Big thank you to Zando and NetGalley for letting me read this one early in exchange for my review!

✨ Found Family
✨ Unconventional friendships
✨ Small town
✨ Political Awareness
✨ All things transgender

Oh this damn book. I am not a general fiction reader when it comes to my reading habits. That was pushed aside promptly when I saw Woodworking in my inbox. This book takes you on an emotional journey, one that shouldn't be taken lightly, and as a non-binary person, this one really dug into the question, "what really happens when you finally say the words 'I'm transgender' out loud?"

This book takes you on the journey of a teacher who has just recently come out to themselves as a transgender woman, and her student, a transgender girl who just moved to the area. I loved their friendship, and no, it didn't get weird. It was wholesome and they really grew together as humans. They didn't date, they went to group therapy and texted questions that (as was mentioned in the book) could have probably been googled if it had been safe to do so.

This book is a message of heartache and growth and hope and love, I highly recommend everyone read it.

And if you're a trans person and in a space where you aren't able to come out or are unsafe in any way, know that I see you, and you are valid, real, and wanted here.

This book is an important one focusing on the lives of multiple trans women. Given the current administration’s efforts to erase and invalidate trans people this topic is as relevant as ever. These women want to live their lives and find happiness, but they have to do so at great peril to themselves. There is humanity in everyone and I felt connected to each of them in their attempts to make their way in a world that isn’t accepting of them. I hope people read this book with open hearts and minds.

Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for the ARC.

"Erica gets more of a pass. When you figure out who you are, you want to tell everyone, and you want to tell no one, so you settle for telling the first trans person you can think of, and then you assume they're going to be your personal advisor in the mysteries of our ways."

Erica, a thirty five year old, newly divorced trans woman, has only recently come out to herself. She reaches out to the only other trans woman in their tiny, conservative South Dakota town--Erica's seventeen year old, activist Literature student, Abigail. Bad idea, right?

Abigail becomes a begrudging trans mom to Erica, but as Erica has only come out to herself, her physical appearance has changed none. And, many in the school and community start to obscure the nature of their relationship.

Set in the shadows of the Clinton/Trump 2016 election, I found this to be an enlightening eye into the scores of experiences the trans community expresses themselves and the plethora of negative feelings they evoke via their very presence. The varied characters were extremely believable and darkly humorous. As an example, our young Abigail is fearless and self aware, but because she has been rejected and abused by her parents, she bristles often and is cutting in her relations to others (she really is just a teenage dirtbag--in the best way.)

Woodworking, the notion that trans people complete their transition and then function "in the woodwork" of society", was deeply comedic, biting satiric social commentary, and an commensurate example of how to interact with this group respectfully..

As a medical provider, I feel this fictional read was entertaining in the best way, but also gave me insight into how to react and speak to a small, but important population. In the spirit of faith, I always want to treat others as I would treat myself. Even though I don't have a close friend in this community, this book will help education of how this varied group wants to be treated. I can better education my team and am more comfortable training others to use pronouns correctly..

This isn't about me, but I appreciate works of fiction that dispel myths and extend knowledge of how to serve communities. Emily St James wrote a banger novel. It's funny, informative, and also about transgendered people.

Woodworking drops March 4 by Zando Publishing. Thankyou Netgalley for the advanced copy!

An eye opening read for me. The major characters are all transgender or in the process of transitioning so that alone makes it a novel topic for me. Thankfully it is not overtly political or about transgender athletes. These are real womem in a small town struggling with their identity, confronting doubts and fears and bigotry and dysfunctional families and rejection, relying on one another for support. Everyone will have their favorite character but for me the novel really “ took off” with the story of Brooks Daniels. Her story truly describes “woodworking”(blending in) and the terrible price she has paid. The book is a book club read for sure but the author’s note at the conclusion should be read several times!!!!!!

I received a free DRC of this book through Netgalley. It's important to read books about people who are different from you because guess what, life would be incredibly boring if we were all the same. Diversity is what makes life beautiful. Erika and Abigail are at different points in their transition/awareness of being transgender, but they help each other by recognizing each other. I liked the humanity expressed in this book by certain characters. This awareness that we have to help each other to make it through this life. The love and the pain that happens in relationships felt very real (although Abigail's parents made me want to drop them off into the deepest ocean for their unwillingness to accept and love their beautiful child).

Overall I enjoyed Woodworking! I thought Abigail and Erica's characters were SO well written and deeply related in many ways. This is such an important topic and for St. James to be able to write about it while also using wit and levity, it just created a wonderful story. Thank you so much for the ARC!

