Pete lives in a “castle” on a hill with mom and dad. Pete loves wearing all kinds of clothes (which dad helps Pete choose), including pink shorts, blue rain boots, and flowery pants. The imaginative Pete loves playing with both the boys and the girls, but also reading, writing, and playing alone.
“Some people are confused by the way I am,” says Pete. They ask if Pete is a boy or a girl; the illustrations show them shaking fingers and looking angry. It’s notable that most, if not all, of those doing so are adults; Pete also has “quite a few friends,” though, none of whom seem to be fazed by Pete’s gender.
Pete’s parents tell the detractors that Pete is just Pete—“Princess Pete”—Pete interjects. “I may have been born a boy,” Pete says, but doesn’t always feel like one, sometimes feeling like a girl and sometimes in between. “Sometimes I feel a bit like you,” Pete tells readers. “But mostly, I just feel like me.”
A final page shows Pete looking happily into the mirror, telling readers that “Sometimes I’m a prince, but today, I’m a princess!” End papers show Pete on a page striped in the pink, white, and blue colors of the transgender flag.
This is an affirming first-person introduction to a transgender, nonbinary child, although neither term is used. I have two cautions, though: First, if young readers are learning about trans and/or nonbinary identities for the first time, they might assume from the trans flags used in the book that being transgender is always equivalent to being nonbinary, which isn’t true; adults should be prepared to clarify if needed. Next, many trans people don’t use the phrasing “born a …” to refer to how they were assigned at birth, since they feel they were always the gender that they identify with. Since Pete does sometimes feel like a boy, the phrasing is perhaps less of an issue for Pete (we can assume), but adults should keep this in mind when discussing trans identities in general.
The slice-of-life book has a cheery vibe and helpful modeling of self-awareness and parental love and support. There’s a pedagogical point, but for young readers seeking to better understand themselves or their peers, it introduces the topic of nonbinary identities in a relatable way, and is therefore a recommended title.
Pete has light tan skin and brown hair; their dad has pale skin and brown hair, and their mom has tan skin and dark hair.
