User:Icf17/sandbox/george

George Plot section


 * secret magizines
 * scott brother: assumes she's into girls
 * uncomfortable with family knowing
 * intro to class dynamics-george is bullied
 * kelly is her best friend
 * wants to try out for charlotte
 * went over to kelly's to practice lines
 * struggling to talk to mom about the truth
 * leading up to audition
 * nervous people will respond negatively
 * tried out for the part and the teacher was upset with her
 * george was upset with the teacher and did not want to play a role in the play at all, joined stage crew
 * mom found magnizes and is upset
 * isolated at home and at school
 * scott wanted to help and played mario cart togehter
 * found a way to be Charlotte of the stage crew, put some jerk on jeff's back
 * jeff punched her and she barfed on him
 * told mom, mom freaked out
 * told scott, scott understood
 * kelly let George play charlotte in the second play > moment to show the world who she is
 * mom starts to accept > wants george to talk to someone who knows about these things
 * invited to go to the zoo with kelly and her uncle
 * she can dress as a girl bc uncle doesn't know her

Melissa (known to all as George) is a girl in the fourth grade, who struggles to tell her friends and family that she is a girl. At home, she finds comfort in a few female magazines that she hides from her family. At school, boys in her class, Jeff and Rick, constantly bully her because she does not perform the gendered role of a boy. When her teacher, Ms. Udell, introduces to the class that they would be putting on a production of Charlotte's Web, Melissa instantly connects with Charlotte and dreams of playing Charlotte, the female spider rather the male counterpart, Wilbur. Since she and her best friend Kelly both want to be Charlotte, they practice together before auditions. When it is time for her to audition, although Melissa has Charlotte's lines perfected, she is nervous that Ms. Udell will respond negatively to her audition. At the audition, Melissa's fears come true; Ms. Udell is upset with Melissa for trying out for the female role, thinking the highly sought-after role of the female Charlotte has to go to a girl. Crushed by her teachers rejection, Melissa refuses the role of Wilbur and joins the stage crew.

As the production of the play progresses, Melissa feels isolated at home and at school. At home, her mom discovers Melissa's secret collection of magazines and condemns Melissa for her interest in female magazines. At school, Melissa is still upset with Ms. Udell's reaction to her audition, and she feels distant from Kelly, since Kelly got the role of Charlotte. However, as the classes' efforts to prepare for the upcoming production increased, Melissa finds a way to become the Charlotte of the stage crew. Inspired by Charlotte's courage, she gains the confidence to tell Kelly that she is a girl, and after processing this news, Kelly becomes a supportive best friend in Melissa's efforts to tell the world she is a girl. One afternoon as stage crew works, Jeff teases Charlotte; Melissa feels the instinct to protect Charlotte and runs by Jeff leaving an imprint of "SOME JERK" on his sweatshirt. After Jeff sees the damage, he punches her to punish her for ruining his favorite sweatshirt, which causes her to throw up on him. Both Melissa and Jeff are in trouble with their teachers; however, in the process of getting punished, Melissa discovers that the Principle is sympathetic to transgender people.

Later in the evening, when Melissa's mom questions her about the magazines, Melissa reveals to her mom that she is a girl. Her mom disregards her feelings, crushing Melissa in the process. On the other hand, when Melissa tells Scott that she is a girl, he thinks her feelings match her behavior, and he offers his help and understanding to her. The night before the performance, Kelly and Melissa devise a plan for Melissa to be Charlotte in the play, which will help show the world that she is a girl. Kelly will perform in the morning, and Melissa will perform at the evening show. When it was time for Melissa to perform, people are shocked to see Melissa on stage, whom they all saw as a boy performing the role of a girl. Her mom is initially shocked at this performance but the performance later helps her become a more supportive mom to Melissa.

After the excitement of the performance, Melissa feels more comfortable with herself. When Kelly invites her to spend the day with her uncle at the zoo, Melissa takes this opportunity to show herself as she chooses because she will be surrounded by people who do not already know her as George. Dressed in Kelly's clothing, she and Kelly happily enjoy the day at the zoo.

