Today is the first day of the trans rights readathon!
I decided to go through some of the books I've read in the past few years and highlight some with trans main characters or authors. I've summarized them all with one short sentence, but a few have appeared in other posts with more in-depth reviews:
These Burning Stars by Bethany Jacobs
The 57 Bus by Dashka Slater
Don't Let the Forest In by CG Drews
A Psalm for the Wild-Built by Becky Chambers
Are you joining the readathon? If so let me know what you're reading! You can see what I'm working on in my TRR2026 masterpost 🪲
So i already read this chapter but will read it again bc it fucks. Go read Chum by @reachartwork if you like baby superheroes with weird powers. Mute the tag #chum liveblog if you arent interested! I might also move this to my main @bugbeee if people prefer that
1) the writing style draws me in immediately since the way the narrator (Sam) thinks and talks is so very reminiscent of my own adhd riddled brain. The way she notices one thing before immediately moving to the next detail is just. Chefs kiss
2) the tapa tapa tapa does something to my hindbrain. Like literary asmr.
3) god Sam's awkwardness and hesitance about her accident combined with her bluntness is so fucking good
4) SHARK TEETH SHARK TEETH SHARK TEETH
5) SHARK TEETH WITH DRAWBACKS HOT DAMN
6) “I didn’t get any gills though, which would’ve been cool. I can’t breathe underwater. But I think I can swallow salt water, but that’s kind of a sh- kind of a poopy superpower so you don’t need to write that one down. Don’t write that one down, please?” I would die for you Sam
7) god the author is so good at writing the livewire nervousness that accompanies the MC. Like the little details of bouncing knees and flexing hands that she grabs to stop, the tapping and moving- i love you so much for this
8) her mom taught her the word austere :)
9) ohhh she's got those bruce the shark powers (sniffing blood)
10) god her asking if the officer needs her friends contact numbers like the fbi shes just a KID
11) ohoho JLUMA??? desperate to know the acronym meaning for that. Its something shes applied for and its a license so hmmm [thinky face]
12) the way she gets annoyed over her parents gushing over her its so teenager i love her. Also she did so good at her bat mitzvah :)
13) "Once I get my license, does that mean I can go out and start biting people? Not that I plan to do that, I’m just wondering.” Yeah does she know i would die for her???
14) sam says acab fuck yeah
15) Officer Gold shrugs his shoulders and opens the front door, clearly also trying to escape the situation like I am. “Well, who knows. A supe just got elected to City Council. Maybe you’ll be the first superhuman senator if you stay in school and focus on your studies?” Oh that is a fucking gorgeous piece of foreshadowing/world building. Frothing at the mouth rn
16) THE CATEGORIES time to toss the worm categories out of my brain
17) breakdown of her powers a la government dossier! God its fascinating to see how its classified and seen in this world
18) AND WE HAVE AN ACRONYM MEANING 'Juvenile License to Utilize Metahuman Abilities' holy shit theres so much unsaid in that. When did it come about, how, whats its scope (which was briefly touched upon) etc. i cannot WAIT
19) bad dream/flashback? Its written so well and sams commentary of it feels real. "The situation is fucked beyond repair. I think I’m allowed to say that now."
20) oh my fucking god. "I hope I don’t die right now, because thinking about my parents being sad at my funeral makes me sad, but also, I hope I do die, because if I have to live one more second with this kind of pain I’m going to kill myself, myself." Author. Author. Who gave you the RIGHT to hit me like that
21) her realisation about why shes in so much pain, seeing her grandpa screaming through the water, the fishing metaphors- aughhhhhhhh
22) god i love the continued mention of words her mom has taught her its just. So fucking real of her
Conclusion: holy fucking shit what an absolute BANGER of a first chapter. I am hooked. I am printing this out and eating it. Thank you author for writing this, I will read more tomorrow
This book was written by a good friend of mine!! I had to wait a couple of weeks past its release for it to be imported to the country where I live but it finally arrived this week!
I was lucky enough to read an early manuscript a couple of years ago, and now I’m so excited to read it in its final form! This is a really powerful story about a young queer girl who is learning to overcome some serious trauma and accept herself, with the help of a wonderful cast of characters on her roller derby team! I may be slightly biased but I think Margot is an extremely talented writer, and I highly recommend picking up her debut novel!
I've heard it's ace week! As an Aspec reader, I always have an eye out for books with good Aspec representation- sometimes I'll pick up a book specifically because I've heard it has ace characters, or sometimes I'm pleasantly surprised to see representation where I'm not expecting it! Here are a handful of books I've read in the past few years that I would recommend 🪲
Amanda DeWitt is one of my absolute favorite ace authors! I really love her direct and charming writing style, and I think both main characters of these books are super fun and relatable:
Aces Wild: several Aspec main/side characters ★★★★☆
Wren Martin Ruins it All: Ace MC ★★★★★
These two are interestingly similar horror/fantasy YAs- the horror is fairly gory/body-horror-ish, so look up trigger warnings if you're worried about that!
Don't Let the Forest In: Aspec MC ★★★★☆
Sawkill Girls: One ace MC ★★★☆☆
Here are two shorter options, one sci-fi and the other fantasy.
To Be Taught, If Fortunate: Ace side character ★★★★★
Every Heart a Doorway: Ace MC ★★★☆☆
These are just two of my absolute favorite books- the first because I'm a former band kid, and the second because it's simply a delectable romance (and also has really good mental health rep!)
It Sounds Like This: Ace side character (romantic interest) ★★★★★