I really enjoyed Woodworking, from about a third of the way in.

Initially, I found the writing quite jarring. I didn’t feel Abigail’s perspective being littered with archetypal ‘teenage’ speak felt particularly realistic. However, as the story progressed I think that the shift in tone between each perspective really added to the reader’s understanding of both characters. I could also detect within St James’ writing a sense of character development which added to the reader’s growing connection to the characters.

I spent quite a lot of the book feeling uncomfortable about the student-teacher friendship. As someone with a background in child’s safeguarding, I understood the reasons behind it and how important a community can be within a setting like this, within a period of time in which you’re coming to terms being trans in a community that is deeply conservative. But I think the teacher-student nature of this was hard for me to look past and kept detaching me slightly from the story. However, this did bother me less throughout the book as Erica and Abigail gained friendships outside of each other and became part of a wider circle rather than a sole pair.

Despite this, the cast of characters that surround the women were pretty wonderful and I think there’s a real development of community throughout the book that brought me so much joy. The characters were given space to be wrong, flawed, annoying, unlikeable and still loveable and people who can learn and grow.

St James told the trans experience in such a sensitive, truthful way and it might be the most effective piece of literature I’ve read on the trans experience. Particularly in portraying a range of trans people and how the ‘big thing’ that connects them is so powerful yet leaves so much room for individuality and a differing of experience. I thought the impending 2018 election (resulting in Donald Trump’s first term) felt almost like a ticking time bomb. Knowing now who won the election and the horrible way that it has impacted the trans community made the story feel ever more real.

I thought the pacing was great, from halfway I couldn’t put it down. When I had to, Erica and Abigail were constantly on my mind.

I would be very keen to read anything else this author comes out with!

Thank you to the publisher and Netgalley for the ARC in exchange for an honest review.

Woodworking is a novel about being trans in small town America, as two trans women with little else in common become friends. Erica is thirty-five and recently divorced, a high school teacher who directs community theater and seemingly doesn't have much else on. She also knows she is a trans woman, but nobody else in the town does, until she tells Abigail, the school's only trans student. Abigail lives with her sister after her parents threw her out and beneath her tough exterior, she might just need Erica's friendship as much as Erica needs hers.

I'm not a fan of unlikely friendship novels, which tend to be trying too hard to be inspiring and end up bland and twee, but Woodworking is very much unlike those. I'd heard about the book so wanted to read it, and I'm really glad I did, as I love how it combines different genres of fiction that have been used to tell trans stories—the kind of thirtysomething divorce story and a young adult novel—into one book exploring the different experiences of different women, trans and cis. The narrative moves between Abigail's first person point of view and a third person narrator focused on Erica (with another voice later on that it would be too revealing to describe) and this gives a sense of the differences between them and their outlooks, but also where they have similar needs for community with other women, both trans women and cis women.

Another thing I really liked about Woodworking was the fact that characters are allowed to be flawed: messy, annoying, selfish, etc. In particular, reading Abigail's first person perspective as an adult can be frustrating, because St. James writes her very much as a teenager who has adopted certain defensiveness to survive, which is reflected in her tone. Both protagonists get frustrated and lash out at people, make bad choices, and even by the end, are still just trying to work out what futures they might have. Some people might not like this messiness, wanting characters who don't do "bad things", but it felt very fitting for a novel about different kinds of friendship and mentorship and the fact that these things aren't linear. To draw out the obvious point of the novel, Erica is thirty-five and needs to advice of a seventeen-year-old who already knows about things like trans support groups and coming out, but both characters need each other and many of the other characters in the book to see a future in which they don't have to hide.

I loved Woodworking and the way it explores ideas of hiding, existing, and community with gripping, messy characters. It is like if you crossed Detransition, Baby with a young adult novel about a teenage trans girl trying to balance rebellion and fitting in, and focused on the intersection between them.

Erica Skyberg is a thirty five year old high school English teacher. She lives in a small town in South Dakota. She is a trans woman who has not come out yet. She knows one other trans woman; Abigail, a seventeen year old high school senior who is one of her students. Against her will, Abigail becomes a mentor for Erica, and their relationship ends up surprising them both...
I loved this book. It's beautifully written, and the characters leap off the pages. I basically read it in one sitting. I was even more impressed to learn that this is the author's debut novel. Highly, highly recommended.

Thanks in advance to NetGalley for providing me with an advanced copy of this book in exchange for an unbiased review.