Background: '''Information and context about how the book came to be. When was it written? Where does it stand in the author’s body of work? Was she responding to a particular event or experience? The background doesn’t include criticism, interpretation, or any details that sources haven’t directly tied to the writing of the book. Independent sources are typically preferred, but author interviews can be useful for this section.'''

Alex Gino wrote George because it "was a book [they] wanted to read" growing up. This book is not exactly based on Gino's life because they are gender-queer, while Melissa is a girl. In addition, they grew up in different environments; unlike Gino, Melissa has access to the internet and more positive representations of the transgender community. Gino also wanted to write George because Middle-grade literature aimed for 3rd grade to 7th grade did not have any books about transgender people. They wanted to fill this hole and teach children about these issues. George simultaneously teaches kids to be tolerant of trans people, while showing children who are trans that there are other people going through similar experiences.

Gino started their work on George in 2003 before published on its August 2015 release date. They needed to make frequent draft revisions to adjust to the changing social environment towards trans people. In the future Gino wants George to become "historical fiction," meaning that in the future, people will wonder why people were opposed to trans people.

George was Gino's first published book; however, in September of 2019, they published You Don't Know Everything, Jilly P! which discusses the intersection of Deafness and Black Lives Matter movement. They were also featured in the anthologies Our Story Begins and How I Resist. They want to continue writing "progressive middle grade fiction," and address societal issues.

Publication: '''When was the book published? By whom was it published? Include information about formats (hardcover, paperback, ebook, audiobook), cover art, and translations into other languages. Information in this section can be sourced to interviews with the author as long as they’re in reliable publications.'''

Gino started their work on George in 2003, and the novel underwent several drafts before its August 2015 release. Gino worked closely with editors Jean Marie Stine and with David Levithan from Scholastic Corporation. One of the major edits to Gino's work was the title; the original title was Girl George (a reference to Boy George), but Scholastic changed it to George during the editing process. Prior to George 's commercial release, Scholastic sent over 10,000 copies to teachers in the United States which received mixed, but largely positive feedback. The teachers and librarians who opposed the novel argued that the children are too young to be discussing these issues. However, the positive feedback convinced Scholastic to increase the first printing order to 50,000 from 35,000.

Scholastic Press and Scholastic UK prints copies of George in both hardcover and softcover. Translated copies can be found in English, Spanish, French, Catalan, Chinese Complex, Danish, Dutch, German, Italian, Japanese, Portuguese, Swedish and Vietnamese. Trans woman actress Jamie Clayton narrated the audiobook for the novel. Clayton is best known for her starring role in Sense8. Gino felt it was important to have "trans voices to telling trans stories" to make the story feel genuine.

'''Reception: What did reviewers think about it? Try to provide a balanced picture of the book’s reception. Include major awards or distinctions it received. Paraphrasing is preferred, but you can use short quotes if critics’ words are particularly informative or interesting. For additional advice about reception sections, see the | shortcut WP:RECEPTION'''

(underline means it was already there-moved some parts of work already there to a different section)

The School Library Journal, in a starred review, writes that George is "A required purchase for any collection that serves a middle grade population".[5] In a National Public Radio review of George, Gino points out that Melissa isn't powerless when she faces her bullies, and that the novel as a whole "is a narrative about a young person who is very much trying to become who they are."[6]

George has appeared on the American Library Association's Top Ten Most Challenged Book list every year since its publication. In 2016, it was listed at number three; in 2017 it was listed at number five, and in 2018, it was listed at number one. Parents and teachers challenge George because it features a transgender girl and her older brother's discussion of age inappropriate material. In response to the challenge against the brother, Gino believes that people are using the case against Scott to hide their underlying issue with the transgender girl.

George was selected to be one of 16 texts for the OBOB (Oregon Battle of the Books) for young middle schoolers. However, two school districts within Oregon withdrew their students from the competition as a result of the transgender protagonist and plot of the novel.[4]