If I Was Your Girl

Being about a transgender male to female character I had expected a little more insight in to the difficulties the whole process entailed. It spoke some about the ridicule teenagers can give each other for being transgender but not a lot about the actual entire process. I guess I was expecting something more detailed like the series "Transparent".

This book manages to be dignified, forthright, enlightening and approachable. This book is a well written story of a boy struggling with gender identity issues and his struggles in a hostile world to become Amanda.
It helped me to better understand some of the transgender struggles. The story was engaging and compelling.
As is true of the best literature, this book shines brightest when it shows how all of mankind struggles in some way and that the courage we bring to the struggle gives hope in a sometimes dark world.
I hope this author will continue to write, bravo!

I enjoyed the story and it kept flowing very well. I suspect that it must be a difficult thing even initially to have confidence going out with a guy knowing how initially you were born. Then the difficulty knowing when and how to divulge. I don't know if this is a common scenerio as happened in this book but the experience has got to be at times awful-foe both sides.
So, again, I enjoyed the story, but I did have difficulty trying to decipher who was speaking at times, especially when more than one person was speaking in a paragraph, but I had difficulty in other cases too.

I enjoyed this book. Gave me more insight into the world of the transgendered, what they go through and the suffering they endure. I fell in love with Amanda, and never once saw her as a "boy" but rather as a sweet, lovely teenage girl, going through typical as well as atypical teenage angst. As a heterosexual woman, I would recommend this book to anyone interested in this topic.

It was an interesting read, but I got the feeling that it was a fairy tale about how a trans boy-to-girl would like life to be , rather than a realistic story. Teenage trans-girls don't have problems with their boobs being too big for gym class, and a teen boy of his age and family position would never be able to get full hormones and surgery to complete a transition at age 15-16. Things were just too perfect, in spite of the intentional conflict that seemed to have been inserted when someone told the author "you need to have conflict, everything cannot be rosy." That said, it was well-written and interesting.

I started off really liking this book. The YA angst of "Does he or doesn't he like me" was offset by "what will happen when he finds out Amanda's secret?" Then I stopped believing in the characters. Where are teens this nice? has the author spent time with any of today's teens? if you take away Amanda's secret, there is no real plot or interesting characters and that is a shame. Amanda's secret shouldn't be the gimmick to make people read this book.

The YA genre is becoming more and more interesting as important new voices begin to deal with previously-avoided issues of sexuality and gender identity. Meredith Russo’s “If I Was Your Girl” is the first non-memoir I’ve encountered that deals with the scary world of male-to-female transition at the high school level.

Russo is very clear in her author’s note that she has carefully chosen her situation to make her character Amanda’s “trans-ness as unchallenging to normative assumptions as possible.” Andrew/Amanda self-identified as female from her earliest recollection. However, her father was unable to see anything but the “sissy boy”, and reacted with a stereotypical determination to “toughen him up”. It didn’t work, of course, and the inevitable result was conflict, not only with the child but with his wife as well, who while not as clueless as her husband, actually didn’t have the ability to deal with the issues either.

As the story begins, post-transition Amanda has been beaten up by the parent of one of her schoolmates in suburban Atlanta, where she and her mother have moved after the divorce. The only “safe” option seems to be for her to go live with her dad in “Lambertville”, a small town near Knoxville, TN. Her dad, who didn’t know how to cope with her pre-teen male persona, is even more at sea when it comes to dealing with her as a late teenage daughter, but he tries.

It is Amanda’s blessing to become part of a group of girls at her new high school who sincerely befriend her. Although on the surface they are a “mixed bag”, Layla, Chloe and Anna turn out to be true blue. When Amanda is outed in a very vicious way, they are the ones who stand by her and even rescue her during another assault. Russo doesn’t sugarcoat anything, and the novel doesn’t exactly end with “happily-ever-after”. However it is clear that Amanda does indeed have a hopeful future due to the support and understanding of these friends; the evolution in her parents’ perspective to the extent that even her dad is learning to lighten up and replace control with support; and a boyfriend, Grant, who also has a quality of loyalty and fairness.