Woodworking by Emily St. James
#fifteenthbookof2025 #arc #woodworking

CW: misogyny, transphobia, assault and violence, rape, abortion, deadnaming

From NetGalley: Erica Skyberg is thirty-five years old, recently divorced—and trans. Not that she’s told anyone yet. Mitchell, South Dakota, isn’t exactly bursting with other trans women. Instead, she keeps to herself, teaching by day and directing community theater by night. That is, until Abigail Hawkes enters her orbit. Abigail is seventeen, Mitchell High’s resident political dissident and Only Trans Girl. It’s a role she plays faultlessly, albeit a little reluctantly, especially when she’s asked to spend her senior year secretly guiding her English teacher through her transition. But Abigail remembers the uncertainty—and loneliness—that comes with it. Besides, Erica isn’t the only one struggling to shed the weight of others’ expectations. As their unlikely friendship evolves, it comes under the increasing scrutiny of their community. And soon, both women—and those closest to them—are forced to ask: Who are we if we choose to hide ourselves? What happens once we disappear into the woodwork?

My thoughts: I have followed St. James’ writing since she wrote for the A.V. Club and Vox, and when I heard she’d written a book, I was all in. Her writing has always been tremendous and this book is excellent. It’s hard to read but really worth it. It’s about unlikely friendships and trans solidarity and supporting the trans community. Every character has their flaws and secrets, and I enjoyed that we saw the story from several different POVs. They don’t shy away from saying the uncomfortable things, especially regarding Erica and Abigail’s relationship. St. James wrote an incredible Author’s Note about the novel’s beginnings and the struggles that trans people faced then and now. It’s heartbreaking. This is highly recommended reading.

Thank you to @zandoprojects @crookedmedia and @netgalley for the advance copy. (Pub date is 3/4/25)

What a heartwarming read! It is the story of a
divorced man, a high school teacher in South Dakota, who is attempting to come out as trans. He finds out that one of his female students is also trans, having announced it in a full page newspaper ad. Inevitably the student becomes the a reluctant mentor to the teacher. Along the way we are introduced to a cast of characters, one whom is a closet trans. I hesitate to write more for fear of spoilers. I admired how the relationships developed and grew into friendship and love. I didn’t particularly care for such an intimate relationship between the teacher and student. It just felt off. I do feel it’s an important book that can lead to greater understanding.
I’d like to to thank Net Galley and the publisher for the ARC.

Set around the 2016 election, a closeted trans woman seeks out the only other out trans woman in her conservative small town: her student. It is both awful and necessary to read in the current political climate. It is the story of generations of trans women and the weight of prejudice, shame and the necessary path to safety. Woodworking is about the stories of different trans women, their identity and transness, and what it means to them. It's also about their loved ones, complicated relationship,s and the weight of secrets.

St James is incisive and doesn't pull her punches about some early transition behaviors but extends a lot of grace and compassion to her protagonists as well. In a reversal, it is the teen Abigail who is the voice of reason but also a voice of anger and revolt. And yet as a teen there is only so much she knows and can do.

There's also this growing anxiety when reading about a trans teacher befriending a trans teen knowing full well that she can get accused of the worst sexual crimes. While this part of the public opinion is hinted at and mentioned it never snowballed into a bigger conflict.

And there's the twist. I cried. Maybe some will see it coming but I didn't and I thought it was a nice touch to tie in the story together.

Thank you to NetGalley and Crooked Media Reads for this ARC!

Rating: 4.5 Stars rounded up.

Woodworking tells the stories of Erica, a 35 year old English teacher in a town in South Dakota, as well as her student Abigail, who is the first openly transgender person in their town. They form an unlikely friendship, based on the One Big Thing they have in common, and we follow their lives over the course of the next few weeks as they both try to figure out what they want – and need – their futures to look like.

This was a wonderful, extremely emotional read, but also one that I would personally say is told in an often light-hearted, very "inner voice" type of tone. You can really tell the age difference between Erica and Abigail when you read their POVs, which is very well-done if you ask me. I will admit that in the beginning I struggled a little with the very millennial writing tone that was chosen for Abigail, but once you've gotten used to that it feels like something to give the character a more real-life feeling.

There is one element of this I really would like to say more about but as I don't like putting spoilers in ARC reviews I will stick to what is immediately known; I thoroughly enjoyed reading from the perspectives of two trans women who are at completely different points in their lives and their transitions, and getting to join them as they figure things out together (and for themselves). I honestly really liked this sort of subversion of the "trans/queer elder" trope, with Abigail being the one further in her transition and publicly out, while at the start of the book Erica has only just admitted to herself that she is transgender. In general I felt like this book did a very good job of showing a variety of different ways of life for transgender women, and the ways in which they choose to handle their trans-ness. Obviously one book can never show the full spectrum of ways trans people choose to live, transition, love, but I do think that this is a very good representation of what the experience for many is likely like, although I did also enjoy the (somewhat) focus on older trans women who often transitioned later in life.

