Luna

Luna

One of my favorite books. If you're looking for a good book you found one right here.

1 out of 1 people found this review helpful.

Amazing

The story opened ny eyes to a new world that is becoming more common in todays society. And the story is just amazing and the credibility if it too. This story is definitely one to be remembered.

1 out of 1 people found this review helpful.

Luna

This is one of my favorite books. It proves to you that it's okay to be who you are, even if the world doesn't accept you that way. I highly recommend it.

makes u...

this book really makes u think about life and what some people such as luna (liam) must go through. trying to figure outvehy they were born this way and not the other. i found this book amazing my transgender friend amanda (matt) introduced it to me. i recommend this book if ur open to the idea

Differently Good

This book opened my eyes to a whole other world. I loved the way it was written and the touching relationship between Regan and Liam/Luna. I would recommend this book to anyone who likes to read about real life things that go on under the radar. Not only does the book take you to a place you never looked at, it makes you see from the eyes of the bullied ones. Love it so much, that i finished it in a day.

Good read but...

i loved almost everything about the book but the constant dramatic smashes to the face and abrupted ending stopped me from truely loving everything. I dont regret buying and reading this book, infact i have recommended it to friends, i just wish there was a sequel or something to give a little more to the story. 3-4 stars all in all.

My favorite book ever!

I bought this book at Barnes and Nobles long ago and fell in love with the story line.I couldnt put the book down,the story brought to my attention how hard it could be for someone like Luna to live and how hard it can be on their family.

Attention!! read this book!!!!

This book is absolutely amazing

Different Within

Before I started reading Luna, I was unsure of how I would react to the plot. I had never read about transgenders, but I was opened minded. As I read Luna, I started to become a little attached to her because I felt really bad for her. Liam was shy and embarrassed, but Luna was exotic and bright. They were battling inside one body. Luna was winning, thankfully. This book wasn't the best, but it was an interesting story about a transgender trying to find themself.

So Good!

This book was so good, I felt a different range of emotions for each character and I just couldn't put it down. It explores Regan's relationship with her brother/sister to her love life (or lack there of) to even how unconnected she is with her own parents. I found myself dabbing at my eyes from time to time.

Amazing Book!

This book was amazing. I think it can be a great eye opener for a parent that doesnt understand, or just anyone in general that doesnt understand Trans Gender. I loved the book and could not put it down.

Cool

Best and it's fun to read, maybe best in teen faction. However the places are boring.

Luna: A Must Read Novel!

"I love her, she's my brother."
Luna is a fantastic novel that touched my soul. After reading the story of a boy named Liam whose only wish is to have the body of a girl. I was filled with awe, respect and a unique kind of love for trans-gendered people. Luna is told from Regan's perspective, (Liam's sister) the only person that knows who Liam truly is on the inside. Regan shared her heart shattering experiences with Liam, or should I say Luna? Luna is the name Liam chose for the girl he really is.

This book is one of the very few that brought tears to my eyes. I cried for sorrow, for joy, excitement, justice and so much more. It shows the depth, loneliness and depression transsexuals often go through. In a society full of closed minds, unacepting parents and peers, transsexual people are very likely to like a lie! Pretending to be somebody your not, is that living? To me its not. Its no wonder these people live in fear every single day. Even when they want to express themselves to their families, to the world by dressing the way they feel on the inside. A shadow of fear will follow them everywhere they go. A fear of not being accepted, being judged or even being physically and verbally harassed. Bruises will heal but words will leave a scar for life.

This novel also got me thinking, what if I had a boy's body when I know Im a girl! How would I cope with that? How would you? People are always saying, "It's the inside that counts" If this is true, then what makes it so hard to accept somebody that's different from us?

This book also made me realize a huge difference between gays and transsexuals that many people don't understand. Transsexuals are not attracted to their same sex; it only seems that way because we forget that they are stuck in the body of the opposite sex. They don't choose to be trans, just like we don't choose who our parents are or what our hair color is. On the other hand, gays are attracted to the same sex, and some people are even born being gay; others choose to be gay as a lifestyle but gays and trans have something in common; they both deserve respect, just like you and I.

