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Parrotfish

3.75 of 5 stars 3.75 · rating details · 1,865 ratings · 244 reviews

Last week I cut my hair, bought some boys' clothes and shoes, wrapped a large ACE bandage around my chest to flatten my fortunately-not-large breasts, and began looking for a new name.

Angela Katz-McNair has never felt quite right as a girl. Her whole life is leading up to the day she decides to become Grady, a guy. While coming out as transgendered feels right to Grady,

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Hardcover, 294 pages

Published July 10th 2007 by Simon & Schuster Books for Young Readers

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Jun 07, 2012 Kira rated it 3 of 5 stars Recommends it for: Sharks and preteens

Recommended to Kira by: A shark who eats preteens

Shelves: not-amazing-but-not-shit, ya, could-have-been-worse

So a few months ago while I was still living in my last house, which I shared with a formerly-estranged family member, I was rooting through the kitchen cupboard looking for a snack when I came across a packet of Twizzlers.

I'd never tasted Twizzlers before, because duh, I'm British and whenever I wanted candy in the UK, I'd go to the nearest Post Office and buy it in grams, over the counter, from a lady who'd been working there since she was twenty-five, and now had glasses on a chain. She'd we...more

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Oct 03, 2007 Evan rated it 3 of 5 stars Recommends it for: anyone who is trans or knows someone or is just interested

Shelves: youngadultfiction

I think this book as far as I know is the first YA book that deals with a female to male transperson as it's main character. Another YA book, named Luna by Julie Ann Peters has a male to female transperson as it's main character. This book takes place in about a month's time. From the weekend after Thanksgiving till Christmas time. The week before the book starts, Grady has cut his hair in the style of a boy and bought boy clothes. He tells his family and the people in his life that his new name...more I think this book as far as I know is the first YA book that deals with a female to male transperson as it's main character. Another YA book, named Luna by Julie Ann Peters has a male to female transperson as it's main character. This book takes place in about a month's time. From the weekend after Thanksgiving till Christmas time. The week before the book starts, Grady has cut his hair in the style of a boy and bought boy clothes. He tells his family and the people in his life that his new name is Grady. He's no longer Angela. He has a younger sister named Laura who is at first mortified by his news. He also as a little brother named Charlie who seems to understand. His dad adapts rather quickly. His mom is angry and dealing. His best friend Eve that he's known for 12 years has more or less abandoned him. She doesn't want to be associated with him in public. Grady does get some support though. His gym teacher allows him to shower and dress in her bathroom so he won't feel uncomfortable and/or have problems with the other kids. He meets a new friend name Sebastian (I've loved that name ever since the Neverending Story) who is incredibly supportive. There's a very pretty girl named Kita who likes him likes him and her boyfriend/maybe exboyfriend/boyfriend again who likes Grady as a friend.
Some of the kids at school try to humiliate him. There's one particularly mean-spirited person named Danya who goes out of her way to make other's lives miserable. Most of his teachers are supportive. There's only one teacher and Grady's principal who decide not to change his name figuring he's just attention seeking or that he should wait till he's older to do this. There's one thing that is missing from this book. The threat of violence. Situations like this at times bring out the worst in people. Grady is truly one of the lucky ones.
I didn't care for the writing style of this book all that much. I also feel that talking a bit more of Grady's thought process of being a boy or his decision process to come out at this time was a missed opportunity. (I really don't like to judge a book based on what wasn't there but here I've done just that) I feel that the supporting characters were more fleshed out and present in the story than Grady was and this is sad because it is told from his point of view.
A cool thing about this book is that there's a list of books that the writer used to help her along listed at the end of the book. There are also organizations and websites for support and further information. I think this book is important for it's subject matter and it's timeliness. I feel that it is a good book for young people and adults.
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Mar 05, 2008 Colin rated it 3 of 5 stars

