The Art of Being Normal by Lisa Williamson (review)

In this British import, David is a biological male who has known she wanted to be a girl for years but has only told her two best friends. Leo is passing as a boy successfully, taking hormones and representing as Leo so well that David doesn’t notice, nor does a girl whom Leo starts dating. It all falls apart when the girl discovers Leo’s secret, and though she isn’t vengeful, others are, and soon both David and Leo are relying on their tutor relationship that has turned into a friendship for support and companionship. There are interesting gender challenges throughout in this novel, as when Leo judges David for not having a knack with makeup yet (on an outing, David dresses as Kate, the person he has always wanted to be) or when David makes assumptions about Leo as a boy before knowing anything about him. The author gracefully folds in a sturdy amount of practical information (about how hormones change a teen body, for example) without ever taking away from David and Leo, two teens who would really like to just be, without identifying, explaining, or defending themselves. The conclusion is hopeful but not perfect, about right for two kids who are brave but who nonetheless exist in a flawed world.