Stylistically, I wish the narrative was not quite so heavy on “southern vernacular”, but this is the author’s authentic voice and is certainly valid for the locale and characters. The real antagonist in the story, Bee, is anachronistic in the setting, but her inclusion adds a thread of intensity that I believe is valuable to the narrative. I really liked this book.

This book about a transgender teen takes us to the uglier side of the issue. Lack of understanding is the least of it. Throw in beatings, harassment, physical attacks while authority figures look the other way and hostility from a parental figure and you understand why the main character once decided suicide was the best option.

Amanda’s life doesn’t get any easier when she becomes the female she always knew she was. Moving to a neighborhood where people don’t know she was Andrew means keeping secrets, telling lies or trusting the wrong people. The novel is a painful glimpse into one side of the transgender issue, filtered through the fictional lens of a female with hard decisions to make.

The novel shines but it’s a fierce glare with only a few softer bright spots. Graphic descriptions of what happens to Amanda’s body, mention of the pills and hormone shots needed to maintain her new shape are slid in subtly between mentions of the new life she must navigate among a handsome boy, a bible thumper and a bi-sexual drug smoker. It’s absorbing to read, even if you suspect that it’s not the entire story of what goes into shifting from one gender to another.

There are so many directions the author could have taken with this story and she settles on a happy, if cautionary, note. We know that Amanda will never have a simple life and she knows it as well. Her coming to terms with it and decided to stand up and take what is hers is humbling to read yet fills the reader with a sense of vindication.

YES YES YES YES YES YES

I’ve been looking forward to this book for awhile–it’s been on everyone’s lists since it released last year. I knew it would be my pick for the trans category for DiversityBingo2017 and I just kept not getting around to reading it! I’m here to tell you that if you’re like me and have it sitting on the back of your TBR…DO NOT WAIT ANYMORE. GO GET THAT BOOK AND READ IT NOW.

Sometimes a book gets hype solely for the topic alone–this is an Own Voices book written by a trans author about a trans girl at a new high school–but this story is absolutely worthy of every single five star must read THROW THE BOOK AT YOUR FACE review it gets. I couldn’t put it down. I had a migraine the night I was reading it and I STILL couldn’t stop reading it. That’s how good this book is.

I’m CIS, so trans issues are not my lane. But from If I Was Your Girl, I learned how to relate to people who are trans, and much of the terrible pain they have to go through. As I was reading this, I did wonder how on point the representation was–Amanda passes almost perfectly, and she gets to have the surgery and hormones at a very young age. I know this is not the experience of all trans people, but it was still really interesting to read such a main character on the page. The author does explain why she made those choices in her Author’s Note at the end, and it makes a lot of sense, why she wrote Amanda the way she did. I’ll leave everything for you to read yourself–but definitely don’t skip Russo’s note afterward.

In addition to the trans representation, we also get bisexual and gay main characters. There’s conversation about bullying, peer pressure, consensual sex vs rape. There’s also quite a bit of discussion about suicide. Take care of yourself, if you’re reading this book. But definitely read it. It’s just so so good.

This was a touching and engaging story. I liked how we got to see Amanda’s friendship network, so we weren’t just looking at her and Grant. I have to say that I didn’t feel too attached to most of her friends, probably because the book was too short for me to get to know any of them really well. I quite liked Virginia, though.

A lot of the scenes were quite relatable to me as a trans person. For instance, Amanda was thrilled and happy when she got to hang out with a gang of female friends and be accepted as one of them. I too have moments where I was invited to hang out with a group of guys, and it felt so good to be “one of them.” This is a special kind of desire for peer acceptance. It’s the desire to be accepted and welcomed by a group of people who are the same (or similar) gender as you. This desire is especially intense if others got your gender wrong for almost your entire life…

Grant was sweet for the most part, though I wish we had more time to see his relationship with Amanda unfold and develop in more detail.

