In this graphic novel about gender and identity, Ash’s mother left three years ago for reasons unknown, leaving her husband and child with a shed full of memorabilia about Koretris, an all-girls’ fantasy world she created when she was younger. Ash, who initially identifies as a boy but likes nail polish and thinks about wearing a dress, has never felt that he fits in—until joining the Pride Club at Marsha P. Johnson Middle School.
Ash quickly develops a crush on one of the other members, even while wondering whether he’s more than just an ally. He invites the club over to his house one day, where his mother’s books and pictures somehow transport Ash and Pride Club members Eleanor, Chloe, and Junebug to Koretris. But if Koretris is just for women and girls, why is Ash there? As Ash explores his/her gender, a threat to the world emerges that is pointedly allegorical, but that may resonate with what some trans girls are feeling about their relationship to masculinity and its expectations.
Author Lilah Sturges (Lumberjanes) poignantly captures Ash’s initial feelings of loneliness and their gradual self-exploration, while also noting in a preface that this is not intended to be indicative of all trans people’s experiences. Secondary characters are less well-developed, and Chloe, the one Black character, verges on being a caricature of an angry, heavy, Black woman/girl. Ash’s journey to self-realization is thoughtfully depicted, however, with their father’s support being an important touch at the end—and it’s fun to see an adventure story built around the members of a school LGBTQ group.
Backmatter includes a discussion of gender and sexual identity.