Shelves: queer, genderstudies, fiction, youngadultlit

This book is Friendly and Educational. The author was clearly trying to write a book that encourages trans kids, and because of that it was totally unrealistic, with well-informed and sympathetic allies coming out of the woodwork, the school bullies conveniently dispatched and made to look like ignorant fools, an accepting family and even a kiss from the most popular girl in school. Because of all these happy things, it's pretty adorable, though. It's way better than its transgirl counterpart, L...more

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Dec 11, 2007 PVPA Library rated it 3 of 5 stars Recommends it for: people wanting to know more about transgendered teens

Shelves: realistic-fiction

i'm tired of coming out books. sure, it's necessary to explain to folks through fiction what the life of a tranny can be like, but i'd prefer to have tranny people living real lives with other struggles who are totally okay with being tranny. same goes for other kinds of queer. let's have some good love stories or coming of age stories or fantasy stories where the characters just happen to be queer or tranny. so, this book is a good intro for beginners or teens desperate to see themselves (f2m)...more

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Jan 26, 2009 Coffeeboss rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: festival-of-the-gays, young-adult

At the start of Parrotfish, teenage Angela has just announced to her family and the world that she would like to be addressed as he, and his new name is Grady. As the narrator, Grady is totally believable as a teenage boy that just happens to be stuck in the wrong body. He can't see why others have such a problem with it, while at the same time encounters acceptance in surprising places. His old best friend (a girl) has a hard time with the whole thing, but he finds a new pal in the geeky Sebast...more

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Oct 22, 2008 Anina Ertel rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: teen

This book is about a transgendered teen exploring his identity.

I really liked it because it did not skirt any aspects of his experience. This is the only YA book I know that discusses these issues that way. (If you know of any others, please recommednd them to me though).

The one critique I have is that the 14 year old protaganist was so calm and knowledgeable about his situtaion that to me it was not believable. He was able to calmly respond to every teacher, parent, and mean kid's comments with...more

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Oct 17, 2007 Jack rated it 2 of 5 stars

am i allowed to be critical of a book of such monumental importance?

if i am, i have to say that i've read about three hundred books by better writers. but i've never read one about a teenaged ftm who is transitioning with pride and courage.

so, i'm conflicted.

issue driven books. morals. badly written dialogue. woefully pedestrian metaphors about christmas, babies, and napoleon dynamite.

then, pride and courage and sadness and confusion and good friends and family coming around.

what to say?

6 likes · like · see review

Dec 29, 2008 Tara Lynn rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: booklist-for-2008

I think I've already said in other reviews for LGBT books, that it used to be extremely hard to find books for LGBT teenagers. Many of the books available to teenagers when I was younger were books meant for adults. From what I've seen, only in the past ten years or so have books dealing with gender and sexual orientation issues really been available to teenagers looking for a voice that represented their own ages. This story, about a girl's life changing decision to become male, is sweet, and c...more

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Feb 27, 2013 Lyndsey Rushby rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: ya

Parrotfish is told from protagonist Grady’s point of view. However, Grady was actually born a girl although has never felt like one. Set in modern day America, Grady comes out to his family as transgendered and expresses his wishes to be called Grady, instead of Angela. Grady was a cute character, knowing exactly who he was and what he wanted out of life. It was refreshing to see someone so confident in themselves, especially someone going through the struggles of people understanding him. Grady...more Parrotfish is told from protagonist Grady’s point of view. However, Grady was actually born a girl although has never felt like one. Set in modern day America, Grady comes out to his family as transgendered and expresses his wishes to be called Grady, instead of Angela. Grady was a cute character, knowing exactly who he was and what he wanted out of life. It was refreshing to see someone so confident in themselves, especially someone going through the struggles of people understanding him. Grady has a wonderful narrative voice, if not a bit juvenile at times.

