Tuesday, 24 March 2020

Nothing Ever Happens Here by Sarah Hagger-Holt


I guess I should begin by saying I have know Sarah for best part of 20 years – so I would probably say nice things about her book whatever I actually thought! But I think I can honestly say I would have enjoyed it even if I didn’t know her!

The story begins by placing you in an ordinary small town teenage life – being a teenage is a complicated business at the best of times – and one story is the liberation that socially awkward Izzy finds on stage in the school production.

The other stream within the story is Izzy’s dad coming out as Danielle, coming out as trans. The reactions of the other family members are authentic, the fact that there is a range of responses validate the fact that processing this new information is not always something people can do in an instance – surprise, shock even, are not unreasonable reactions – but the question is whether people stay in that initial place or move forward to accept and embrace the reality of the person they love.

The writing is pitched to be accessible to early teenagers, like the main character Izzy, which make this a good “resource” - but it not simply a “resource” it is a really good read, and interesting story told well.

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