Both Can be True, by Jules Machias, is a well written journey of two friends, Danny and Ash, find their true nature while together helping an elderly dog escape euthanasia. All the characters come across as real and engaging.

Omg if you're going to write a book using two different characters POVs then MAKE THEM SOUND DIFFERENT? Why does this popular boy speak like a 30 year old tumblr user? It just makes no sense. One star given for the story being an LGBTQIA2S+ story but that's it.

Thank you to NetGalley for allowing me to read this book in exchange for an honest review.

This was such a beautiful middle grade novel! There were two storylines in this book that intersected: Ash is non-binary and doesn’t feel fully at home with either gender, and Daniel struggles with trying to hide his big emotions because he’s been told that boys shouldn’t show their feelings the way he does. When Daniel finds himself taking care of an elderly Pomeranian named Chewbarka who was scheduled to be euthanized, Ash finds out his secret and decides to lend a helping hand...and of course, some young love ensues!

I adored both storylines, but my gosh, it was so clear to see how much the author adores senior dogs while reading this. Chewbarka reminded me of my baby girl Cora who passed last May - cloudy eyes, toothless, tongue always doing a “blep” out of her mouth. I fell in love with her while reading, and tbh, I sobbed several times while reading because I was so afraid about what might happen to her. (Not to spoil anything, but don’t worry. The ending couldn’t have been more perfect.) I wish I was allowed to share pieces of text from the book because there were a few lines that were just so beautifully written.

I haven’t read many fiction pieces about loving senior dogs, and definitely never middle grade fiction! I loved both characters and how they were never grossed out by Chewbarka and her inability to hold her pee - what amazing, caring kids!! I think many of my young patrons will adore this book when it comes out in June, and I especially love that it will make kids of any gender feel less alone and let boys know that being a male doesn’t mean you can’t express your emotions, and that you don’t have to fit into the world’s stereotypes and ideas of what you are “supposed” to be.

In Both Can Be True by Jules Machias, main characters Ash and Daniel work together to save an elderly dog from being euthanized prematurely. While the who characters bond over their dog rescuing efforts, each one has their own personal arc which unfolds over the course of the novel. Ash is adjusting to a new school and the pressure to find a label that fits their gender identity comfortably. Daniel is learning how to accept his deeply emotional and empathetic nature. While reading this novel, I reflected on many of my gender nonconforming students who are the ages of the characters in this novel. Much of what Ash describes in the novel is a similar journey that my own students are living in present day, which gives this book a great deal of power through representation. I'm thrilled that Machias is out there creating Own Voices narratives about young people who feel caught in between expectations and popular terminologies. Figuring out who you are isn't always easy, and I'm happy that stories exist in 2021 that normalize gender identity exploration.

While reading the novel, I acknowledged that Machias' experiences create a very specific perspective of the gender nonbinary spectrum which is unique to the author. Ash feels a great deal of pressure from those they are close to and know about their gender identity to come out, even before the character has selected a label that they feel most comfortable with. The pressure to pick sides is stressful for Ash, describing themselves as Asher or Ashley at parts of the book, rather than one whole individual. The decision to choose which bathroom to enter is also a difficult one, even when gender neutral options are present. While these are all very valid and common experiences for trans and gender non-conforming people, many of Ash's pressures to identify themself came from external sources. Ash's ideologies surrounding the term gender nonbinary (that it "felt like a place people stay rather than actually are" and that it "wasn't a real thing") come from Ash's father, who places great interest in Ash picking one gender. Ash also feels pressure to choose a label from their friends also, even though past experiences that Ash has have shown how dangerous (emotionally and physically) it can be to do so. Ash's eventual identity selection culminates in a <spoiler> girl at school threatening to out Ash with a bullying video which deadnames Ash. While the girl never outs Ash and is stopped by Ash's other trans friends, Ash later goes up to the girl and thanks her for giving them the push they needed to make a decision. </spoiler> . While Ash's fathers ideas are challenged, they are undone by the interaction Ash has with a girl towards the end of the book. I wish there had been a part of the book where Ash recognized that while labels and coming out can be life-changing in positive ways, it should be done something in the person's own time. Ash felt constantly pushed to make a decision, which left me feeling as though there were mostly external reasons for selecting an identity. After all, Ash stated several times throughout the book that they personally felt it was more important to just be themselves without a particular defining identity.

Daniel's part of the story is mostly straight-forward. I appreciate that Daniel's emotions are shown to be a strength, but that he still struggles with overwhelming feelings of stress and anxiety throughout the book. Daniel's assumptions about Ash's gender identity was interesting, and it was great to see him grow into a more accepting individual over the course of the story. His responses to things outside of his comfort zone are sometimes laced with anger and harmful remarks, which made sense for his character and his own biases. Daniel exists in the story to add nuance to both gender norms, gender expression, and animal rights. While there is a lot going on in both Ash and Daniel's lives, I liked the grounding influence the two characters had on each others' lives. While there is romantic drama in the story which drives Ash and Daniel apart, a resolution is made that feels realistic and properly paced.