This book is all about coming out as transgendered and other people’s reactions. Society can still be very harsh when it comes to people a little hard to understand sometimes, people who are different from the norm. Not only does this book show Grady’s struggles at school but also in his home life. While his father is pretty understanding, just wanting Grady to be happy, his mother is not quite the same. She has trouble understanding why Angela wants to be called Grady, why her precious daughter chopped off her hair and wears boys clothes from a charity shop. Ellen Wittlinger shows that sometimes it is family members who have the hardest time accepting change and I think she did a great job in showing this through Grady’s mother.

At school, Grady’s life is far from easy. Most of the other kids don’t know what to do or say when teachers start calling Angela Grady. Some of the kids don’t really have a problem with him at all but then there are a select few characters who are determined to make Grady’s life hell. I felt so sorry for Grady during the times set in school because all he wanted to do was get on with his life as he felt was right but instead, he was subjected to some quite harsh bullying. However, there are some saviours at school for Grady such as his gym teacher and new found friends Sebastian and Kita. These secondary characters were fantastic and it was nice to see that Grady did have people that understood him.

Parrotfish is heart-warming and extremely informative about a subject I barely knew anything about. Wittlinger’s writing makes you fall in love with her characters and really hope everything works out okay for them. (less)

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Aug 22, 2012 Courtney rated it 5 of 5 stars

"Sometimes I wish we didn't have to be one thing or the other. You know, male or female. I wish there wasn't that big division between the two. Does that make any sense?" So asks Grady, the narrator of Parrotfish, which derives the title from a species that changes gender when they need to and become aptly, the alpha males of a brilliant green with a yellow stripe. Grady, unfortuantely, does not have such an easy transition. When he decides to come out to the world as a boy between Thanksgiving...more

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Mar 16, 2012 Samantha Boyette rated it 5 of 5 stars

Shelves: 2012

This is the sort of book that I love. It only took me a day to read it because I almost couldn't put it down. Great story, great writing, great characters.

Angela has just decided she is going to be Grady. Though the decision seems abrupt to her friends and family, he's always known that inside the girl body, he was a boy. So he cuts his hair, buys some guys clothes, and starts living life as a boy.

Grady is perfectly written, even before you know what is happening, it sounds like a boy. Usually I...more

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Mar 15, 2012 Erik Garrity rated it 5 of 5 stars

Shelves: ya-lgbt

What do you do when you come to the realization that you are a boy trapped in a girl’s body? Why, you tell everyone of course! This is exactly what Angela did in this novel. She first announced her decision to her family that she was no longer a girl but a boy and no longer wished to be called Angela but “Grady”. She then told her teachers the same thing, including the principal. As you can imagine, the reaction was mixed.

What follows is an account of Grady’s life at at school, life at home and...more

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Dec 18, 2011 Christine rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: english-412-reviews

I believe that parrotfish is an excellent read for young adults. This book focuses on the main character, Angela; also known as Grady, and his courage to admit to himself and his family that he is transgendered; from female to male. He has the courage to be himself in front of his family and friends at the same time as he is revealing it to himself. Although as to be expected, there are hardships and difficulty with this process, Grady remains true to himself and doing so, forces those around hi...more

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Nov 01, 2011 Michele Varela rated it 4 of 5 stars

Parrotfish, by Ellen Wittlinger,is a story about a teenage girl who decides to finally become a boy because she has always felt that she wasn't meant to be a girl. The title of the book is very creative because a parrotfish is a species of fish which also changes genders. Parrotfish are generally female in the initial development process and change to males. The protaganist, formerly known as Angela, then Grady, seems secure in his decision, but has issues with those around him who have a hard...more

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Oct 18, 2011 Meghan rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: engl-412-reviews

Angela, who was born a female, had always felt like a boy trapped in a girl’s body. When he finally decides to live his life as a male and change his name to Grady during his sophomore year of high school, his school and home life begin to dramatically change. His fellow peers, who at first ignored his existence, begin to cruelly mock his transformation.