Overall, this was a pleasant and emotionally engaging story.

Okay bear with me, because this review is going to be intense. It’ll include a lot of gushing praise, some of the heartache I experienced, and so much more…without being spoilery of course. This book is definitely 5 out of 5 stars in my book.

I read this book for #ReadProud, even though it’s been on my TBR list for quite a while now. I’m so glad I finally read it. Because of the summary, you already know some of the backstory of Amanda’s life. But knowing that backstory still didn’t prepare me for the roller coaster of emotions that were contained in the 288 pages of If I Was Your Girl. I thought Meredith did such a great job with the subject matter at hand. My heart went out to the main character, Amanda, so many times. As a straight female, I know I don’t know what it’s like to be trans, but seeing life through Amanda’s eyes was eye-opening. I’d like to think I’m pretty open-minded and accepting, especially after seeing the reactions of some people in this book. I say be who you are, be with whoever makes you happy, etc. because life’s too short.

Amanda was a fantastic main character. I liked that Meredith had some passages scattered throughout the book that showed us Amanda’s past, showed us what she had to endure and deal with. It made me get attached to her character even more. Grant was a pretty good guy overall, but he’s not an addition to my book boyfriend for a few reasons. One is that I just wasn’t attracted to his character. He sounded cute, but I didn’t feel myself falling for his character. The other reasons I don’t want to share, because they’re spoilers.

I thought the female friendship in this book was one of the highlights. Layla, Anna, and Chloe were amazing, especially towards the very end of the book. Amanda is lucky to have friends like them. Bee was okay, until she wasn’t, but I understand she served a purpose in the book. I really liked that Amanda got to feel like ‘one of the girls’ when she lived in Lambertville. It made my heart happy for most of the book.

The ‘past’ sections were pretty emotional overall. They really tugged at my heartstring, for lack of better words. Some were happy, but mostly they were showing the emotional, and physical, abuse Amanda endured. My heart ached that people could treat other people like that, like they were nothing. Society is so wrong at times that it’s enough to make me scream. The book ends on a slightly happier note, especially since Amanda always has her friends no matter what, and she has her whole life ahead of her to see what happens next.

Final note: I’m glad I read this book for the #ReadProud challenge this month. Such a great debut! I’d highly recommend it! I need to buy a copy for myself to own so I can keep experiencing the feels over and over again!

4.5 Stars

Review based on advanced copy

Plot:If I Was Your Girl opened with a nervous Amanda starting her first day at a new school. I liked that Russo interwove elements from Amanda's past throughout the novel so that readers were continuously learning about Amanda and her family dynamic. If I Was Your Girl was a slow book, but that was because the true focus was on Amanda's relationships with the people around her. It was an easy read and the mix of past and present scenes really drew me into discovering Amanda. If I Was Your Girl didn't spend a lot of time on Amanda's transition, which made it effortless to accept Amanda as nothing more than a young 16-year old girl.

Characters: Amanda was a darling girl that I empathized with on so many levels. Her relationship with her family was rocky at times, but everyone had Amanda's best interest in mind. It was funny because I found myself relating to the parents more times than not. I wanted to keep Amanda safe in a world that didn't understand the trans community. There was no true villain in If I Was Your Girl, just various people struggling with life. The relationship between Amanda and Grant was innocent and beautiful and I liked how the teens complimented each other.

Worldbuilding: Amanda relocated to the rural South to live with her estranged father after an incident at her old school. Her father was clearly trying to adjust to life with a teenaged daughter, but he also had the habit of trying to shield her from the bigots. Russo's description of Amanda's new home was nothing short of charming, but there was always the danger lurking in the background. Despite the stereotypes that come with the South, I found Russo's portrayal to be fun and fair.

Narrator Performance:Samia Mounts breathed life into Amanda for me. She gave Amanda a voice of innocence and unbridled happiness, but then could cry her sadness and uncertainty. I wish I could leave my glowing review of Mounts' performance at that, but unfortunately, I could hear her licking her lips every now and then, and that is not a pleasant sound to have in your ears for eight hours.