Overall, this story is a great one for a middle school classroom. Even if it misses some of the marks, it is great to have a realistic story which will allow other gender nonconforming kids feel seen and represented in literature.

Asher or Ashley, depending on how Ash feels, is between genders. Ash becomes friends with Daniel who helps out at a dog kennel. As their relationship evolves, there are dog problems and Ash is struggling with being gender fluid. They both find out there are many ways to look at something as they each try to find their voice, Well done.

Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for sending me an advanced copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

This story was so cute and even more important in the subjects that it talks about. I’ll admit, this story was hard to read because of the subject matter (pets being neglected, what goes on in shelters, etc.) but that’s probably because of who I am as a person and my experience with pets and animals, it might not be the same for everyone.

That being said, even those hard scenes, still felt real. Both Can Be True is, without a doubt, a story that is authentic. This #OwnVoices novel is educational due to the author’s experiences and their life, and I value that so much as a reader. I learned so much from this book, things that I never would’ve realized I didn’t already know some about.

The families in this story were real, too, showing that coming out and relationships between parents aren’t always perfect. For example, Ash’s dad views everything to be black or white, which isn’t the case with everything. While their mom, sees things to be what you can make of them, which she shows through her love and support towards Ash.

This book is a middle grade, though I feel like it’s important for everyone to read. It’s so refreshing seeing LGBTQ+ storylines in middle grade. They should be taught everywhere and books like this one should be on every library shelf in every middle school, showing every possible kid that they have a place. I do recommend this book to anyone, middle grade age or otherwise, because I believe that you can learn something from it.

This is such an important book! It is a must read for middle grades students. It tells the story in 2 different perspectives. The perspective of Ash, who is discovering how to be gender fluid after experiencing bullying from their peers and pressure from their father to choose to one gender and Daniel who is emotionally sensitive and pressured by his family to not show his emotions. They bond over their journey to save a dog who was scheduled to be put down at the vet. The author does an amazing showing Ash's conflicting emotions about being nonbinary. It is a story that everyone needs to read to gain a better understanding how someone in that situation might feel and how they might need to be supported. Daniel helps readers to see the value of showing and feelings ones emotions. This book is needed right now and I hope everyone reads it!

I was provided a free advanced copy of this book from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. See the end for teacher-specific feedback.

This is an important book, for so many reasons. As a cisgendered person who strives to be an LGBTQ+ ally, especially for my young students, I found this book an eye-opening walk in the shoes of someone struggling with gender fluidity and dysphoria. I thought that the author paid a ton of delicate care to these experiences, and getting the insight into Ash’s head really allowed the reader to feel the weight of Ash’s struggles and ultimately confidence as they worked their way through.

I thought that Ash’s dad was also an important and well-written character. Sometimes in books with LGBTQ+ kids and teens, the parent characters can feel like extremes- fully supportive, or wholly unsupportive and bigoted. In Ash’s dad, we see a nuanced take on a parent who really does want to do right by his kid, but just isn’t quite able to broaden his worldview enough to get there. He believes his opinion on how Ash should handle their gender identity is the right one to best protect Ash from the harshness of the world, but he also symbolizes all the adults in the world who don’t understand why genderfluid or non-binary folx can’t just ‘pick a lane and stay in it,’ so to speak. Ash’s mom helps Ash to process all of this, and both mom and Ash’s friends make it abundantly clear that Ash has no need to be anything other than who they are.

As if Ash’s character weren’t an awesome enough reason to read this book, we have Daniel, a boy struggling to be accepted by his family and friends because of his extreme emotional sensitivity. Like, whoa. Not only do we get a crash course in gender fluidity, we get to dive into toxic masculinity and what happens when boys fall outside the box of what our society thinks they should be. Daniel’s experiences provide so much basis for discussion with pre-teens about gender norms in our society and how those norms can be harmful to... well, everyone.

And, of course, the whole plot of this book centers around a weeks-long quest to save an elderly pup from euthanasia, because ultimately, as the reader learns, caring deeply about things is not a weakness, but a strength.

And this still doesn’t cover all the things I loved about this book. Ash’s mom was a great example of a caring and supportive adult, and Daniel’s parents were examples of what most parents are like- human beings who were never provided an instruction manual for their kids and are just trying to do the best they can. Parents who aren’t perfect, but are willing to listen to their kids, learn, and grow.

And now the teachery bit: This book needs to be in every middle school classroom library in America. Please, if you teach 6th and 7th graders, consider using this book for book clubs or even (if your community is open enough) a whole-class novel. There is nothing by way of inappropriate content or language (though most characters use the word “cuss” as a stand-in for bad words, but it’s kind of endearing in my opinion). Characters do kiss, but it doesn’t even approach making out. There are so many phenomenal discussions to be had here about empathy, understanding, identity, bullying, friendship, and gender norms in our society. Even outside of all that, the characterization is really great and the plot is interesting enough to keep readers turning the page. Dog-loving students, especially, might appreciate the quest to save Chewbarka. This would be a great book to practice theme, as students would be able to pull a variety of different themes out of this text to analyze. Characterization is also abundant here, not only in the main characters but the side characters as well. 10/10 do recommend.