Birthday
Meredith Russo
(Author)
Description
"Lovers who surmount the odds have always been intense emotional fodder, but rarely have we seen a story like Birthday...true and raw, haunting and undeniable." --The New York Times Book Review
Two best friends. A shared birthday. Six years...ERIC: There was the day we were born. There was the minute Morgan and I decided we were best friends for life. The years where we stuck by each other's side--as Morgan's mom died, as he moved across town, as I joined the football team, as my parents started fighting. But sometimes I worry that Morgan and I won't be best friends forever. That there'll be a day, a minute, a second, where it all falls apart and there's no turning back the clock. MORGAN: I know that every birthday should feel like a new beginning, but I'm trapped in this mixed-up body, in this wrong life, in Nowheresville, Tennessee, on repeat. With a dad who cares about his football team more than me, a mom I miss more than anything, and a best friend who can never know my biggest secret. Maybe one day I'll be ready to become the person I am inside. To become her. To tell the world. To tell Eric. But when? Six years of birthdays reveal Eric and Morgan's destiny as they come together, drift apart, fall in love, and discover who they're meant to be--and if they're meant to be together. From the award-winning author of If I Was Your Girl, Meredith Russo, comes a heart-wrenching and universal story of identity, first love, and fate. "Beautifully written, Birthday is an altogether singular contribution to the gradually growing body of transgender literature and, indeed, to mainstream literature, as well." --ALA Booklist, starred review
Product Details
Price
$16.99
$15.80
Publisher
Flatiron Books
Publish Date
July 21, 2020
Pages
304
Dimensions
5.4 X 8.4 X 0.9 inches | 0.6 pounds
Language
English
Type
Paperback
EAN/UPC
9781250129857
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About the Author
MEREDITH RUSSO was born, raised, and lives in Tennessee. She started living as her true self in late 2013 and never looked back. If I Was Your Girl was partially inspired by her experiences as a trans woman. Like Amanda, Meredith is a gigantic nerd who spends a lot of her time obsessing over video games and Star Wars.
Reviews
New York Public Library Top 10 Teen Book of the Year
Chicago Public Library "Best of the Best"
Nominated for the 2020 Carnegie Medal
Texas Library Association's Tayshas Top 10 Book
YALSA's Best Fiction for Young Adults List
ALA's 2020 Rainbow Book List
"Lovers who surmount the odds have always been intense emotional fodder, but rarely have we seen a story like Meredith Russo's Birthday. Russo is herself trans, and she brings her whole heart to a story laced with pain that, in the end, lifts with hope. The birthday structure could feel like a gimmick, but it works thanks to her characters, especially Morgan, who is true and raw, haunting and undeniable. --The New York Times Book Review
"A tender story of friendship, family, community, identity, and love...an honest exploration of the transgender experience that does not shy away from harsh realities, but remains optimistic and hopeful. Meredith Russo has proved herself yet again to be the queen of the queer self-love story." --Mackenzi Lee, author of The Gentleman's Guide to Vice and Virtue "Birthday is a luminous and profoundly moving coming-of-age story of love, family, friendship, destiny, and the struggle to live as one's truest self. It will break your heart, piece it back together even stronger, and do it again and again until the last page." --Jeff Zentner, author of Rayne & Delilah's Midnite Matinee "Stonewall Award winner Russo captures the intense longing of two teens who feel trapped in their small town. An emotional, winning touchdown." --Kirkus Reviews "Stonewall Award winner Russo (If I Was Your Girl) tackles teen love, heartbreak, sexuality, and gender identity in this novel told over the course of six years through the alternating voices of transgender girl Morgan and cisgender boy Eric, two childhood best friends who share the same birthday. A realistic picture of the challenges that teens may face when finding themselves and falling in love." --Publishers Weekly
Praise for If I Was Your Girl ALA Stonewall Book Award Winner
We Need Diverse Books' Walter Dean Myers Award Honor Book
Goodreads Readers' Choice Award Finalist
Publishers Weekly Best Book of the Year
Kirkus Best Book of the Year
Lambda Literary Award Finalist
New York Public Library Best Book of the Year
Chicago Public Library "Best of the Best"
Zoella Book Club Pick
Bustle Best YA Book of the Year
ALA's Best Fiction for Young Adults List
YALSA Top 10 Quick Pick for Reluctant Readers
YALSA Teens' Top 10 Pick
Indie Next Top 10 Pick
One of Flavorwire's 50 Books Every Modern Teenager Should Read
"A necessary, universal story about feeling different." --Kirkus, starred review
"An illuminating debut guided by hope and overwhelming kindness." --Publishers Weekly, starred review
"Everything a coming-of-age novel should be." --School Library Journal, Popular Pick
"Will change minds and open hearts." --Nina LaCour, author of We Are Okay
