The fourth volume in this early reader series once again stars science-loving Freddy von Frankenstein, monster big brother, F.M., and were-cat sister, Riya, who live on a supernatural mountain in Nepal. It conveys gentle social-emotional lessons about being oneself, inclusion, and more—and brings a clearly trans character into the mix.
In this installment, Freddy and Riya are finally going to school with other kids—but while Riya loves it, Freddy thinks the other kids don’t appreciate how smart he is, and he misses spending time with F.M. When the magical, trickster Monkey King sets his eyes on the Frankenstein house for his new palace, however, it’s up to the three siblings and friend Binsa to rescue their parents and take back their home. Freddy must learn that science smarts won’t solve everything and that sometimes, he needs to work with others to fix problems.
In a secondary plotline, F.M. continues to be understandably scared of humans, since some humans previously ran the family out of town. He makes a new friend in Binsa, however, whom the siblings first met in Monster and Me 3: The Unicorn’s Spell. Binsa tries to reassure him that the other kids “will like you for you,” but F.M. is skeptical. Binsa says that she, too, was worried other kids “wouldn’t like the real me when I told them who I really am,” and explains, “When I first started at school, they all knew me as a boy. But I told them that I am actually a girl and that my new name is Binsa. I am transgender.”
F.M. wonders if she changed like Riya changes from human to tiger, but Binsa assures him she’s not magical; she just always knew she was a girl, though others had thought she was a boy. She tells F.M. that she’s much happier now that she can be herself and have friends who like her for who she is (although she notes that some kids don’t). F.M. ponders her advice and decides to try introducing himself to Freddy’s class.
I’ve dwelt on these scenes in this review because this database is all about looking at LGBTQ inclusion, but they really only cover about four pages out of 90. Monster and Me 4 doesn’t dwell on Binsa’s trans identity, but neither does it ignore it when it feels relevant for the character. I love that the book shows us a trans kid drawing on the strength of her experience as a trans person in order to offer advice to someone of a different identity, rather than the trans kid being the one who needs help. This approach is similar to that used by Kyle Lukoff in his award-winning When Aidan Became a Brother, where Aidan draws on his trans experience as he prepares to help his baby brother. I don’t want to draw too many parallels between the books, because their stories are really very different, but both notably portray trans identities not as sources of difficulty, but as ones of strength. The result is empowering and needed. Binsa isn’t there just to provide insight from her trans experience, either; she’s clever and resourceful in other ways as well.
The rest of the book contains plenty of action and excitement as the kids work to save the day, making this a fun tale for readers stepping up from picture books.
