Genre: Contemporary
LGBTQ+ Category: Trans MTF
Reviewer: Linda, Paranormal Romance Guild
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About The Book
Suddenly homeless, young dancer Shelly Sheridan, heartbroken at Christmas, is taken in by an uncle Shelly has never met and didn’t know existed. The burly ex-Marine uncle and his husband welcome Shelly with a shower of love and acceptance. Their friend Estrella, a retired ballet star, is enraptured by Shelly’s dancing.
Shelly makes a new friend the first day of school in this strange place but isn’t happy, feeling out of place and very different from the other boys. The new friend eventually suggests something Shelly didn’t even know was possible. Could Shelly be transgender?
When Shelly embraces this new idea, problems immediately arise. His former nanny doesn’t approve, and the trustee of his mother’s estate fights Shelly’s newly formed decisions.
With his new family’s unconditional love, Shelly hopes all will be well. It’s Christmas once again, and it will be a merry one if Shelly’s problems go away, and Christmas works its magic.
The Review
Sheldon (Shelly) Sheridan is a boy who has never felt right about himself, and has always dreamed of being a ballerina, dancing on his toes. While watching The Nutcracker ballet on stage, he is forced to leave early, only to discover his mother has died in a car accident. Her lawyer, a cold, harsh man, informs Shelly that he is the trustee of Shelly’s mother’s estate. He will also pick which schools Shelly attends. In addition, Shelly will be living with his uncle in Las Vegas.
Shelly didn’t know he had an uncle, and now his life is being uprooted from everything he has ever known. His nanny Greta, whom he loves, will not be accompanying him, and the pain of losing his mother and his new living conditions is more than this poor twelve-year-old can handle. He meets his uncle, who calls himself Sarge and his husband Will, as well as their cook Estella, a retired ballerina from Mexico. Shelly has always leaned on dance whenever he got upset, but since his mother’s death, he insists he is giving it up.
There is a studio in the house, and despite his determination not to dance, he can’t resist. It doesn’t take long before he feels at home and learns to love his new dads and his new grandmother. There is so much love in the house, but Shelly doesn’t know how to approach the fact that he likes girls’ things not boys’. But his new family doesn’t balk when he tells them wants a canopy bed and pink and lavender accessories.
It takes a new friend he meets at the all-boys school his mother’s attorney picked out for him to bring up the question of whether he might be transgender. He never felt right in his body, but couldn’t figure out why.
This is a story about finding out who you are, and not letting others force you to be what you are not. Although sad at times, as Shelly has to deal with name calling and bullying, Shelly has family support. This is a book that every teen should read – it would give them a much better understanding of what it’s like to live by what others expect, rather than living your true self.
5 stars.
The Reviewer
I am an avid reader the mother of 3 sons and grandmother to seven grandchildren. Since retiring I have been doing more reading while volunteering as a CASA worker. CASA is an organization that works with the family court system to ensure that children are in the best living situation. There are way too many children that get overlooked in the foster care system and I visit homes and make visits to the parents. I was born and raised in New York and my husband of 50 years and I live in Upstate New York.
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