My Rating: 5 Stars

WOW! I'm so happy I was given an advanced copy of this book. The Journey of Jeremy Ivester told not from his own perspective but also from his mum Jo (who is the main writer of this books) with also, a few entries from his dad Jon.

Once a Girl, Always a Boy gives us a small glimpse inside the journey of a transgender man from his early childhood as Emily, through difficult adolescence years full of doubts and insecurities about who he was, all the way to his late twenties when he is finally comfortable in his own skin and happy of being Jeremy Ivester.

I'm not a mum (yet), but every parent out there should read this memoir as anyone could be born with a genetic mix that does not necessarily match to what that person identifies himself/herself/themself with (I know, I know.. it's a bit hard with all the pronouns, but we just have to get used to it)

There is still a lot to be done in our society to make it an inclusive environment for everyone within the LGTBQI+ spectrum and raising awareness for this book could be one little act towards that perfect world.

Thanks to She Writes Press and Netgalley for the advanced copy.

This book provides a look at the effects of the transition from both the individual and family perspective. As a mother who supports her transgender son 100%, I found it imperative that this story be told of the family. Unfortunately and most sadly, the story of this family is one of the minority because many transgender individuals too often find themselves ousted from the family when they most need loving support.

Thank you to netgalley and the publisher for providing a copy of this book to read and review. The opinions expressed here are my own.

This book deserves every one of the 5-stars I have given it. Once a Girl, Always a Boy is a well-written, enlightening, open and honest family memoir that helps readers understand gender identity and the issues surrounding it.

I applaud and admire Jeremy for being willing to share his entire story with us (complete with pictures!), beginning in young childhood through and beyond his transition. The reader is able to hear his voice at each stage of his journey and that is so brave and so engaging! To be privy to his thoughts as he questions and struggles with his identity and deals with the huge impacts, repercussions and changes is nothing short of a true gift. I love that the reader hears from each family member as well.

This book is filled with so many emotions and the author (Jeremy's mother) is skilled at taking the reader through all of them. This book will go a long way in helping people truly relate to and understand the LGBT (I know there are more initials but don't want to get them wrong!) community. Inspiring and heart-warming, a call to action, there is just so much about this book to admire and love!

My thanks to NetGalley and She Writes Books for allowing me to read a copy of this book in exchange for an unbiased review. All opinions expressed here are my own.

A warm moving touching story of a little girl who knew she was really a boy and transgendered fromEmily to Jeremy.Jeremys family share their memories of this decision of their involvement.I really wonderful involving read.Highly recommend #betgalley#shewritespress,I

Once a Girl, Always a Boy is a family memoir of a trans man written by his mom. The memoir consists of small, digestible chunks of narration by Jeremy (whose story the book is based on), his mom, his dad, and his other family members. The narrations are like diary entries. The timeline of the memoir is from Jeremy's birth to the year 2019 when he as well as his parents are active advocates of the transgender community, engaged in creating equal opportunity for trans people and raising their voice against transphobic laws.

As mentioned in the preface, Jeremy is referred by his birth name in the memoir up to the point when he comes out and asks everyone to call him by his new name and pronouns. I personally don't like this approach where a trans person is referred to by their dead name even when talking about their past but as long as the person concerned is fine with it, then it's all cool. And in this case, I think in a way it is helpful for people who are not much aware of trans people to understand the experiences of a trans person and not just blatantly disregard trans stories. However, readers need to keep in mind that not all trans stories are alike. Trans people can figure out their gender identity and choose to come out at any age. Some are clear about it from childhood, while some others figure it out much later in life. Experiences differ. The transition process differs. Even feelings of dysphoria might differ from one person to another. 

The smooth chronological flow of the story makes it a must-read for everyone especially parents and family members of trans kids. It's comforting to see a family talking about their journey of acceptance. The stories of acceptance are always so warm. Here we even get to see the parents' perspectives and emotions shift as they slowly try to understand and accept their transgender son.

Once a Girl, Always a Boy was enjoyable and uplifting. It was well-written and accessible. Even if you aren't transgender and don't have anyone in your life that is, this book is incredibly relevant and relatable. This book isn't just about one man's journey, it's about the whole family. Nothing is sugar-coated. Their journey was at times painful and hard, but so, so worth it. Grab the tissues because you'll definitely need them... in the best way!

wow, how do I put my thoughts together on this BEAUTIFUL story. I laughed, I cried, I smiled, I think I even cheered at one point. Jeremy is so brave for putting his story out there for the world to read. I especially love how this memoir involved the whole family and it made me so happy to see that they even though they were unsure at times, they were supportive and loving. I also loved that there was photographs included, and as a reader I was able to see how Jeremy trainsitiones over the years.