Throughout the book, the readers watch Grady’s family mourn the loss of their daughter and sister and gain a son and brother. Although Grady’s f...more

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Oct 16, 2011 Megan Mann rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: eng-412

"Sometimes it's hard to remember that by tomorrow or next week or at least next year, the stuff that seems awful today might actually be funny. That what makes you miserable today will later on in life be a good story to tell your friends."

Angela is who Grady used to be. That is, when he was living his life as a girl. When he discovered that he had Gender Dysphoria and decided to live his life as a male, he chose a name that sounded like a gray area, which is sort of what he felt like he was li...more

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Oct 07, 2011 April rated it 5 of 5 stars

Shelves: puc-engl-412-adolescent-fiction

"And why was changing gender such a big honking deal anyway? People changed lots of other personal things all the time. They dyed their hair and dieted themselves to near death. They took steroids to build muscles and got breast implants and nose jobs so they'd resemble their favorite movie stars. They changed names and majors and jobs and husbands and wives. They changed religions and political parties. They moved across the country or the world-even changed nationalities. Why was gender the on...more "And why was changing gender such a big honking deal anyway? People changed lots of other personal things all the time. They dyed their hair and dieted themselves to near death. They took steroids to build muscles and got breast implants and nose jobs so they'd resemble their favorite movie stars. They changed names and majors and jobs and husbands and wives. They changed religions and political parties. They moved across the country or the world-even changed nationalities. Why was gender the one sacred thing we weren't supposed to change? Who made that rule?"

This is the main question of Grady's life and something that is not easily answered. It's also something that no one seems to understand, except maybe, Sebastian Shipely and his new found knowledge of the Parrotfish. Which is all fine and dandy, but Grady isn't a fish. Grady is just a teenager looking for love and understanding like everyone else. How can he expect it from others, when he is struggling so hard to find it in himself?

This book definitely hits a hard subject, which makes it good YA fodder. I thought that was an interesting choice to tell it from the point of view of a transgendered female to male, rather than male to female. It also made me think of the tragic, real-life story behind Brandon Teena, subject of the movie, Boys Don’t Cry, which came out in 1999. Of course, the story is not dark at all in relation to the life of Brandon Teena, but rather a more positive response to something so horrific. I have discovered that that is something that YA often does; respond to life events.

At times the story felt a little too positive, a little too unrealistic. But as I’ve never read any novel about transgendered people before, I have no idea if this is because there is too much darkness and not enough light in their world of reading. This is definitely aimed at the LGBT teen community, but I think would also be a valuable tool to be given to their friends and family as well. I think that girls outside the community would also be drawn to it, in the 15 and up range. I don’t think I can say the same for boys outside of the community, although perhaps there are boys out there like Sebastian, who need their own hero.

I would say that this book is far more teachable than Annie On My Mind, and I think that I actually prefer it to that book. I can imagine it not going over well with some parents, though. But there will always be “some parents” out there and their kids are the ones who can often benefit the most from reading a book like this. They can learn acceptance and tolerance with that age old “Be Who You Are” message.

I liked it. It was a fun and fast read, with a lot of self-questioning that I certainly related to when I was that age and still do now as an adult, even if I’m not LGBT. That was the beauty of this novel, really. Though its protagonist is struggling with transgender issues, there are a lot of questions that most of us have growing up and changing, both physically and mentally.
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Apr 25, 2011 Christina rated it 3 of 5 stars

Shelves: 11th-grade-advisory

By: Ellen Wittlinger pages:294

Parrotfish by Ellen Wittlinger is a story about a girl named Angela who is uncomfortable in her body because she feels like she wasnt meant to be a girl. Angela is in high school and when she figured out she wasnt meant to be a girl she changed her name to Grady and began wearing men's clothes and she told her friends and family about how she felt and she wanted them to refer to her as Grady. Grady went to school and was teased and rediculed by the people at school...more

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Apr 07, 2011 Evelyn rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: transgender

This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it, click here.

