Reviews

Joy, to the World by Kai Shappley, Lisa Bunker

donnereads's review against another edition

emotional hopeful informative inspiring lighthearted fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Plot
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? No

missmeganmann's review

challenging emotional hopeful informative inspiring sad tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? No

5.0

Wow, this was really fantastic. It does a great job of showing transphobia and transgender issues and activism in a way younger readers will understand. In breaking that all down, it also allows older readers to maybe look at their biases and understand that their views might not be so harsh.

hannahsmanyhobbies's review

challenging emotional funny inspiring lighthearted reflective relaxing sad tense fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? No
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? No

3.0

kiralovesreading's review

adventurous challenging dark emotional hopeful inspiring lighthearted tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? No

4.0

anniekslibrary's review

4.0

Starting the Trans Rights Readathon off strong with this one, about a 12-year-old trans girl who moves to Texas and becomes an activist. Initially, she's stealth, but she's forced to come out and gets kicked off the cheer team, which is very upsetting to her as cheer is her new-found passion and it's making her really happy. This leads to her advocating for herself more and more, with support from her family, friends, and an organization that supports queer and trans youth.

This was such an empowering read that gives a lot of insight in the state of trans rights in the US in a way that feels suitable for a middlegrade book. I'm always impressed when middlegrade books keep a good balance between heavy topics, in this case transphobia, and the love, support and warmth that kids need. This book didn't gloss over anything and it felt very honest, but it also showed how many supportive people there are who outweigh the bad.

bookish_4life's review

hopeful inspiring fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

4.5

shannonreadss's review

challenging hopeful informative sad tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

This was a beautiful story with a lot of important messages. I also loved how supportive Joy's family was.

smalltownbookmom's review

5.0

This was such a beautiful middle grade novel about a transgender girl living in Texas who gets kicked off the cheer team when she's outed at school. Heartbroken, Joy learns how to fight for her rights and speak up against trans injustice.

Full of found family and trans positivity, this book is a heartwarming read in a world where laws against transgender people are still being passed every day. Co-authored by a young trans actor and activist, it was also neat reading how she put herself in the story too.

Many thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for an early digital copy in exchange for my honest review!! Recommended for fans of the graphic novel Cheer up.

kawarwick's review against another edition

5.0

A powerful, timely story!

thenextgenlibrarian's review against another edition

5.0

A MG novel about Joy, both the girl and the feeling, as she fights for her right to cheer.