George
by Alex Gino
George is a fourth grader. George's best friend is Kelly. George's older brother is Stuart. George's teacher is currently reading Charlotte's Web and putting on a corresponding after school production. George has natural stage presence and voice projection, but George doesn't want to try out for Wilbur like all the boys are, she wants to be Charlotte. Although she uses the boys bathroom, and has "something" between her legs, she longs to be friends with the girls from the secret magazines she has collected over time. She knows she is a girl in the same way she knows Rick and Jeff are the two meanest boys in the fourth grade.
Although she longs to be the star, although she has the talent, she is responded to with laughter... "Is this a joke?" As the jeers continue, George begins to find her voice in confiding with her best friend, Kelly. After a period of silence, Kelly embraces her best friend as she is. George continues to grow in confidence, telling her mother, telling her brother, and standing up to the meanies with a silly prank. Even though she refused to be in the play as anything less than the lead, Kelly, cast as Charlotte herself, has an idea that may help everyone see the girl George really is inside.
This book was such a quick read. As a teacher, I found myself realizing many gender roles I play to in the classroom. Something as simple as girl and boy lines or girls and boys hall passes left the main character in such distress. The mother, without realizing it, tries to comfort her child using words such as a"son" or "boy" or "growing into a man," which leaves George feeling completely misunderstood. Language plays such a vital role in this story, and just referring to George as "she" in the novel took a few chapters to fully comprehend. I would recommend this book to any third through eighth grade teachers as an awareness to the LGBTQ presence that may or may not be in our classrooms.
This sounds like a good read. I agree that I sometimes put labels in my classroom and identify and/or separate boys and girls. I have been trying very hard to notice when I do those things and I think by making myself more aware and knowledgeable about the topic of gender identity I am placing more importance on not doing that anymore. I need to check this book out!
ReplyDelete-Ayisha
This is the book I read too. I loved hearing her perspective and all George's internal dialogue. What a powerful book for students who might also feel the same way. Its a must read! Thanks for the recommendation!
ReplyDeleteMeryl
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