the 1880s story was at least kind of interesting, but now that I've started the 1930s story, I simply don't care about anything and keep zoning out. there are books I want to be reading a lot more than this, so I won't be finishing it.

I love when a book makes me excited to a) be reading fantasy again and b) pick up the sequel.

I love the vibes of this, the desert city setting, the characters all going through it and the anti-colonialist message were all very well done.

before i get to what i didn't like about this i have to say that i am so happy for every single person who sees themselves in this book and gets something positive out of it. it's always a good thing to see yourself represented in the media you read or watch. i am nonbinary and i did not relate to a single thing in here, but it is so important to have varied queer representation out there.

what i mainly disliked about this was that i just didn't like maia as a person the way e presented emself in this which made me not really care about eir story. i didn't like how this book was structured, it felt like random anecdotes to me that could have had more impact in a different order or with more context. the art style also isn't my thing.

i also think that as a nonfiction this book should have done a bit more to better frame certain experiences that maia had when e was younger. pap smears are important for your physical health whether or not you enjoy them and there are things health care providers can do to make them less awful. misogyny is important to examine, but i also feel like we completely glossed over the terf-y vibe that the statement maia's aunt made gave off as well as the potential misogyny in hating every thing maia perceives as feminine.

i certainly don't think this book should be banned, but i will not be recommending it to anyone.

for someone (at least theoretically) arguing for socialism and feminism, ghodsee perpetuates an awful lot of centrist talking points. simply stating that you're aware queer or trans people exist and race impacts societal and economic status doesn't negate bioessentialism or the fact that you barely talk about people of colour. there are a bunch of other things I didn't like about this, but overall I just don't think it's a great book if you're already sympathetic to or aware of socialist feminism and it's also not good as an introduction to it.