ME AND MY DYSPHORIA MONSTER

Nisha, a young trans girl, discusses her experience living with gender dysphoria.

A floating monster that resembles outer space is the visual metaphor for the protagonist’s nebulous but crushing feeling of gender dysphoria. Nisha, who is brown-skinned, is not sure exactly what is going on, but she knows she hates being called a boy. In a heartbreakingly authentic moment, she laments that the monster only listens to other people, not her own pleas for it to go away. Her mother, who is brown-skinned, and her father, who is light-skinned, introduce her to Jack, an Asian-presenting trans man with his own dysphoria monster—except his, a cute little frog sitting on his shoulder, doesn’t cause him too much trouble. After getting some guidance from Jack and then talking to her parents, Nisha begins using she/her/hers pronouns and using the girls’ restroom at school; soon, her monster shrinks to a little squidlike creature that is still present but is much easier to manage. This book will speak to and delight trans children of various experiences, though it does rely somewhat on the visual shorthand of gender stereotypes (flouncy dresses being associated with girlhood, for instance), and at one point, Nisha is told she seems much taller and has a much deeper voice than most girls—traits that wouldn’t apply to a child her age. Still, the lesson is uplifting while still being realistic, and the text flows easily except for an awkward tense change at one point. The illustrations are cute and colorful, with a high-contrast cartoony style. (This book was reviewed digitally.)

A charming book for trans kids and those seeking to build understanding.