Short N Sweet: If I Was Your Girl is an important coming-of-age story that explores various relationships. I highly recommend to everyone!

If I Was Your Girl is powerful and important book. It is Amanda’s story: She is transgender and finishing her senior year of high school living with her dad after an incident occurred while she was living with her mom. It has been many years since she has seen her father. The chapters alternate between the past and present to give us Amanda’s full story in the order we need to learn everything.

If I was Your Girl is a Young Adult novel, but I think everyone should read this book. For those of us that are not transgender we can be called ‘cisgender’ (a person whose identity and gender corresponds with their biological sex) and we can see a fictionalized story of what transgender people can go through. The author, Meredith Russo is a transgender woman. She does a very good job getting us in the head of a teenage transgender girl. We see Amanda’s pain when she was Andrew. We grow to love Amanda and root for her. We see all sides of Amanda’s journey: her parents facing the fact that they are ‘losing’ their son, but gaining a daughter, Amanda’s new friends, and a possible love. Amanda does her best to keep her distance from Grant and keeping her secret from her friends. She doesn’t know how they will react if they know she was Andrew. She is torn with this, especially when it comes to Grant, as they get closer.

Meredith Russo wrote an afterword that answers some questions the reader may have had as they were reading the book, and even some answers to questions you may not have even realized you had! She writes to both her ‘cisgender readers’ and ‘trans readers’ and explains why she wrote the book the way she did. She explains that she is a story teller, not an educator. Her story is very different from Amanda’s and doesn’t want us to take Amanda’s story as fact. Every transgender person has a different story, and they can be as varied as ours. The Author’s Notes (narrated by the author) is just as important as the novel and needs to be read.

The narrator of the audiobook is Samia Mounts and she does a superb job. A narrator can make or break an audiobook and she shines through the novel! Her voice is perfect for Amanda and the performance is phenomenal. You really feel everything Amanda feels through Samia Mounts’ narration.

The original cover is of transgender model Kira Conley. She is beautiful and I actually pictured her as Amanda as I was listening to the book.

If I Was Your Girl is a novel that will make you think. It is highly recommended. Another book I recommend is Becoming Nicole by Amy Ellis Nutt. This is a true story of a transgender girl, her twin brother and her fight for acceptance.

Amanda Hardy restarted her life with her Dad in the small town of Lambertville, Tennessee after years of ridicule and abuse by her peers for being different. Grant Everett is everything she was looking for, but her secret has not allowed her to get too close to him or her new friends. Will Amanda have the courage to tell the truth, despite the consequences?

Touching upon sensitive social issues, If I Was Your Girl realistically depicts the difficulties of being a teenager who is perceived as being different. I wish the book had been written in a more linear fashion, as I do not feel the author gave a complete picture of Amanda's life before. I liked that Amanda's parents were described as mostly supportive of their child but that their fears were expressed, as it seemed very realistic to me. If I Was Your Girl can be used as a way to open a dialogue between teen and parent, as well as raising awareness for the issues discussed.

"You can have anything once you admit you deserve it."

Amanda Hardy is new to Lambertville, Tennessee and nervous about starting at a new school for her senior year. She isn't sure what to expect when she moves in with her father who she hasn't seen in a few years. She isn't sure if this town will be any kinder to her than the hometown she had to leave. All she wants to do is blend in and avoid getting too close to anyone. She's used to being an outsider so it should be simple.

Grant Everett sorely tests Amanda's resolve. He is funny, kind, and no one Amanda ever thought she could be with. Getting closer to Grant makes Amanda feel safe and known. So much so that shea wonders if it might be time to let Grant see all of her--including the secrets from her past.

But she has no idea if Grant will be able to see her as the girl he's gotten to know when he finds out that Amanda used to be Andrew in If I Was Your Girl (2016) by Meredith Russo.

