3 out of 4 stars
Share This Review
There are a lot of people in the world who feel as if they were born in the wrong body. They spend their entire lives trying to figure out why they feel so disconnected from their physical body. Some of them try to mask their insecurities and pretend that everything is okay. Sadly, some people find the disconnect too painful and choose to end their pain in the most tragic ways. Even though there are a lot of people who are experiencing this, there are some who find the courage to change themselves into the person they want to become. In My Ladybird Story by Magus Tor, readers are introduced to a character who overcomes his gender dysphoria and transforms into the woman she always knew she was.
In the book, we are introduced to John Bird, a teenager who suffers from gender dysphoria. His entire life, he always felt different from other males. As a child, while other boys his age were playing with cars, he preferred to bake cookies using his easy bake oven. While most teenage boys were thinking about girls and sex, John felt no interest in either. His differences became apparent to other people at school, and he found himself constantly bullied and nicknamed, “Lady Bird.” It is only when new transfer student, Aureus Conner, comes into his life and befriends him does he finally become his true self. Readers will enjoy this story that explores LGBT themes, acceptance and ultimately love.
This book was a fascinating and insightful read. It was insightful because the author created a character who readers can empathize with, whether they are part of the LGBT community or not. Even though the book is told from both John and Aureus viewpoint, John is the star of the book. The plot explores his life as he tries to figure out things about himself. The plot explores the darkest moments of his life, such as the bullying he endured and his suicide attempts. It also explores the positive sides such as his transition into a woman named Joyce and his newfound love life.
Even though I thoroughly enjoyed the plot of the story, there were still some negatives. One of the negatives was that the story dragged at multiple times in the book. I felt that there were a lot of unnecessary filler material that the author could have cut from the book because it held no significance to the overall story. The other issue was that there was a sudden romance introduced near the end of the book that wasn’t properly developed. The author hurriedly created a love connection between two characters that was out of place and literally came out of nowhere. There was no development of the romantic relationship at all. The end of the book, in general, seemed rushed and confusing.
I rate this book 3 out of 4 stars. I loved the overall concept of the book which was about a boy becoming a transgender woman. I think this book is needed because not only does it promote acceptance, but it provides insight into the LGBT community. The unnecessary chapters, sudden romance, and the rushed plot are the reasons why I can’t rate it 4 stars. Besides that, this book is insightful, raw and interesting. I would recommend this book to all readers as we all sometimes need to see the world from someone else’s viewpoint in order to better understand them.
******
My Ladybird Story
View: on Bookshelves | on Amazon | on iTunes
Like Amagine's review? Post a comment saying so!
