Just Girls

A un-put-downable and deeply moving & romantic story. Gold manages to get so many LGBTQIA issues into a natural-flowing real-life tale, it addictively--and makes it all seem effortless. Pick it up & you can’t stop.But a spoiler ahead:But why don't Ella & Tucker get together? That was the flow of the book, & when Tucker first visits Ella's home & family and as a mischievous surprise Tucker knocks on Ella’s bedroom door in the middle of the night & they have movingly affectionate & loving & tender time in bed, I felt, all the affection & tenderness…. that it just “doesn't get any better than this.”But then why did Gold pull back from it? It's still a great novel, but she keeps it, at least for me, from becoming a totally loved & beloved story--at least for me. Tucker & Ella were such strong & impressive & believable & vivid characters.Then their characters weaken. After a terrible thing happens to Tucker, why doesn't Tucker eventually when she’s ready, and understandably would take a while – resume & escalate her romance with her roommate and amazing, strong, intimate, trusting & trustworthy, confidante & smart & cute & (to Tucker) sexually attractive & lovable Ella? And vice-versa Something that most readers – including me – would have loved to the ends of the earth?And if it's mainly because of Ella's relationship with Shen it makes the least sense of all. That “romance” was entirely contrived and unrealistic. Rachel Gold, this amazing author with an amazing story and characters, doesn't make either realistic or compelling why Ella would go with a guy—but more than that especially with a guy in what seems a completely contrived and unconvincing “romance” that is as uninteresting & boring & utterly flat. It doesn’t make any “story sense” and it doesn’t have even one single ounce of realism.Gold had created a masterpiece with amazing choreography of issues -- it's still fabulous -- but then she lets go of the best part. Why didn't she end it with anticipated and hoped-for rise to final joy, to make us all enthralled and euphoric at the end?Tucker's second visit to Ella's home, because it didn’t heighten but rather collapsed the romance of her first visit to Ella’s of Tucker's surprise and surpassingly tender romantic "midnight visit" to Ella's bedroom was one of the saddest things I've ever read.Why? Why? Why deprive us of the euphoria and joy of the further awakening and heightening of their close & tender romance?She had put together all the pieces. Mainly deep interesting attractive characters, practically an encyclopedia of gripping and informative issues told in an addictive page-turning story, and the 2 irresistible protagonists rising toward stunning romance. She had the pieces ready go drop into her laps. She could have had her cake -- all the amazing choreography of burning intellectual issues -- and eaten it too with the perfect romantic climax. . And we the readers could have had our cake & eaten it too. She could have handed us a miracle -- which she herself created and seemed destined to naturally happen anyway--and she certainly leaves us a great and enthralling book, but she throws the miracle away that was hers and ours for the taking.Still an all-around stunningly good book – informative, addictive story, and unmissable. But why, why, why, did she throw out the best part?—then then PREVENT us from having of what could have been an obvious & unbeatable and purely buttery delicious ending?

this was such a good read but it was also so extremely disappointing. reading the description immediately made me want to read this book it was everything i was hoping to read. a story about what appears to be a transwoman and a cis lesbian. the setup was so perfect. and it really was ... until it wasn't. i know the author writes another story with a trans lesbian couple but THIS was the story caught my interests and unfortunately this was also the story that broke my heart. don't get me wrong its a great story and it's a great read but it wasn't what i was looking for and things didn't get settled until near the end. i gave the star count i did because everything about this story seems to indicate its a f/f pairing but in the end it isn't. the two main characters get together with other people and all that great potential is just wasted. If you dont mind any of that then i would probably give this 4 or maybe even 5 stars.

📍 “Lindy didn’t get it. She didn’t seem to understand that transsexual women were women and so asking to have what any other woman had wasn’t an unreasonable request.” “ ʼAnd that’s why we still need feminism,ʼ Selima said. ʼBecause too many people believe they can have access to women’s bodies wherever and whenever they want, politically or personally. All too often, no matter what women do to prepare themselves, they’re not ready for the violence that comes at them from our culture and sometimes from their loved ones. We need to change our culture so that it doesn’t teach men that it’s an option to attack women.ʼ ” “It didn’t occur to them that “want” wasn’t the issue. But even if it was, why should that be so hard to accept?” “She’d now done one thing completely right. It was noble to protect a stranger, but it felt incomparably fulfilling to protect a friend. This is why soldiers go into battle.” “All this time you’ve been making my first year at university safe for me,” Ella said. “Isn’t that the basis of feminism anyway? Not just making the world safe for women but for femininity so it’s seen as something powerful and not artificial.” “It’s not brave to be who you are. … It’s necessary.” + • + • + • +Just speechless…It made me smile, made me cry, made my heart ache & made me optimistic riding the emotional rollercoaster from the first word to the last about finding & forging the redemption & resilience, security, strength, promise & power of simple acceptance & real love.This isn't an indictment against exclusionary, ignorant & intolerant ideals, but rather, an introduction to the experiences, emotions to exist.SIMPLY OUTSTANDING!!!

I came to find this book after being introduced to "Being Emily" in a book club I belong to. It's a delightful follow on from its predecessor and tells the story of two different women as they navigate college and the find themselves in the wider world.Ella Ramsey is a friend of Emily (the lead in being Emily) and her partner Claire, who make welcome cameo appearances in this book. In just girls, we meet Ella, who has a very different backstory to Emily, her family have long been very supportive of her transition and she arrives at University already established as a teenage girls on her way to transitioning. However, being the first trans person the University has admitted, they make a number of mistakes in her admission, not least of which is their someones either indiscreet or deliberately transphobic broadcast that there is a trans* student attending the college, which stirs up outrage of certain students and staff.Fortunately for Ella, there's support from Jess, a gay cis student at the college who upon discovering the broadcast that there is a trans* student studying at the University, voluntarily outs herself as transgender. Through this selfless act, she comes to meet Ella at the uni’s LGBTi group and they become firm friends and end up sharing rooms.It would have been really easy for Rachel to repeat the format of "Being Emily" with this book and no doubt repeat its success, but in "Just girls" she introduces us to two very different characters and in doing so gives us a really useful insight into trans relationships. Ella is more vulnerable, regularly clashing with her lover, the faculty and her own way of thinking as she explores friendships and has difficulty adjusting to relationships beyond her prior sphere of experience. You can feel her turmoil "growing up" as the story develops and I think this aspect alone makes it an really interesting and useful book for young trans people to read and realise that they are beautiful, there's nothing wrong with difference and no matter how bad it seems, you can always overcome.

A rollercoaster of gender politics at college. Ella is a tg girl who just wants to fit in, but life is never that simple

This book is a follow-up to Being Emily although based on new characters. I enjoyed Being Emily immensely and decided on a Rachel Gold binge reading week. I was not disappointed as this novel was as well written, engaging and informative as her first novel. The characters, both primary and secondary were well rounded and added to the storyline. Timely and serious topics including trans issues, bullying are introduced appropriately and with great sensitivity - all with humour sprinkled generously throughout the novel.Although I am not necessarily the target audience I can not say enough good things about this book. Yes, I loved it. This book can make a difference and I highly recommend it to parents of YA's.

Amazingly written book, and a fantastic fallow up to the first book "Being Emily", this book hit basically every topic of the lgbtqia community i can not wait to read it again as i have with "Being Emily" so many time!