If I Was Your Girl is Russo's first novel. It's also important to mention that she is a transgender woman. An author's note at the back of the book addresses some of her creative choices and provides further resources and support for trans teens.

This book is a really powerful and important story. Amanda is an empathetic heroine with a narrative voice that is immediately engaging and approachable. More importantly, this is not an issue-driven book. Instead, If I Was Your Girl is a sweet, introspective, and romantic story about a girl who happens to be transgender.

Everyone in If I Was Your Girl has a secret whether it's something they're hiding for their own protection or just because they're embarrassed. These secrets include sexual orientation and a character who is hiding his mother's health problems and his family's low income status. The way these secrets unfold and play out in the narrative add another dimension to the story as Amanda and her friends learn about what it means--and what it can cost--to reveal your deepest truths to someone new.

Parts of the plot meander and even drag. Amanda's adjustment to her new school is contrasted throughout the novel with flashbacks to her distant and recent past including moments when she was bullied, her decision to transition, and a heart-wrenching suicide attempt.

Russo presents Amanda's story with tenderness and care. In addition to featuring a strong, transgender girl at its heart, this story also surrounds Amanda with support. Her life still isn't easy--there are obstacles and hateful, scary moments. But throughout the story, Amanda also has her mother cheering her on and begins to rebuild her relationship with her estranged father. She finds friends who trust and accept her and a boy who cares deeply about her. If I Was Your Girl is a hopeful and uplifting story where Amanda works to become the person she's always wanted to be.

Possible Pairings: Revenge of the Girl with the Great Personality by Elizabeth Eulberg, Life by Committee by Corey Ann Haydu, The Truth Commission by Susan Juby, How to Be Brave by E. Katherine Kottaras, In Real Life by Jessica Love, Dumplin' by Julie Murphy, This Song Will Save Your Life by Leila Sales

This is a really important book. I also really enjoyed it and read the whole thing in a single day while I was home sick from work.

Amanda is trans and has just moved to a new school where no one questions that she's a girl. There are a couple of comments about how tall she is, but no one thinks she's mannish or anything.

Yet Amanda can't fully relax, especially after she realizes what she's feeling for Grant is more than friendship. She feels like she needs to tell him the truth about herself, but is terrified of ruining everything with her confession.

Amanda's experience feels authentic (the author is trans herself, so it should) even if it feels a little too easy. Her mother has accepted her as a girl and supported her transition, even paid for the surgery to complete it. Her father, who hasn't been in the picture since she was a child, takes her in after things became problematic at home.

Her past and how she came out as trans are shown in chapters of flashback woven through the narrative. In these, her father is shown to be less than accepting of his son's leanings as a child, but he's trying to make up for it now.

At the end of the book the author notes that Amanda's transition has been made easier by her family's acceptance and the fact they appear to have enough money to help her through the transitioning process (something that doesn't feel quite authentic, because neither parent appears to have a job that would provide for this easily). Not every kid who feels the way Amanda does has that level of support or the means to transition so smoothly. And I think it's important that she has noted that because it's the one part of the book that felt off for me.

Overall though, I recommend this. There are too few books about the trans experience, especially those by authors who know first hand what it feels like.

As I was reading this novel, I kept thinking, what in the hell are you doing Amanda? I really thought she was overly confident and risky. I know she was finally becoming who she wanted to be but the pace at which was arriving at it with, was scaring the pants off me! Amanda was a new student, living in new surroundings, living with a father whom she really didn’t know, wearing a new identity and acting so carefree and flirty, I just about died. She had lived her whole life as Andrew and now after surgery and taking her medication, Andrew was now Amanda. With fire and gusto, she rushed into a romance for which I kept shaking my head. She found a friend named Bee, who was exciting and carefree. I could go on about Bee but I think Amanda put too much into Bee. I was glad that Amanda found other friends besides Bee and I only wished that she would have trusted these friends as much as she trusted Bee. Amanda realizes the reaction that she will receive when others find out the truth about her past which is why, she feels she must keep her past a secret. This secret can only be hidden for so long and what will become of her then?