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Jan 06, 2011 Travis rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: 2009

I wanted to like this book more, because it's the only YA book I know with a transgender protagonist (Julie Ann Peters' Luna was great, but it's more about being the sister of someone who is trans), hell, one of the few books with a transgender protaginist, period. But the writing isn't that great. First-person narration is used as a way to do massive info dumping, and the dialogue is often unnatural-sounding. But I liked the story a lot and I do think it's worth reading for that.[return][return...more I wanted to like this book more, because it's the only YA book I know with a transgender protagonist (Julie Ann Peters' Luna was great, but it's more about being the sister of someone who is trans), hell, one of the few books with a transgender protaginist, period. But the writing isn't that great. First-person narration is used as a way to do massive info dumping, and the dialogue is often unnatural-sounding. But I liked the story a lot and I do think it's worth reading for that.[return][return]It's interesting in that it's not about the main character's coming to terms with being trans, but rather with everyone else coming to terms with it. At the start of the story, Grady is already out to his family and about to start going to school as a guy. There is some of the above-mentioned info dumping to tell us about his decisions, but it's definitely not the story I was expecting. It really doesn't touch on that aspect much at all. So in a way, like Luna, even though the protagnist is trans himself, the book reads to me as "how to treat trans people when you encounter them" (it's a YA problem novel; of course it has a message).[return][return]It's got some problems, though, other than with the writing. [return][return]First off, there are no fat people in the story except for Grady's spoiled brat little brother. The only people who are described physically are all explicitly skinny except for him, and his weight is constantly brought up as part of him being a spoiled brat. All he does is sit around all day and watch TV and play video games while stuffing his face with "Cheez Doodles". Yes, it actually says that. Many times. He's also called Chubby Charlie and Chunky Charlie, and there are near constant references to his weight and how he stuffs himself.[return][return]It's especially galling in a book that's supposed to be setting an example to kids about not treating people badly just because they're different. Be nice to the trans kids, but go ahead and slag off the fatties because they're all just lazy slugs who deserve it for stuffing their faces 24/7.[return][return]Now, by the end of the book, Grady does start to treat his brother better, but that still doesn't change the fact that we have one portrayal of a fat person and he is explicitly fat because he's lazy and overeats. [return][return]There's also the problem of Kita. She is the only character of color, and is definitely exoticised for it. She's half-Japanese and half-black, and while the word "exotic" was never used, we get lines like "What a beautiful face it was, her double ethnicities weaving themselves around each other in perfect harmony." Um...ick? Points for having the main love interest be non-white, but points off for no other characters of color and for exoticising the one you have.[return][return]And then there's Grady himself. There's a lot of talk about how he ~*~understands~*~ women and is just a better person than a cis guy. I've seen this attitude a lot and it's not cool. There are asshole trans guys who are just as macho and sexist as any cis guy. Being trans does not make you magically some sort of better-than-a-"real"-man man, and it's annoying to see it presented that way here. The way everyone confides in Grady because he's this boy-girl whom everyone feels they can talk to reminded me a lot of how Haru is portrayed in the manga IS.[return][return]There's also the matter of everyone else hooking up except for Grady. His old best friend hooks up with his new best friend, and the girl he likes kinda likes him back, but in the end gets back together with her ex-boyfriend. I don't need for a story to be a romance, but it does stick out when everyone around is hooking up except the trans character.[return][return]Which brings me to...our old friend heteronormativity. Everyone's straight. Even Grady is straight. He thought he was a lesbian, but now he's nice and heterosexual, just like everyone else we meet in the story. Are there even any books with queer trans characters? It seems like all the ones I know of are straight.[return][return]Wow, I really went on about the problems. But I still think it's a good book, and I'm glad it's out there, and I think people should check it out if they have an interest in the subject matter. I just wish it were better.(less)

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Oct 08, 2010 Love YA Lit rated it 4 of 5 stars

Nora's Review: Parrotfish is the tale of Grady McNair – formerly known as Angela McNair. All of his life, Grady felt out of place as a girl. So once he enters high school, he decides to transition into being a boy. He bravely informs his schoolmates and teachers of his change, and is greeted with various reactions. His gym teacher is surprisingly sympathetic, but his best friend is not.

