Luna

by Julie Anne Peters

Overview

A groundbreaking novel about a transgender teen, selected as a National Book Award Finalist!

Regan's brother Liam can't stand the person he is during the day. Like the moon from whom Liam has chosen his female name, his true self, Luna, only reveals herself at night. In the secrecy of his basement bedroom Liam transforms himself into the beautiful girl he longs to be, with help from his sister's clothes and makeup. Now, everything is about to change: Luna is preparing to emerge from her cocoon. But are Liam's family and friends ready to elcome Luna into their lives?

Compelling and provocative, this is an unforgettable novel about a transgender teen's struggle for self-identity and acceptance.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780316011273
Publisher:	Little, Brown Books for Young Readers
Publication date:	02/01/2006
Edition description:	Reprint
Pages:	256
Sales rank:	127,526
Product dimensions:	5.40(w) x 8.20(h) x 0.70(d)
Lexile:	500L (what's this?)
Age Range:	14 - 17 Years

About the Author

Julie Anne Peters is the critically acclaimed author of Define "Normal," Keeping You a Secret, Pretend You Love Me, Between Mom and Jo, She Loves You, She Loves You Not..., It's Our Prom (So Deal With It), and Luna, a National Book Award finalist. She lives with her partner, Sherri Leggett, in Lakewood, Colorado.

Read an Excerpt

Luna

---

By Julie Anne Peters

Little, Brown Childrens

Copyright © 2004 Julie Anne Peters
All right reserved.
ISBN: 0-316-73369-5

---

Chapter One

It was the feel of her presence in my room that woke me - again. I rolled over in bed and squinted at the clock on my nightstand. "What time is it?" My voice slurred. The blurry numbers came into focus. Two thirty-three. "Two thirty-three? Don't you ever sleep?"

She didn't respond.

I scooted my pillow against the headboard to sit up, see what she was doing. "What is that?" I asked.

"Like it?" She shimmied in front of the mirror. The layered fringe on the dress she was wearing swayed in waves. "It's an old flapper dress I found at Goodwill," she said. In her stockinged feet, she performed a little Charleston for me. "It's vintage. Totally retro. Don't you think? I'm wearing this baby to prom."

I snorted. Her eyes met mine in the mirror and sobered me fast. She couldn't be serious.

Examining the length of herself, she hooked her long hair over her ears and wiggled her hips again. She'd chosen the blonde wig tonight. It wasn't her favorite, since she thought it made her look cheap. Like a slut. It did go well with the red dress, though. She caught me looking at her and smiled. "I'm going to run for prom queen, too."

I burst into laughter, then clapped a hand over my mouth to smother the sound. Wouldn't want to wake the parental units upstairs.

She wasn'tlaughing.

She was joking. Wasn't she? "Lia -"

"Luna," she said. "I've taken the name Luna." Her eyes fixed on mine. To gauge my reaction, I guess. Or seek my approval. What did it matter what I thought?

"Why change?" I yawned. "You've always been -"

"Lia's too close. Lia Marie. It's just too close." She crossed my bedroom, blazing a trail through the layer of clothes and other crap on my floor. As she passed under the window, she stopped and pivoted. The moon cast an eerie glow through my basement window. A spotlight. A spray of luminescent beams.

"Luna," she repeated softly, more to herself than me. "Appropriate, wouldn't you say? A girl who can only be seen by moonlight?"

Exhaustion overwhelmed me suddenly. Or my weariness of it all. "Go to bed, Luna." I snuggled down into my comforter and punched my pillow, willing myself back to sleep. It'd take me hours to drift off again, especially if she stayed to do her makeup. And she would.

I studied her through a slit eye. Something was different. A change had come over her. Nothing physical. More a shift in her cosmos - or maybe a crack.

"I can see your bra straps," I told her. "You need to buy a strapless."

"Really?" She twisted her head to peer over her shoulder. "Do you have one?"

"Get real. Even if I did, you're not wearing my underwear."

"It wouldn't fit anyway. I'm at least a C cup."

I blew out a puff of air. "You wish." 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.

(Continues...)

---

Excerpted from Luna by Julie Anne Peters Copyright © 2004 by Julie Anne Peters. Excerpted by permission.
All rights reserved. No part of this excerpt may be reproduced or reprinted without permission in writing from the publisher.
Excerpts are provided by Dial-A-Book Inc. solely for the personal use of visitors to this web site.

---

Editorial Reviews

Awards for Luna
National Book Award Finalist
An ALA Best Book for Young Adults
A Stonewall Honor Book
A Lambda Literary Award Finalist
A Book Sense Summer Reading Book for Teens

Praise for Luna
*"Groundbreaking, finely tuned realism about a transgender teen. . . .Peters writes her characters with care and complexity."-Kirkus Reviews, starred review

"A thoughtful novel about a brilliant, determined, transgender teenager. . . Liam/Luna is an affecting character."-The New York Times

"This novel breaks new ground in YA literature with a sensitive and poignant portrayal of a young man's determination to live his true identity and his family's struggle to accept Luna for who she really is." - School Library Journal

From the Publisher