Writing a funny book is hard. Writing a convincing takedown of one of America’s most popular prejudices is harder still. Writing a funny novel in which complex, imperfect characters make a compelling case for one of our culture’s most maligned groups — that takes smarts and heart. Fortunately for her readers, St. James is in full possession of both.
Delightful and sharply told ... Does not seek to be a comprehensive study of transness (no one novel should have to fulfill that purpose.) Rather, it’s a sensitive but full-hearted portrayal of a community just trying to live freely and honestly without being waylaid by opportunistic hijacking, faux fear, or garden variety hate.
The novel doesn’t feel prescriptive, because St. James explores momentous personal decisions dramatically rather than dogmatically, making clear through a variety of perspectives that there are no obvious choices—only trade-offs ... St. James demolishes the simplistic closet concept, revealing lives that are marked by many transitions, and that pass through any number of gradations within the continuum of showing up, hiding, slipping under the radar, or openly demanding respect.
St. James’ plot moves like a Shakespeare comedy—some contrivances, yes, but all in the service of portraying the prismatic variations of the characters here, both cis and trans, who alternately fail themselves and each other, and work to rescue them back again. Pristinely characterized, this debut novel is by turns funny and heartrending.