I liked how the author told the whole story of Andrew and Amanda. With randomly inserted chapters, we were flashed back to when Amanda was Andrew, before he had the surgery. It told of the conflict that the family wrestled with over the years and of Andrew’s feelings as he coped with being a male. The emotions of the parents felt realistic and genuine. It made this novel more realistic to feel everyone’s’ side of the story. Everyone has secrets and I wondered as I read along, just who would share their secrets with Amanda as she got more familiar with her new surroundings. Why do we feel that we need to share everything with the world to be accepted? What secrets should we keep from others and which ones do we need to share? At what point, do you open yourself up to others for their acceptance? I still believe she should have been taking things slower and being more cautious to her surroundings and then perhaps things might have transpired differently. I really enjoyed this novel. It is a novel that is more than just about gender issues.

This book first caught my attention because it’s about a book about a trans teenage girl, written by a trans author, featuring a trans model on the front of the hardcover!! I mean, that alone is like a holy trifecta of excellence. And the book doesn’t disappoint! Exploring the story of Amanda, a woman designated male at birth, the book shows Amanda’s transition, struggle for acceptance, both self-acceptance, and the acceptance of family and friends, bullying, romance, and other everyday life issues. It’s so emotionally poignant, honest, and well-done in introducing people to parts of the struggle and lives of people who are transgender.

Amanda was an interesting and vibrant main character. Real in her emotional struggles, her relationships, and her interests, Amanda is well-rounded and watching her blossom into self-acceptance was beautiful beyond belief. Amanda’s friends and family were also interesting, as you see how both parents react to Amanda’s identity, as well as how friends who didn’t know, and who were with her through her transition, treat her and act. Russo makes a point in the afterward to mention that Amanda’s life as a transgender woman is very simple and straightforward, as to introduce people to the concepts and aspects of being transgender. While Amanda’s story doesn’t cover every possible struggle unique to being transgender, or other issues that can become a struggle, it is a beautiful and elegantly done story to introduce people who want to know more, as well as hopeful and relatable for those who identity as transgender themselves.

This book was short and at times, a bit simple in writing style, but the character growth and the story progression made this a five star winner for me and an instant favorite. I want to hand this book out everywhere and I certainly hope Russo will write more for us in the future!

I can't claim to have personal relationship with a trans-person. However I do know several and I do have empathy for the struggles and intolerance those people must have to deal with on a daily basis. I was very eager to learn more about a young person's journey to live a life as their true self. I eagerly snapped up "If I Was Your Girl" (oh that gorgeous cover alone). Inside I found a beautiful story as well. And a very readable story. Amanda was born Andrew. A physical boy who always knew he was girl. As a child Andrew dreamed of the day he could wear dresses and be his parent's daughter. Flashback scenes to this time are poignant and heart-wrenching. How could anyone think this is a conscious choice?

It is years later and Amanda has had surgery. And she easily passes as young woman. No one she meets in her new town questions that she is a girl. In fact the boys think she is pretty hot. A lot of that comes from Amanda's newfound happiness in being herself. She makes connections with other teenagers for the first time. She has friends. She even has a boyfriend, Grant. She is finally breaking down some chilly, long-standing walls with her dad. But this book couldn't be a book if there was a conflict. It was not a surprise in any way on what the final conflict is.

So I liked this book a lot. We need books like this. More kids need to know this is normal adn that they will be ok I removed one star because the book makes it seem easy to get surgery and pass for as female. I just don't think those pieces can be as easy as they appear in the book. But I get the author's goal. She wants to show kids that things can work out. And the CAN. And that is a beautiful thing. That is hope.

With so much conflict involving rights for trans and genderfluid people, Meredith Russo's debut resonates deeply. But this isn't a textbook, as Ms. Russo states in her author's note. This is the story of a girl who is trying to accept herself in a time and place where being herself can be dangerous.