Along the way, Grady makes new friends, and begins to figure out who he really is. Grady is almost too good of...more

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Mar 23, 2010 Carol rated it 4 of 5 stars

PARROTFISH is an excellent book to introduce the topic of transgendered people. Grady lived life as a girl until high school when he finally decided he couldn't pretend anymore. He had always felt like a boy. He deals with his family; his father and younger brother accept his decision to transition more easily than his mother and sister. Older sister Laura feels traumatized by all the gossip about her brother at school. Grady loses for a time his best friend Eve who is trying to become friends w...more

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Mar 04, 2010 Alex rated it 3 of 5 stars

Shelves: young-adult, queer, fiction, gender-queer

While I did enjoy this novel, I think I either had my expectations set too high or something, because it kind of let me down. The main character didn't particularly pull me or make me feel incredibly involved in the story--but the side characters did. It's interesting that the main character chooses the name Grady ("Because it has 'gray' in it") because he is just that, gray, especially when compared to colorful characters like Sebastian.

I suppose the dullness of the character works to make him...more

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Jan 10, 2010 Steve Duong rated it 4 of 5 stars

Parrotfish have the unique ability to change between genders whenever an imbalance of male female ratio spawn. What does this have to do with a people that suddenly feel they are of a different sex? This book is among other things educational. I can't say I fully understood/understand transformations or "gender dysphoria" but I try. I could understand if I'll be shunned or granted title "Universal Idiot" but my thing used to be, "You can say your a car till the sun explode, but you'll never be a...more Parrotfish have the unique ability to change between genders whenever an imbalance of male female ratio spawn. What does this have to do with a people that suddenly feel they are of a different sex? This book is among other things educational. I can't say I fully understood/understand transformations or "gender dysphoria" but I try. I could understand if I'll be shunned or granted title "Universal Idiot" but my thing used to be, "You can say your a car till the sun explode, but you'll never be a car." which is metaphor for, "You can say your a boy, but no matter what, your not, your a girl." Insensitive, I know. But this book really does open my eyes wider (I mean I don't like to think of myself as narrow minded) and really gives me a new perspective on things. Given how gender is much more then penis and vagina, or how much hair you have on your head. It's something mysteriously located in the uncharted brain.

---
but enough of that.
Parrot Fish is really about a a girl, Angela figuring herself on the field of sexes. She doesn't feel like a girl but more "male". Her family doesn't understand her but they try. Her one and only friend Eve doesn't understand her, and temporarily disconnects all ties she has with her to be friends with the "In" crowd at school and above all, she Angela (which has chosen a name to match her gender, Grady) does not understand her transformation. This doesn't hit everyone like a bag of bricks, she softens this impact because of her "coming-out" last year. This is just another step in her overall transformation. The story has your usual antagonists, the egotistical school bitch, the one who doesn't understand and thinks she's doing the public a service by condemning our protagonist. Understandable.

Grady is an interesting character, if your on the very outskirts of the idea of transgendered, she would gladly fill you in on the already murky waters. It's interesting because I can relate to the confusion that Grady has very well, almost like she doesn't know about her transformation as much as I do. You'd probably get the idea that she is a hard strong confident character from her cynical humor in her monologues but that's somewhat contrary. She's a meek character that's doing anything that she can to just survive. She's not an aggressor.
A well deserving 4 star read, Ellen Wittlinger is an author that I'd probably read another book from. (less)

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Sep 26, 2009 Bunker rated it 5 of 5 stars

Angela Katz-McNair has already come out to her family, her only friend, and her entire high school as a lesbian. When that identity still does not feel right, Angela finds that she not only does not identify with heterosexual females, she also does not identify with females in general. Angela is meant to be Grady, and with this fulfilling discovery, Grady begins a courageous battle to be understood and accepted on the outside for the person he has always known himself to be inside.