I've seen some other reviewers stating that they thought the friendship dynamic between Erica and Abigail was odd, but I find it perfectly reflective of the way that us people in the LGBT+ community will often latch onto others like us, even if our queerness is the only thing we have in common, especially when you live in an area where it is dangerous to be yourself, and therefore not many people choose to show who they are and who they love publicly. As someone who has had many friendships of the sort, this seemed like a very typical, mildly codependent and dysfunctional queer friendship, which is very relatable and was therefore enjoyable to read about.

As the world gets ever more dangerous for transgender people, but especially for transgender women, I think this is a very important read, and one I truly wish I could force every transphobe to read so that maybe they will see: Transgender people are people just like you!

This book is one with a message of hope, love, and how to care for each other at its heart. I truly can only wish that this book finds the right people, both those who need it to better understand themselves and those trying to understand those who are different to them.

These characters will live on in my mind for a long time. Such a harrowing book filled with heart and humor. (Parts of it gave me 'Somebody, Somewhere' vibes!)

I was so exited for this book but I ended up having a very hard time with it. The writing is just not for me. I did not finish, so I will give this a 3 star rating so as to not sway the average in any direction.

This review may contain spoilers, but I will tag the parts with spoilers appropriately. This review will most likely be very incoherent. It's 3am, I apologize.

So, where do I begin. If you watched "I Saw the TV Glow" and came out of the theater an uncontrollably sobbing mess, this book is for you! If "There is still time." written in chalk is forever burned in your memory, you will add this book to the list of unforgettable things. Because this debut novel doesn't shy away from uncomfortable truths, and in this novel, now becomes the time. ESJ knows exactly how to tell different stories of these women and their unconventional friendships and relationships, trans solidarity, family, hell, even the political situation in USA. To go back to ISTTG for a second, if you wished for a story in which Owen got a different ending by the end, you found it! Spoiler alert, maybe? It's the story in which Owen went with Maddy when they were teens. It's the story in which Owen had gotten a little lost on the way, but eventually found it again. But it's also so much more than that.

While reading this book, there were certain points during which I thought: "This part is unnecessary." or "This storyline would've worked without that." I now realize I'm wrong and I was simply unprepared for how larger than life this book is. I'm telling you now, don't judge some characters until the end. And I understand now that those seemingly redundant storylines are necessary to complete the book.

I wish I could share quotes to better demonstrate why I couldn't put this book down until I finished it, in one sitting. I truly tried writing this review without immediately crossing into the extremely personal admissions and comparatives, but this book makes that hard. It forces you to pick out your most deepest truths, deep in the sense of how far you have to dig to find them, and deep in sense of how many layers and skins it contains, and examine them closely. Every single character and how we see them interact with each other and the world will awaken emotions within you, that you, if you're like me, only acknowledge sporadically or not at all. Maybe that's why "Woodworking" hit me so hard. Either way, prepare for an emotional hurricane.

SPOILERS IN THE NEXT FIVE PARAGRAPHS!

Erica is who I am, in every way except I'm a STEM teacher and not an English teacher. At the beginning, her and Abigails friendship made me uncomfortable, simply because I was a teacher too and could never imagine myself crossing any of those boundaries, and because of how heavily Erica leaned on Abigail. I've been Abigail, and I am Erica, except I'm closer to 20 than 30, I figured out my gender a long time ago, and stayed in the closet. Maybe that's exactly like her too lol. When Erica asks why she should she get to transition, when she is paranoid, when she gets so scared of the possibility of the truth being a reality she pushes herself back into the closet, all of that was exceptionally well portrayed. I'm glad at least other characters acknowledged that Erica being so dependant on a seventeen year old was maybe not the best idea (Bernadette and Helen my ride or dies, best side characters everrrrr).

But I also realize being queer and figuring your own stuff out, we all turn to each other. We need to, we have to, we must. We're all we have. Sometimes that's your student, sometimes that's an old trans woman in a nursing home. Idk, this part I need to sit with for a bit longer.

It physically hurt when that one chapter switched pronouns. That was such a brutal move, I can't help but admire how simple yet genius the pronoun switch is. The hidden dead name being repeated over and over and over again in every sentence, as a vain attempt to convince herself that is her name and that is who she is like repeating it will make it real. God.