I'm sad to say I could not finish this book. It is an important story and especially for parents out there it could provide you with a lot of information.

My biggest issue was the use of the deadname and the old pronouns. The mother and author of this book adressed this in the beginning of the book but mentioned in no word that her son which this book is about is alright with it. I can assume that he is okay with it but it still did not sit right with me. In the preface the mother even adressed the fact that it can be seen as disrespectful in the transgender community. As someone who considers themselves part of this it was painful to read.

Apart from that I almost starting crying with the first chapter because Jeremys part was truly emotional and I wish this was a memoir about his inner struggles and journey and not a family memoir. I do enjoy the concept of a family memoir this one just did not work for me.

Also this is about a transgender journey through the eyes of many different family members. Which means it switched perspectives quite often and also timelines. I am afraid I don't care how Jeremys parents met or what they profession is/was.

Thank you for NetGalley and once again I am sorry I could not finish it.

I like memoirs and being LGBTQ+ I was looking forward to readin this.

The story was beautifully written. Jeremy was born a girl and this book covers every struggle that he encountered on his journey from Emily to Jeremy. This book was incredibly touching and well written, I adored the family photos.

Thank you for allowing me to read this.

Once A Girl, Always A Boy is a beautiful portrayal of a trans man becoming the person he’s supposed to be. I wanted to read this book to understand my students better and to be able to help them in the best way possible. Highly recommend!

I love to read memoirs and biographies, especially about compelling life stories. Jeremy Ivester's story was both heartwarming and gut wrenching at time, watching him struggle to come to terms with who he is. The absolute best thing about this book, written by Jeremy's mother, is that even when they strugggled through it at times, ultimately Jeremy's parents always supported whatever he wanted to do in his life to make himself feel more like himself. I also liked that several family members wrote smaller pieces througout the book, giving the family memoir a more well rounded voice and to give the reader a chance to see multiple points of view of the Ivester family as they grow and learn with Jeremy throughout his journey. It was hard to read through some of the struggles Jeremy had to go through at all of the different stages of his life to get where he is today. I can not imagine the bravery it took, even with support, to be able to say this is who I am, and this is what I need to do to be myself. I thought this was a great book that I would recommend to anyone, especially someone (like me) who may want to learn more about what it's like to be a transgender person to better empathize with those in the transgender community.

I rarely read memoirs but this grabbed my attention and I wasn't disappointed. The story of Jeremy Ivester who was born a girl and all the struggles he encountered on his journey to become Jeremy. Written with chapters and viewpoints of members of his family, friends and colleagues. A touching book and well written with family photos relevant to the book added a nice touch.

My review will be posted on my website on March 21/2020

Once a Girl, Always A Boy by Jo Ivestor is a wonderful memoir. In fact, this is the kind of memoir that keeps me reading them. There are transgender people in my life, and I suspect that most people know someone - even if they aren't aware of it. This memoir is personal and challenging and I would recommend that everyone read it.

What's unique about this book is the way that the family is represented through a variety of POVs. The most present voices are that of Jo Ivester (author and Mom) and Jeremy Ivester. Jeremy's siblings and his father have also contributed to this memoir and there's such a strong sense of family and love throughout the book.

It's so valuable to have a book that gives a perspective on what a family member transitioning means to everyone involved. Unquestionably this book is about Jeremy and all the things that he went through as he worked through discovering who he was and how he wanted to be for the rest of his life. But, it's also about Jeremy's family and how they supported him, were confused by his thoughts and feelings, and the effect of transition on them. I haven't read anything previously that explores the impact of gender so well and in such an intimate way.

I think that one of the most important things that I take away from this book is all the things I didn't think about. There are so many times during a life, during a year, during a day... that a person's gender comes up. There were things I hadn't even thought of that can really be such a shock to someone's system: growing and changing bodies, sports bras, sleepovers, shopping for school clothes, playing sports, hair cuts, weddings ... all these things happen constantly and are an ever-present reminder of gender.

The systems that we interact with almost daily often begin with gender... there were things that I hadn't even thought of. When you apply for a job you have to show ID, what if that ID doesn't have the same gender as the one you present? Passports? Educational institutions? Doctors? Prescriptions? Appointments? Some of these systems are difficult to navigate without the added emotion and stress of having ID that doesn't state the correct gender?

Maybe it was naive but I didn't even think about how difficult some of these everyday things (to me) could be for other people. That's because as a cisgender woman, I've never had to think about it.

This book touches on so many things: intergenerational understandings of masculinity and femininity, being left out, being bullied, hiding pain and emotions to fit in, politics... life. There are so many milestones passed in this book and I feel honored to have been allowed to read about this family.

A sincere and poignant read: Jeremy's journey is one that many transgender people can relate to and the way it is told will undoubtably resonate with many. Alongside his journey, the compilation of sections from his family members as they grow and learn and come to find better ways to support him is such an important thing to see.