The transgend...more

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Sep 07, 2009 Alexander rated it 3 of 5 stars

Shelves: summer-09

This book is about a girl named Angela, who concludes that she is really a boy trapped in a girl's body. Angela knows what society expects of her, a girl; However, she does not agree with it. She wants to be known as Grady, an individual of the opposite sex. This book talks about his desire to grow up and find his own identity and the obstacles he faces along the way. He does not only struggle physically, like with the changes to his feminine pubescent body, but also mentally and physically beca...more

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Sep 18, 2010 Kristin rated it 5 of 5 stars

Parrotfish gets its name from the Caribbean fish that can change its gender from female to male as the fish population requires it. This is something Angela Katz-McNair can relate to. When the book begins, it's the day after Thanksgiving and in the midst of putting up Christmas decorations, Angela tells his family that he's not Angela anymore- he's Grady ("because it's gray, like me"), and he's a boy.
You might expect a book about such a topic to be sad, even tragic as the teenaged Grady faces o...more

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Jul 27, 2009 Sonia rated it 5 of 5 stars

I really enjoyed this one- more than her other GLBT-themed A Hard Love. I've read a lot of complaints that it's too much like an afterschool special but I don't see why every YA coming out story has to be so horrible. Grady (formerly Angela) does lose friends, struggles with his family's acceptance and has a hard time at school. Just because it has a happy ending doesn't make it unrealistic- it just makes it another possibility- maybe not everyone gets thrown out of their house, loses all their...more

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Dec 06, 2012 Robin rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: friendship, glbq, love-and-dating, young-adult

Wittlinger does an interesting and useful thing here. She has written a "safe" book about the spectrum of gender and sex and what it might be like to be born into one category but always feel you are another. It's honest but not graphic.

What I like the most about this is that Grady is just a regular kid navigating all the usual high school pathways: shifting friendships, discovering his ambitions, having a first crush, arguing with siblings, and negotiating for new family roles with parents. Th...more

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Jun 07, 2011 Lorettajo Kapinos rated it 5 of 5 stars Recommends it for: Anyone struggling with self identity

Recommended to Lorettajo by: My niece

My complete writer's review can be found at; http://lorettajokapinos.blogspot.com/...

Here's an excerpt:

Parrotfish is the type of book I'd recommend to anyone person trying to break free from labels and stereotypes. There's a lot of discussion involving that topic. Yes, the main character has changed gender, but the book is really about MORE than that. It's about individuality, self-acceptance and well, let's face it, helping others accept who YOU really are. I'm not gay or in confusion about my...more

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About Ellen Wittlinger

Ellen Wittlinger is the critically acclaimed author of the teen novels Heart on My Sleeve, The Long Night of Leo and Bree, Razzle, What's in a Name, and Hard Love (an American Library Association Michael L. Printz Honor Book, a Lambda Literary Award winner, and a Booklist Editors' Choice). She has a bachelor's degree from Millikin University in Decatur, Illinois, and an M.F.A. from the University...more

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Trivia About Parrotfish

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Quotes from Parrotfish

“People changed lots of other personal things all the time. They dyed their hair and dieted themselves to near death. They took steroids to build muscles and got breast implants and nose jobs so they'd resemble their favorite movie stars. They changed names and majors and jobs and husbands and wives. They changed religions and political parties. They moved across the country or the world -- even changed nationalities. Why was gender the one sacred thing we weren’t supposed to change? Who made that rule?” — 41 people liked it

“But you can only lie about who you are for so long without going crazy.” — 13 people liked it

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Parrotfish

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