Abigails character was such a force. Force of what, I'm not sure but a force to be reckoned with indeed. Wanted to scream when she made plans to run away because, I've been there. Her story had a satisfying conclusion I'm very grateful for. I'm glad both her and Erica find friends and hope in this sometimes painful world.

The choice to write Ericas chapter in 3rd person and Abigails in 1st person is more and more incredible the more I think about it. And Brookes chapters? Those were brilliant. Saying just "brilliant" doesn't feel enough. Her story and the way it was written knocked air out of my lungs, and the last chapter with Caleb and better-late-than-never confessions and letters made me breathe again. Decimated me and then put me back together. You get the jist. Emphasis on _other_ women, _other_ girls was such a neat detail. Ugh. I love language.

END OF SPOILERS.


I have sooooooooooooo much more to say. Masterfully crafted novel, incredibly thought out story, with a cast of characters so colorful and alive, because they are. It's me, and you, and your trans colleague, barista, person on the street.

Nothing I say about "Woodworking" will ever be enough. Pick up this book, see for yourself. It will make you feel. By the end of it, you might just find courage to live your life. There is still time, and you're not alone. People need people, and we only have each other.

Last but not least, thank you to the publisher anddd NetGalley for an ARC in exchange for an honest review! Might be a bit too honest.

A beautiful and emotional novel surrounding trans friendships and relationships. I love the different perspectives, because transness is different for everyone. This is such a great book with the found family trope. I will be reading everything else Emily St. James publishes.

Thank you to the publisher for the e-copy. All thoughts and opinions are my own.

This book is one of the best books I’ve ever read. And I know it will live with me forever. I cannot wait to get a physical copy of the book so I can annotate and tab it up like it deserves.

“We are, none of us, a single set of destinies set by the accident of our birth. We can change and be changed. Our bodies know the language they must speak to make us the people we must become.”

In the author’s note St. James discusses her hopes for this novel: to write about trans solidarity and unlikely friendship and the ways in which women build shadow communities amid oppressive power structures. Which she did, beautifully & masterfully and as a debut novel. She also notes that she didn’t want this to be political, but in this state of the world how it is inherently political regardless of her intention. And to that I want to note that we know that reading is, by its nature, a political act; it cannot be separated from daily politics or societal concerns. Readers are encouraged by what they read. They are given hope and they are angered. They are shocked and dismayed. Some are so moved by the books they read that they take very visible action to promote change in the world. With others, the effects are more subtle, but they are undeniably there. We carry what we read with us. I hope that readers take this book with them. If not to take visible action, but to show empathy, acceptance, and understanding of others. To help forge a new path for society, one that is awake to the injustices around them and works together to create a better future.

The way in which this story is crafted, alternating primarily between Erica’s third-person chapters and Abigail’s first-person chapters, is mesmerizing. St. James illustrates the stark contrast between Erica’s attempts to finally be seen for who she really is to Abigail’s desire for “woodworking,” or disappearing into the woodwork as a sense of normalcy she thinks she needs. This novel is equal parts funny and poignant. Just know that this has been a transcendent experience for me, one that is emotional, yet, beautiful in the awkwardness of growing up & allowing the world the privilege to see who you truly are.

Honestly, no notes. 5 stars.

This debut novel will appeal to fans of Detransition Baby and other readers interested in coming-of-age stories and/or narratives with a focus on the unique challenges transgender women face in a profoundly unsafe world. The characters at the center of this—Erica, a recently divorced teacher who has not come out as trans, and her student Abigail, a seventeen-year-old trans girl who in essence guides Erica through her transition. Set in Mitchell, South Dakota, the story includes poignant moments where each character references instances of passing whether for approval or survival that will resonate (e.g., learning to fish as a way of briefly pleasing a father). The story is told in journals and with such palpable feelings that the reader cannot help but experience their trauma and pain as they come under scrutiny. This is a book to read and share with anyone who might feel unseen—and the people who care about them (or, perhaps the people who do not see them).

I absolutely demolished this ARC. Emily St James has created a beautiful, hopeful but harshly realistic novel that documents the experience of trans people during the political landscape of 2016 (and onwards).

The characters of Erica and Abigail, and all their surrounding family, friends, enemies etc are written so magically I was completely absorbed into the town of Mitchell and their lives. Both the conversations and descriptive passages felt so real and I truly feel that I got to know these (fictional but all too real) women during my time reading.

I will definitely be recommending this book to people I know, and I know the characters will stay with me for a long time.