Language: G (0 swears, 0 ‘f’); Mature Content: PG (main character is nonbinary or a transgender boy, but is not out to anyone); Violence: G
BUYING ADVISORY: EL, MS - ADVISABLE
AUDIENCE APPEAL: AVERAGE
11yo Simon (who has not told anyone that in his head he refers to himself as Simon and uses he/him pronouns) is headed with his sisters to Nanleen’s house for a week while his parents stay behind and “talk”. Simon is worried about Nanleen because she has started to forget things and he thinks the house may be haunted. As he investigates what he thinks is a ghost, he learns about his great-aunt Brie, who no one in the family talks about - for reasons that may be similar to what Simon himself is going through.
I like that Thompson took a risk to fold a story about gender identity into a book that is more about past family drama. It is a nice mix for an issues book. SPOILER ALERT: this is not a ghost story - the haunting is all the haunts of unresolved family problems both past and present. I think that will disappoint some kids who pick it up for the cover and the title. Simon is white.
Cindy Mitchell, Library Teacher, MLS
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