Mary's Review: Parrotfish by Ellen Wittlinger

Grady is an average guy: he helps his dad set up Christmas decorations, gets by in school, has a crush on a girl at school. The only catch is that Grady has been trapped in a girl's body since birth. Its actually very refreshing to see a transgendered story from the boy's side for once, and Ms. Wittlinger has handled things exquisitely. Grady's habit of playing more "honest" (read: blunt) versions of conversations in his mind keeps the tone from moving into the cliched realms of teen drama. The story itself feels like a slice of life: there were incidents prior that the reader was not privy to, and there shall be similar moments after. Finally, Parrotfish strives toward an honest tone. Life is not always perfect: even when old friends put aside their differences and reconcile, things are not always easy, and the nice guy doesn't always get the girl in the end. It's more than an acceptance story, less than an opus. It's just life.
Final Verdict: 4Q, 3P