Luna: a novel - Peters, Julie Anne
Summary: Fifteen-year-old Regan's life, which has always revolved around keeping her older brother Liam's transsexuality a secret, changes when Liam decides to start the process of "transitioning" by first telling his family and friends that he is a girl who was born in a boy's body.
Voice of Youth Advocates Reviews
Regan has a lot on her plate. She is under pressure at school and being compared to her brother, the computer genius. She is madly in love with her chemistry lab partner, who is out of her league. Her parents do not seem to like each other very much. And she has to deal with the fact that her brother Liam is actually a girl named Luna. Liam is transgendered, a female born in a male body. He has known since he was little but always hid it from the world. Now that he is a senior in high school, he is ready to make a transformation, and he depends on Regan's support. Luna borrows Regan's makeup and clothes, and Regan helps out with cover stories to their parents and friends at school. As the school year goes on, Liam becomes more aggressive in wanting to be Luna full-time, resulting in much fear and confusion for Regan. Although the book is about Liam's struggle with being transgendered, it is really Regan's story. If one removed that entire theme, there would still be a great novel about teenage life, showing the real strength of the writing and the characters. Peters handles the issue with grace, sympathy, and a huge dose of reality. The book does not scream, "Controversial topic!" Instead it brings up a sensitive issue and shows it in such a realistic light that the reader will come away having learned something, and one might hope, with a sympathetic attitude toward people dealing with gender issues.-Rebecca Vnuk 4Q 3P S Copyright 2004 Voya Reviews.
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