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| Book cover retrieved from author's website at http://www.alexgino.com/george/ |
Gino, A. (2015). George. New York, NY: Scholastic Press.
ISBN: 978-0-545-81254
Alex Gino discusses George and how picking the title was a challenge:
Plot Summary
George is a girl. She knows it; she feels it deep in her bones. But the rest of the world sees her as a boy. When their fourth grade class puts on a production of Charlotte’s Web, all George wants is a chance to play the female role of Charlotte, and then maybe her family and friends would see her - really see her - as a girl. George is a heartwarming story of friendship, acceptance, and the human spirit.
Characters
For many readers, George is the first transgender character they will have met. Gino is careful to respect the character, using the correct pronouns for her from page one. Before the other characters know she is a girl, the reader knows. This is an understated way for readers to know how to talk to and about transgender people with respect, for those who aren’t aware. Furthermore, Gino creates in George a very relatable character; George is a typical fourth grader, dealing with homework and friends and older siblings and bullies. In this way, the reader can better empathize with the character. By having George discover her own sense of self through the novel, Gino helps readers understand what it means to be transgender and how a transgender child might feel.
George’s best friend Kelly plays a crucial role in the story: her character models how a cisgender friend can respond with support and acceptance when finding out a friend is transgender. Kelly treats George first and foremost like a friend. While she shows initial shock and confusion at George’s declaration that she is a girl, she responds with support after taking a week to learn more and to understand what it is to be transgender. This is supportive of both cisgender and transgender readers, as Kelly’s character was allowed to have her initial feelings of confusion, but she also came back to show her acceptance and to help her develop her identity as a girl. Kelly’s character models for the reader how to be an ally for transgender people.
Setting
This story takes place in a suburban area of modern day New York. This setting supports the story well because it is an area that includes a great deal of diversity. The acceptance George finds from his friends and family seemed fitting and natural in this setting, but it might not have seemed as believable if it were set in a rural or more conservative part of the country. The choice of setting the story in fourth grade was also a perfect choice by the author. Fourth graders are old enough to have an understanding of the wider world around them and developmentally are beginning to see the world in shades of gray rather than the black-or-white dichotomy of early childhood.
Theme
One powerful theme in this story is the idea of being seen. When George does build up the courage to tell her mother that she is a girl, her mother laughs at the silly idea that she could be a girl and tells her that she changed her diaper and knows she is a boy. George’s heart sinks, and she thinks to herself that there is nothing that “could help the fact that Mom didn’t see her” (p. 129). This is part of the impetus in George wanting the part of Charlotte in the school play: if her mother (and everyone else) sees her playing a role of a girl spider and playing it so well, maybe then they will see that she really is a girl. The idea of being seen is especially important when discussing transgender people because they are told by much of society that they don’t have the right to exist.
Cultural Markers
Gino’s choice in writing this story from a third person point of view instead of first person was a particularly powerful one in support of transgender people. By writing many phrases of “she said” and “she did” instead of “I said” and “I did,” Gino provides many more opportunities to emphasize George’s femininity. This had a very strong impact on me as I read, as hearing the female pronoun paired with the “boy name” George helped me overcome my initial assumption that someone named George must be a boy. It also served as a constant reminder of the dissonance happening in George’s life: while she knows she is a girl, the rest of society is telling her she is a boy.
The way Gino handles the question of gender versus sexuality is also meaningful in the story. A few characters mistakenly think that George is gay, not transexual. This is a scenario many transgender people may experience when talking with friends and family. When experiencing the story through George’s perspective, it becomes glaringly obvious that her feeling of being a girl has nothing to do with sex or sexual desire - after all, she hasn’t even reached puberty and exclaims that she isn’t even sure if she likes girls or boys. The author uses this opportunity to emphasize this important point: being transgender isn’t about sexuality; it’s about gender identity, which is a separate issue.
Connections/Activities
For cisgender students, one of the most important things this book does is build empathy in readers. To capitalize on the momentum created by the book, having students either journal or respond to prompts about George’s experiences as they read will encourage them to put themselves in her shoes. A few sample prompts could include:
- Why do you think it was difficult for George to tell her mother she was a girl?
- What did others do or say to George in the book that might have pushed her to keep her true identity a secret for so long? As you identify each reason, brainstorm a different way the character could have spoken to George that would have been more supportive.
- Why do you think it was hard for George’s mother to accept her as a girl at first? Find examples in the book to support your reasons.
- Why do you think this book has been banned in some libraries and schools?
References:
Book Circle Online. (2016, May 1). Alex Gino talks about their book George and other transgender fiction for young readers [Video file]. Retrieved from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sdJtqtzlFww
Sharp, C. (2016, September 17). Alex Gino - George unraveled [Audio podcast]. Retrieved from https://www.stitcher.com/podcast/colby-sharp-2/the-yarn/e/29-alex-gino-george-unraveled-46442875
[Untitled image of George book cover]. Retrieved from http://www.alexgino.com/george/
Follow the links below for more reviews of other diverse books:
We Were Liars by Elizabeth Lockhart
Marisol McDonald Doesn't Match by Monica Brown
Follow the links below for more of my Native American book reviews:
Jingle Dancer by Cynthia Leitich Smith
The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian by Sherman Alexie
In the Footsteps of Crazy Horse by Joseph Marshall III