I'm Not a Girl: A Transgender Story

by Maddox Lyons, Jessica Verdi, Dana Simpson (Illustrator)

Overview

Based on a true transgender identity journey, the picture book I'm Not a Girl is an empowering story from writers Maddox Lyons and Jessica Verdi about a boy who is determined to be himself, illustrated by Dana Simpson.

Nobody seems to understand that Hannah is not a girl.

His parents ask why he won't wear the cute outfits they pick out. His friend thinks he must be a tomboy. His teacher insists he should be proud to be a girl.

But a birthday wish, a new word, and a stroke of courage might be just what Hannah needs to finally show the world who he really is.

A 2021 Rainbow Book List Recommended Reading Selection

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780374310684
Publisher:	Roaring Brook Press
Publication date:	08/04/2020
Pages:	40
Product dimensions:	9.20(w) x 9.30(h) x 0.50(d)
Age Range:	3 - 6 Years

About the Author

Maddox Lyons is a transgender boy who lives in California with his parents, sister, two dogs, and two pet rats. He does advocacy and outreach with various LGBTQ+ organizations. Maddox loves drawing and writing, acting, figure skating, and getting lost in a good book.

Jessica Verdi is the author of several books for children and young adults—including And She Was, What You Left Behind, The Summer I Wasn’t Me, and My Life After Now. I'm Not a Girl is her debut picture book. Jess lives in New York with her family and loves traveling, seltzer, hot sauce, TV, theatre, vegetarian soup, leggings, flip-flops, and all animals.

Dana Simpson, a native of Gig Harbor, Washington, first caught the eyes of devoted comics readers with the internet strip Ozy and Millie. She then developed Phoebe and Her Unicorn, which is now syndicated in over 200 newspapers worldwide and has generated a robust publishing program.

Simpson’s books have appeared on the New York Times bestseller list, and won the Washington State Book Award and the Pacific Northwest Book Award. She lives with her husband and her cat in Santa Barbara, California.

Editorial Reviews

"An important book that can serve as a conversation starter with gender-expansive children and as a tool for cis children to build empathy." —Booklist, starred review

"Lyons, a 12-year-old trans boy, shares his story in clear, relatable language, sensitively assisted by Verdi and capably supported by Simpson’s simple, emotive illustrations: throughout, the protagonist’s green eyes express frustration, anxiety, and, finally, happiness." —Publishers Weekly

“A lot of work went into this book and it shows.” —Betsy Bird, "2020 Books with a Message"

From the Publisher

2020-03-15
A young transgender boy finds the words to come out to his parents and begin his transition.

At the beginning of the story, the narrator, a white trans boy, knows only that he is “not a girl.” Something is wrong, but he can’t quite name it. Over the course of the book, he comes to be able to say “I am a boy.” At the public pool, he meets new friends, black siblings, and they teach him the word “transgender,” arming him to come out to his parents. The story ends with the most touching of the largely uninspiring illustrations, as the boy smiles at his new haircut in the barbershop mirror. This straightforward coming-out story may be useful as an issue teaching tool, but it doesn’t have the spark that makes a picture book special. It pales when held up to Kyle Lukoff and Kaylani Juanita’s When Aidan Became a Brother (2019), the only real competition in the category of picture books about transgender boys, lacking both the heart and the comfortable trans competency. Verdi and Lyons are careful to neither disparage girls nor fall into the common trap of gender stereotyping trans children, and the first-person narration at first seems like a clever way to obscure the boy’s birth name—but unfortunately, the dreaded name still weasels its way into the didactic text.

A springboard (but not much more) for talking to kids about being transgender. (authors’ notes, illustrator’s note, famous transgender people, resources) (Picture book. 4-7)

Kirkus Reviews