To conclude this, Luna is an intriguing masterpiece about a girl stuck in the body of a boy with a bittersweet ending. Luna leaves you satisfied, but craving for more at the same time. I believe that everybody should read this mind-opening novel.

Luna

Peters, J.A. (2004). Luna. New York: Little, Brown and Company.

0316011274

As an author, Peters has previously explored the experiences of gay and lesbian teens, providing a voice to readers who often feel marginalized. Luna is no different. A finalist for a National Book Award, the novel is told through the perspective of the younger sister of a teenage girl who was born in the body of a boy. Most of Regan's life revolves around protecting Liam/Luna's secret. Her world begins to change when she meets her new lab partner and love interest in chemistry class and when Luna decides to transition and achieve her dream of becoming a woman.

Peters does a wonderful job of showing the very ordinary moments of relationships as well as some of the most difficult moments. Luna is a good first step into a discussion of the transgendered experience and of gender roles. It includes both academic and commonly used vocabulary about gender expectations to open up a dialogue.

The story itself feels very real and brings the reader into Regan and Luna's perspectives. Regan's sarcastic sense of humor and her interactions with her love interest, Chris, save the text from being too much of an emotional struggle for its readers, but does show how challenging it can be to support and keep the secret of a transgendered loved one.

The dreams and the goals of people are central to this story. Luna struggles to achieve her dream, while Regan struggles to learn what her dream is.

A number of other young adult issues are also present at the periphery of the novel. Most notable among these is drug use. It is implied throughout the text that Regan and Luna's mother relies upon the use of pills, while working and avoiding issues she has with her family.
The ending of Luna does not feel conclusive, but leaves open for discussion what happens to its characters.

Activities to do with the book:

Discuss gender roles and expectations, the experience of being transgendered or the loved one of a transgendered person, sexual reassignment surgery, drug use, secrets, motherhood, fatherhood, raves, 'the American dream', family, dreams or goals, first dates, cheating, bullying, etc. The book also lends itself to reflection and journal writing. Students could be assigned to write an epilogue for the novel or the first chapter of a continuation.

Favorite Quotes:

"I knew now what my life was about: Waiting for guys to change their clothes" (p. 157).

"The lab experiment today was called Stoichiometry. Great. I couldn't even pronounce the title" (p. 200).

"This was a calculation I'd need to know later in life, when I began my career as a high school dropout" (p. 200).

"I cried for her.
I cried for me.
I cried for a world that wouldn't let her be" (p. 211).

For more of my reviews, visit sjkessel.blogspot.com

an unforgettable story

i had read Luna a few months ago and i have to say its a work of art. The fact that we were able to feel Liam/Luna's pain and suffering in second person was amazing. You can really feel the strong connection between Regan and Luna. You can understand both Luna and Regan. Luna a person in the wrong body and Regan a girl with a TG as a brother. I admire Julie Peters for creating such excellent character. i can see a few things of myself in Regan being the youngest in the family, living as your sibling's shadow and wanting a life of your own, and as for Liam, the person he is the person he's not and the person he wants to be will forever remain in my mind. Because although i cant compare myself to Liam THANKS to "Luna" i can understand him and respect other like him in the real world. This book questioned my point of view of others in my life for the better.
~P.S i'm only 14 so my review probably aint the best

Reviewed by Jennifer Wardrip, aka "The Genius" for TeensReadToo.com

LUNA is the first book I've ever read that deals specifically with transgender issues. Although you get a feel for what the book is about by reading the back copy--in effect, that Regan's brother, Liam, is a woman trapped in a man's body--you don't get the full spectrum of what this actually means until you reach the end of chapter one.

"Rolling over, I muttered, 'You're such a freakshow.' Her hair splayed across my pillow, tickling my face. 'I know,' she murmured in my ear. 'But you love me, don't you?' Her lips grazed my cheek. I swatted her away. As I heard her slog across the floor toward my desk--where she'd unveiled her makeup caddy in all its glory--a sigh of resignation escaped my lips. Yeah, I loved her. I couldn't help it. She was my brother."

