Felix Ever After

\”\’ . \’ . . \’ . \’ . , \’ . . .\” Guys, this book was awesome! My feelings are jumbled up inside so I have to write this kinda of like a list. First of all, it\’s really well-written with an authentic voice –we really get inside Felix\’s head and feel his hurt, his confusion, and his exploration of his gender identity and his sense of self. Secondly, the characters were all fully developed even though we know, as readers, that they are still developing and growing -does that make sense? I really enjoyed the cast of characters at St Catherine\’s (Felix\’s school) and I\’m sucker for books set in NYC (my hometown). Third, the intersectionality of race, gender identity, and class was deftly handled and so on-point. I also love the dynamic between Felix and his father. I thought the father\’s feelings were valid and so were Felix\’s –both were very real. I also liked how the book showed bias and discrimination within the LGBTQIA community which I thought was important. Lastly, I love the dedication and the author\’s note at the end. We really need more authors like Kacen Callender to represent real stories like this. This is a gem of a book and everyone should read it.

This is such an important story. The story of a transgender black teen struggling with his identity and self worthy . Through the writing I experienced Felix\’s emotions along with him . I felt happy for Felix, was outraged by the hateful attitudes of his peers, felt his anger, felt anxious for him as he delved in and faced his fears, and sorrow for his belief that he was unlovable. I was so glad he had Ezra to lift him up and show him support and love. This book is a must read and is without a doubt making my top reads for the year list .

Felix Ever After has a magnetic charge drawing readers into the world of Felix, and the author does a brilliant job giving the reader a comprehensive understanding of the characters, including their unique personalities and struggles. The dynamic relationship between these characters is beautifully woven together making a tapestry of characters that are so beautifully written that the story becomes a masterpiece that readers wont be able to put down. Furthermore, the characters\’ personalities were multifaceted allowing the reader to really get to know them on what felt like a very intimate level. On a more personal note, I loved the letters written to Felixs mother because they showed another layer of who he was, showing his pain and vulnerabilities, making me fall in love with his character. Theres a rawness to him that pulls on readers, and readers will find themselves rooting for him to find the love that he desires and deserves. I absolutely loved the dynamic between Ezra and Felix. Their bond, love, and respect for each other are beautiful. One of my favorite parts of the story is when Ezra tells Felix that his worth is not based on his grades, test scores, college applications, or what others think about him. …It only matters what you think. Do you think youre worthy of respect and love? This spoke volumes to me, and I think everyone needs a friend like Ezra. This was book was an outstanding read, and I wished it never ended.

I think Kacen does an amazing job of demonstrating that it\’s okay to continue to reflect and learn about yourself. It\’s okay to continue to question and grow. I enjoyed Felix. I enjoyed seeing his relationships with those around him change as more and more comes to light throughout the course of the story. There is a lot of exploration of how even within the LGBTQ+ community, it is clear and evident that some are more marginalized than others, and I think Felix and his classmates really show that. People bring other biases with them even within a marginalized group which need to be addressed and combated to raise each other up. I\’ve seen people take issue with how Kacen tries to track down who\’s sending him transphobic messages and deadnaming him, but I don\’t agree. I\’ve seen people call it catfishing, but I think there is a big difference between pretending to be another, known person and remaining blatantly anonymous. I thought the novel was well-crafted, and I inhale read this book so quickly. I highly recommend this!

There is so much to unpack with this one, but it is SO well done and it should be on everyones TBR list! I was blown away by how mature Felix was with his thought processes, his decisions, and his ability to not be petty as those close to him hurt him the most, when that was all I wanted him to be sometimes. (Yes, I know, I know.) This book also highlighted so many things that the LGBTQ community grapples with, for example, gender identity is but one small thing. Did you know they have pressures within their community too? No? Then read this book. It was certainly eye opening for me. Felix navigates all of this as a Black trans teenager who is dealing with abuse from an anonymous classmate, and handles it very well as I refer to above. Throughout the book, he has issues with his family, his best friend, I mean you name it, and just really handles it all so much better than many adults do. I could go on and on, but will stop because you need to read this for yourself. YA is killing it with the difficult subjects lately and really doing the best job at exploring tough topics in such a wonderful, meaningful way.

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