An emotional insight to the life of a transgender person but what makes it even more special is the perspective along with his family. In a world that is supposedly acceptable to many things many people still struggle to gain acceptance to be who they want to be.

An excellent read for anyone, not just people who are undertaking the journey.

I really wanted to enjoy this book, but it was so all over the place I couldn't. It so bounced from narrator (all members of the subject's family weigh in), to time, period, to switching between Jeremy and his deadname, I was underwhelmed. Case in point--right after showing a portrait of high school senior Jeremy in a dress, the narrator returned to the tale of deadname flunking out of college. Did not finish.

A very touching and interesting read. I loved that we got to see, not only the point of view of Jeremy as we follow his story, but also to see how the family members were on their path of understanding and acceptance of Jeremy as a he.
I'd say this could become a valuable book in the queer community

This book is a mandatory read for every human, doesn’t matter if you are somewhere on the LGBTQIA+ spectrum, an ally or not. This book is about a trans person, yes, but it also about finding one’s true self and identity, while struggling with expectations and assumptions. It’s what we a go through at some point in our lives, but for trans people it is even worse, they struggle with who they, how they feel, what others might think and are up against extremely discriminating legislation. How can you become your true self and stay happy, with a support system like Jeremy’s. He is extremely lucky and his parents and siblings have shown to be true advocates and are more supportive and understanding than anyone can ask for.

Penned by his mother this book tells Jeremy’s story from several viewpoints. His mother, Jo, interview/ had storytelling time with all his siblings and his father. As well as asking herself tough questions and be brutally honest in answering them. Jo captures a story of struggle, coming of age and love. They all have questions and doubts at some point, but don’t we all about everything? It feels like the memoir is written with extreme care, taking time to show true emotions, true feelings and letting no one feel bad about it. I think jo has been especially considerate when it comes to all the trans parts with Jeremy. The openging chapter actually already reveals that much.not everyone’s story is the same, but everyone can be inspired by this one. Also I find it disturbing to read about the different legislation in each state, the US can be a real messed up place... you can be a person and accepted (on paper) in one state, but in the next you can’t be who you are. I am glad to live in a country where this isn’t happening.

Make this heartfelt memoir a mandatory read in schools and I think the world might just become a little better, at least I hope so. Thanks for writing this inspiring book!

5* The best, most sincere and heartfelt, least 'aggressive activist' (in a respectful way) book that I've read about a trans person.

I've read several books on what it's like to be trans, and they've varied greatly. Some have come across as if the authors have an agenda rooted in a form of aggressive activism and perhaps (justified/justifiable) personal pain, and others have had more of a 'I *am* going to educate you, person' attitude. This had none of the former, and was simply a tale of a very ordinary family in some ways, that is very extraordinary in others.

I think the main reason that I enjoyed this is that there was no sensationalism, no epiphanies, nothing to prove (from any of the Iversons) and that the parents loved all their kids, without any strings and without any pressures. I think the loving familial relationships here helped Emily become Jeremy and finally be happy in being his true self. From him, I sensed nothing but a young man finding his path, not on any time frame, not on any kind of agenda, not with anything to prove to himself or to others, but merely learning about himself and then wanting to physically portray that true self. Tbh, for most of the tale, I wondered when I'd feel that the latter part of the title would fit, which I mean respectfully. I did not sense that Jeremy had strong feelings about being a guy, and honestly, at the end, I still felt the same. Yes, I believe that he felt a sense of being non-binary, of being different, that he had a form of low-key body dysphoria, but he did not hate his female body, did not hate the world, did not feel inadequate and simply took time to consider everything and to come to terms with what he wanted and needed. At the end of the book, part of me still thinks he transitioned to be able to change his physical appearance more to something that he felt happier with and more comfortable with, but I am not sure that I saw/read/felt that mental pull that seemingly trans people have that tells them they're in the wrong bodies. Is Jeremy a trans man to be lumped in with those that form part of the LGBTQ spectrum? I'm not sure. He's certainly the most non-trope'y, most genuine, most 'doesn't fit the mould' guy I've read about, and I did not feel any kind of strong mental attachment from him to being trans. I know I'm likely not expressing this well, but I think he's the most unique trans man I've read about.

I admire his parents for their commitment to helping trans people and in trying to educate people and push for rights and support. Jeremy is lucky to have them, and I think that he's a young man who could help bring about more positive change in the country that is the US in 2020, which seems to be taking so many backward steps.

I feel warmer and richer for reading this book, which is almost the opposite of how I've felt after reading several books written by trans authors, where their aggression/activism has actually had the opposite effect on me.

ARC courtesy of She Writes Press and NetGalley, for my reading pleasure.