Amanda's whole life has been defined by fear. Her father's trying to come to terms with his son's true identity as a girl. She'd been bullied at school, friendless and scared and even attacked by classmates and adults. Living with her mother in Georgia, she relocates to Lambertville, Tennessee, to live with her dad and fly under the radar until she graduates high school. All of these conflicts were written about in a way that immersed me in Amanda's life while being sympathetic yet not overly sentimental. There's a memory involving her diary before she transitioned that had me wiping away angry tears. It was painful and I wanted to come to Amanda's defense so many times.

But that's not all to Amanda's story. She likes video games, comics, and Star Wars. At her new school, she makes friends. She goes to parties. She falls in love for the first time with a boy named Grant who could possibly accept her as she is and it's so sweet, it made me smile so many times. There's a promposal (at their Homecoming) that had me cheering.

There were some liberties taken, as Ms. Russo states in her note, including Amanda being able to easily pass for a girl, the expenses for surgeries, and her own dad's reluctance shifting near the end, which makes the book a little harder to review, but for all intents and purposes, seeing Amanda grow from a girl determined to not stand out to coming into her own was beautifully done. This is one of the most poignant coming of age YA novels I have read.

As some reviewers mentioned, I feel like some of the dialogue was trying too hard to be "Southern," and I noticed one of the bullies in Amanda's high school was the major offender. I don't know if this was supposed to put in him a category or not, but the use of "ain't" and "don't no nothin'" was distracting. I also had issues with the way some scenes ended abruptly. I felt like there could have been more to the secondary characters as well. The ending left loose ends, but was very satisfying.

I hope many people discover this book, read it, talk about it. This story is just as important as any other out there, and it must be heard.

4.5 stars

Amanda Hardy moved to Lambertville, TN sometime after her parent's divorce. Grant Everett sat next to her at lunch asking her number for his friend Parker. From that day on, Amanda and Grant became inseparable.

Meredith Russo writes a honest story about Amanda. If I Was Your Girl is definitely the LGBTQIA novel of 2016. Not only does Russo educate readers, but she also evokes a multitude of emotions. The writing style flows fairly well despite the flashbacks which shed light on the history of Amanda's past without disrupting the present plot line.

Although Amanda has a hard time figuring out who she is, I am glad that she has a supportive group of friends. Layla, Anna and Chloe are unique in their own way and they helped Amanda break through her shell and they didn't force her to do something that she is not comfortable with. They were very open minded and they didn't shun her when they found out that she is trans.

Russo tackles a variety sociodemographic and family dynamics. Grant may seem like the perfect guy but he harbors some secrets too. He hides the fact that he works many hours to help support his family. His family is not well off and he wants to help out as much as possible. Bee has her own share of secrets too but what she did at the end of the book is ridiculous. At first she is a good friend but then she becomes jealous and maddened. What kind of friend back stabs someone like that?

If I Was Your Girl is an important and powerful book that everyone should read. It's a coming-of-age novel that tackles bullying, questioning your identity, making new friends, divorce, moving and finding love.

Amanda Hardy just started school in Lambertville, TN. She's living with her estranged father because staying in Atlanta with her mom is no longer safe. She was beaten up because of who she is. Ever since she was little (and biologically a boy) Amanda has identified herself as a girl. It was her father's inability to deal with it that led to the divorce. Now, he's struggling in very different ways because Amanda has had reassignment surgery.
Fortunately, she is welcomed by a group of girls on her first day at school. They make her feel comfortable and wanted. Then she meets Grant Everett who is not only good looking, but kind and honest. Even so, can she let herself fall for him, not knowing how he'll react when he learns her secret?
Read the book and find out. This is another impossible to put down YA stories. It comes extremely close in quality and emotional impact to my gold standard for books on transgenger teens, Brian Katcher's Almost Perfect. Given the time span since that was written, it makes sense that the ending in this is more positive. This is an excellent book for any and all libraries to add.