Liam is the type of boy who, even as a small child, wanted to by the Mommy when he and Regan played house. For his ninth birthday, he asked for a Prom Barbie and a bra. Now, as a senior in high school, Liam is consumed with letting out Luna, the name he's taken for his female self. His dad, of course, is adamant that his son will finally play baseball. His mother, lost in a world of uppers and downers, pretends not to notice when her son offers to fix dinner or do the laundry. And Regan, the only one who knows her brother for who he is--a sister named Luna--is losing sleep and a chance for her own life by hiding the secret.

Something has to change, and it finally does when Luna decides to go all the way, to actually become Luna, the woman he knows he is. But what will it mean for his family, especially Regan, who has spent so long loving her brother, protecting his secrets, being a part of his life? It might just be time for Regan to have a childhood of her own, and for Luna to come out of the darkness, out of the shadow of the moon, and into the light.

LUNA is an emotional, heartfelt read that deftly deals with the issue of transgenderism in a way that makes it believable and important. I had never really thought of what it must be like for someone who believes they were born with the wrong body, but after reading LUNA, my heart and support goes out to anyone who has ever suffered with this issue. This is a book not to be missed.

Luna=AMAZING

Luna is an amazing novel and a very easy read. It is one of those books you just do not want to put down. I would not recommend this novel for audiences younger than a high school student because I think the book was written for a mature audience. I enjoyed reading Luna because it was about a topic that is very rarely written or talked about, transgender. Before reading this novel, I knew basically nothing about transgender. I think lots of people are uneducated about it. Lots of people confuse transgender with homosexuality, which is a completely different thing. Transgender people are trapped in the wrong body, whereas, homosexuals are happy with the gender they were born with, but they just happen to be attracted to the same sex. I like how Luna is written from the point of view of Regan, the sister of a transgender boy. I like how the novel showed not only the struggles of Liam/Luna, the transgender boy, but also of the struggles that Regan went through being the only one Liam/Luna could go to when he/she needed help. Regan being there for Liam/Luna made Luna feel like she was not alone in this world. Regan saved Luna many times from doing some drastic things, like committing suicide. One struggle that Regan deals with is finding her own identity. She is always concerned about Liam/Luna and his problems, so she does not have a life of her own. Everything she does revolves around Liam/Luna and his/her plans. By the end of the novel, Regan realizes that she needs to start living her own life. I think this book is very inspirational for other transgender people. I feel like it might help them to have the courage to finally become the person they truly are, or at least tell another person about their struggles, so they do not have to go through it alone.

Excellent Novel.

the novel was well written and from his sister's pount of view. awesome novel and the ending was great. i like how the author included a boy in the novel to spice things up.

A gem of a book

Luna written by Julie Ann Peters is a book with a subject that most teen have never read about, transgender. The book focuses around Regan a fifteen year old girl who has a lot on her plate, she has a mean chemistry teacher who holds her up to her genus brother, trying not to act stupid around her oh so cute chemistry partner, her popping pills mom, and her macho man dad. But on top of all this her brother wakes her up almost every night to transform into Luna 'his chosen name' by putting on wigs and women¿s clothing from thrift stores. Since his mother is never home to notice and his dad is always pushing him to be more of a man Luna remains secret only to Regan and Liam. Regan does her best to be supportive even putting her own life on hold to take care of Liam/ Luna. But now Luna is growing restless and is ready to break out. Everyday it becomes harder and harder to keep Luna a secret from the world. And the outing of this secret is enough to wreck both of their lives. Luna is a book best saved for 13-16 year old girls since the subject matter is a little much or too hard to comprehend. The story is told in many flashbacks that give us insights to how Liam was always trying to be a girl, while also telling how their family fell apart. In my opinion is a engrossing read that is new and exciting, many times you take a pause a think about the characters and the decisions they made. The book preaches understanding along with acceptance that many readers will be able to relate to. That is why I give it five out of five stars.

wishing I had her courage

I have longed to be Angela since I first dressed up with my step-sister Brenda. But I continue to dress in the dark and in secret as Luna does, in fear of what society says. I wish I could be as strong as our heorine in this sensitive and nurturing story is.