Maia Kobabe, author/illustrator of the award-winning (and much banned) young adult book Gender Queer, here teams up with debut author/illustrator Swati “Lucky” Srikumar for a middle grade graphic novel starring an Indian-American nonbinary tween.
Saachi is starting seventh grade and realizing how much things are changing. Everyone else seems involved with crushes and dating, including best friend Lyla. Puberty means Saachi’s body is changing, too, and a first period arrives. “Bodies are the worst. I wish I didn’t have a body,” Saachi complains.
Saachi dives more into writing, both as an escape from the real world and as a way to process feelings, and even submits pieces to a literary magazine. And Saachi’s parents are supportive, if often embarrassing; Amma even shared a book about puberty from the library. It is from this book, in fact, that Saachi first learns about nonbinary identities, and starts to wonder if that identity explains what they’ve been feeling.
The common middle-grade beats of shifting social dynamics and puberty are given originality by Saachi’s distinct personality—they are often grumpy and introspective, but are also a natural storyteller, and their writing forms part of the otherwise dialog-driven narrative. The family’s Tamil and Hindu heritage also offers a rarely seen perspective in U.S. LGBTQ-inclusive middle-grade literature. I particularly appreciate that the authors show the parents’ allyship with LGBTQ people even before Saachi comes out—not all stories of LGBTQ youth have to be about family rejection and bias, and positive models can be a very good thing. The creators also notably show how the family’s religious beliefs support their queer child; the parents are unfazed when Saachi finally comes out as nonbinary, and their father even reminds them of the “cycles and transformations” among the Hindu gods. (While religion is not for everyone, religion and LGBTQ identities don’t necessarily have to be at odds.) A secondary thread shows the evolving, strengthening relationship between Saachi and younger sister Samaira.
Blending originality with relatability, an engaging protagonist, and some useful modeling for nonbinary youth and their friends and families, this is a highly recommended tale.
