The 57 Bus by Dashaka Slater (#111 in 2019)
This is the true story of an agender teenager named Sasha whose life is profoundly impacted by a troubled teenager and a supposed hate crime. Sasha is a white teenager and identifies as agender. This means that Sasha associates themself as neither male nor female. Sasha's preferred pronoun is "they." Richard is a black teenager living in Oakland, California who found himself in a troubled spot. When their paths cross for mere moments on the 57 bus, Richard makes an incredibly poor choice that leaves Sasha with severe burns on over 22% of their body.
For book lovers: Another #nonfictionnovember read accomplished! This story was so shocking that I nearly found it unbelievable, but the sad thing is that it's true. The story, itself, is engaging and kept me interested. It was an incredibly fast read for anyone who want to add another book to their November list before the month is up. Despite Sasha's intense trauma, the reader learns so much about grief, guilt, and forgiveness. It's a very teachable story for any age, but teenagers might really learn something special from this one. Four stars
For parents/ teachers: What a profound way to teach tolerance, especially to teens who don't get the chance to learn much about gender diversity. This book not only explains the differences in binary and non-binary genders, but it also incorporates the differences between races and socioeconomic backgrounds. While Sasha was born a male into a more affluent neighborhood with a strong family unit, they personally do not identify with either binary gender. This can be confusing as Sasha chooses to wear clothing such as skirts and dresses that make them stand out to others. From a comprehension standpoint, I do feel that this plot would have been a bit more clear if Sasha's disassociation with gender might have been explained very early on. Rightfully so, the author refers to Sasha using the preferred pronoun of "they," but this could be confusing for some students who would focus the plurality of that pronoun. Though it was explained a little later on, I think it might have been helpful to lead with that for the purpose of understanding.
I feel like good YA nonfiction options are few and far between. Any recommendations?
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