This Is How It Always Is
This Is How It Always Is, by Laurie Frankel is a very powerful novel. It is not hard to read, in fact, it is captivating and was a quick read for me. The topic is what that makes it so powerful.
It introduces the difficult subject of transgender and how it can happen to any family. In this fictional account, a family happily welcomes their fifth son, Claude. When Claude is very young (pre-school age) he wants to grow up to be a girl, a princess. Claude wants to bring a purse to kindergarten, he identifies with girls, not boys. He asks to be called Poppy, not Claude. He is a very sweet child.
The family moves across the country, in hope to make a better life for Poppy. How does this affect the rest of the family?
The writing draws the reader in. This is an intimate family story that gets every one of us involved and thinking. What if? I came away with a much greater understanding and empathy for those who have faced gender identity, and those who have yet to go through it.
Our book club read this and discussed it earlier this month. Everyone liked it (a rare thing to happen) and the discussion was one of the best we have had.
In conclusion, I encourage everyone to read this book.
My rating:
4.5 stars out of 5
If you like This Is How It Always Is, you may also like Lucky Boy, by Shanthi Sekaran.
Book Discussion Guides:
1). Flatiron Books
3). Author’s website