Representation: Side Asian character
Trigger warnings: Anxiety, bullying

4/10, at the time I read this it was a new arrival at one of the libraries I go to and considering that this is a debut author and this also had a high rating I went in with lofty expectations however this book subverted them and I couldn't comprehend how frustrating it was to read this since I found so many issues so where do I even begin? For starters, it was very preachy (this book mentions every single issue under the sun) and it was very slow-paced. The main character wasn't someone I could root for, because once he was class president, he only listened to himself and didn't realise it, really? Why is he so narcissistic, like some characters said? At least the main character was complex enough, and at least he learns from his mistakes eventually, but what was that ending? He just becomes class president and that's it? Go read any other book other than this one.
P.S. "Mindbogglingly good?" More like "Mind-numbingly boring!" ( )

I'm skipping plot details other than to say the story is fresh and pulled me in quickly. As a 73 year old cisgender male who enjoys reading young adult fiction, this left me thinking of it as a giant 'nudge'. Granted, I grew up knowing a few gay kids and later discovered my dad was gay or bisexual, but the way life is today, the gender spectrum is way broader than 95% of the population can imagine. Reading this book not only entertained me, it expanded my understanding of the breadth and richness of that spectrum better than any book I've read to date. In a perfect world, I'd mandate a copy be part of every high school library collection. ( )