body of literature the way that other marginalized groups do.

I live near the Continental Divide in Montana. The author does a good job with the scenery and people. And with the realities of fire season.

I wish I had realized sooner that the book takes place in the early 90s. I missed that for the first few chapters.

The book does a good job with the struggle about whether to be out of stealth. The constant pull between wanting to just be a regular guy and not wanting to carry the burden of keeping a secret. And also with the struggle for parental acceptance.

Overall, good coming of age story about what it's like to be different.

[Steph · Rating 4 out of 5]

Not necessarily my favorite writing, but I did like it enough to finish it in one sitting. It felt a little like reading my emo-teenage-self's diary, but the main character is only 19 so maybe that makes sense? Overall I enjoyed it, and I'm seriously considering dropping everything to become a cowboy now

[Rena · Rating 5 out of 5]

A coming-of-age story with a twist. Although predictable in its villains, much of the rest displays sensitivity to the complexity of issues faced by the coming out of a transgender teen and his communities.

[Molly Burdick · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book is heartwarming and hope-giving. It takes several unexpected turns. I went into it thinking I knew where I’d end up but it took me on a different journey. Ron is so relatable as the narrator and every character feels fully fleshed out. Love love love.