Identify

by Lesley Choyce

Ethan is an anxiety-ridden loner who relies on medication to get through his day. During one of his fairly frequent panic attacks, a girl from school named Gabriella comes to his rescue. Gabe, as she prefers to be known, is facing her own inner turmoil. She has always been a tomboy, but the more pressure she faces to act and dress "like a girl," the more she wonders just who she really is.When he learns that Gabe is being constantly harassed at school, Ethan discovers he is able to overcome his own fears in order to stand up for his new friend. Then Gabe finds a disturbing note in her locker, and the threats begin to escalate. Ethan confronts the person responsible, but things take an unexpected turn, and he suddenly finds himself being questioned by police, accused of assault. With a dose of courage and a surprising ally, the two friends come up with a plan to set things right and end up discovering who they really are along the way.

Genres: Young Adult, LGBT, Teen, Queer

68 pages, Kindle Edition

First published April 18, 2017

About the author

Lesley Choyce is a novelist and poet living at Lawrencetown Beach, Nova Scotia. He is the author of more than 80 books for adults, teens and children. He teaches in the English Department and Transition Year Program at Dalhousie University. He is a year-round surfer and founding member of the 1990s spoken word rock band, The SurfPoets. Choyce also runs Pottersfield Press, a small literary publishing house and hosted the national TV show, Off The Page, for many years. His books have been translated into Spanish, French, German and Danish and he has been awarded the Dartmouth Book Award and the Ann Connor Brimer Award.

Lesley Choyce was born in New Jersey in 1951 and moved to Canada in 1978 and became a citizen.

His YA novels concern things like skateboarding, surfing, racism, environmental issues, organ transplants, and rock bands.

Reviews

[Minou · Rating 1 out of 5]

Så jädrans dålig

[Eli · Rating 3 out of 5]

Fin lättläst bok. Kortrecension här: https://www.instagram.com/p/B2w74l2IrfV/

[Annika Samuelsson · Rating 3 out of 5]

Åter igen en dag som Simon känner att han inte har kontroll. Det är därför han sitter bland sopptunnorna. Det finns ingen som letar efter honom där. Trots det så dyker det upp två ben framför honom, en ledsen blick och sedan får han en hörsnäcka i örat. Musiken gör att de jobbiga, sjuka tankarna försvinner.

Det är så Simon träffar Gabbe (Gabriella). Hon är inte som alla andra och hon accepterar honom som han är och försöker hjälpa till. Simon anar snart att Gabbe inte har det så lätt som det verkar vid en första anblick, frågan är om han kan hjälpa henne eller om hennes problem är inledningen till större förändringar än vad han någonsin trott.

[Nightrunner · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book was really easy to read and still managed to have a wellbuilt storyline, good job Choyce!
I enjoyed reading it, my only complaint is that - at least in my swedish edition - they doesn't mention the word transgender even once. The way they handle Gabe's exploring in identity is realistic and done in the right way, except that they never even try changing the pronouns. Gabe is called "she" through it all, and in the end it seems fine with that. I can except whatever pronoun Gabe want to be called, but if "she" is preferred, the I want some more explanation. Just a few sentences about "some people transition and some doesn't", that would have been enough. Instead the last chapters make me cringe, because they feel like they indicate that every transperson would be happy with whatever if they just stoped caring about what others think. That is not a nice feeling to end a good book with :(

[Björn H · Rating 2 out of 5]

En bok om Simon som inte mår jättebra, har det svårt hemma och svårt i skolan. När han träffas Gabriella, eller Gabbe som vill kallas, så upplever han att saker förbättras. Gabbe har sina egna problem med föräldrar och hot för att hon klär sig killaktigt och inte beter sig som en tjej "ska" göra.

Problematiken i boken är ganska tydlig. Det här är en lättläst historia som ändå tar upp viktiga saker som hur tonåringar mår, deras tankar och inre demoner. Är det bra? Sådär, tycker jag. Det är mycket dialog som ger en bra uppfattning om vilka karaktärerna är, vilket är bra. Både Simons och Gabbes föräldrar känns dock lite stereotypa, de är avvaktande/ifrågasättande/grälande på ett sätt som känns som att det gjorts tidigare.

Jag går inte in på slutet mer än att säga att det kändes lite förutsägbart, men tillfredsställande. En bok som dock går att diskutera kring.

[Anne · Rating 3 out of 5]

Ethan has a lot of anxiety, which a lot of students will be able to identify with. He makes a new friend, Gabriella - who prefers to be known as Gabe. Gabe is being bullied but Ethan isn't sure how to handle his anxiety and still be a good friend to Gabe.
Ethan's anxiety seems to be a very accurate depiction; Gabe is never identified as trans but it is highly likely that students will perceive it that way. Wraps up very conveniently which isn't terribly realistic but will be a satisfying conclusion for most hi-lo readers who pick this up.

[Kristen · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book was definitely realistic fiction. Its about a girl trying to identify her identity and a boy who suffers from anxiety

[Kulturens Hjältar]

Handlar om Simon som blir mobbad men blir räddad av en tjej (Gabbe). Simon käkar konstiga piller för att dämpa sin ångest. Gabbe har lite könsidentitetsproblem, känner sig som en kille.

[Danielle E · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was a fast read, but a very very good book!

[Kc · Rating 5 out of 5]

You got the page number wrong again. Its 116 not 120. I dont even think you know how many pages are in a book. Your just guessing.

[Lilly · Rating 5 out of 5]

A quick but good read. Tells a powerful story in a way that is easy to understand and empathise with. Talks about heavy topics in a child friendly way.

[Ellinora Gustafsson · Rating 5 out of 5]

Its amazing!! I red it on 1 day

[Alex · Rating 2 out of 5]

Just okay.

[inaword · Rating 1 out of 5]

The only reason I bothered to finish reading this was because it was so short.