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Spin with Me
In this elegant dual narrative, Essie is a thirteen-year-old girl feeling glum about starting a new school after her professor dad takes a temporary teaching position in a different town. She has 110 days here and can't wait for them to end. Then she meets Ollie: delicate, blue eyes, short hair, easy smile. At first, Essie thinks she has a typical crush on a beautiful boy. But as her crush blossoms, she soon realizes that Ollie is not a boy or a girl, but gender non-binary.
Meanwhile, Ollie is experiencing a crush of their own . . . on Essie. As Ollie struggles to balance their passion for queer advocacy with their other interests, they slowly find themselves falling for a girl whose stay is about to come to an end. Can the two unwind their merry-go-round of feelings before it's too late?
Meanwhile, Ollie is experiencing a crush of their own . . . on Essie. As Ollie struggles to balance their passion for queer advocacy with their other interests, they slowly find themselves falling for a girl whose stay is about to come to an end. Can the two unwind their merry-go-round of feelings before it's too late?
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First published February 16, 2021
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 213 reviews
October 1, 2021
There's a difference between having a book with a fast pace and having a book with scenes so short that it feels like stuff is being ignored or glazed over. Both Ollie and Essie had a chunk of the book devoted to them, something I wasn't a huge fan of because you were essentially reading the same story twice, and it wasn't the sort of story with major twists and turns where "I wonder what X was thinking?" would be a big driving factor for reading; it just felt like Polonsky ran out of ideas and wanted to make the book longer. I also wasn't a huge fan of Ollie's characterization; I feel like a big chunk of their character was just explaining what nonbinary means to cis people, which is...fine, because this is a middle grade book and meant to teach kids who are otherwise unfamiliar with nonbinary identities what they are, but it sometimes felt like Ollie was just a Manic Pixie Dream Enby as opposed to a fully-realized character, even in their part of the book.
I like what this book represents and I like that there's a book with a nonbinary major character/love interest in middle grade (and that Ami Polonsky wrote this based off of one of her kids, how sweet is that?) and that there was a nonbinary adult character (especially one who was afab and presented femme but was never misgendered!!) but I was very underwhelmed by this book.
I like what this book represents and I like that there's a book with a nonbinary major character/love interest in middle grade (and that Ami Polonsky wrote this based off of one of her kids, how sweet is that?) and that there was a nonbinary adult character (especially one who was afab and presented femme but was never misgendered!!) but I was very underwhelmed by this book.
March 9, 2021
This is one of those stories that I think is so important to get into the hands of young readers.
Spin with Me features a dual narrative POV that first begins with Essie then later shifts to Ollie.
Essie is a thirteen year old who is apprehensive about being the new girl in middle school while her dad takes on a temporary faculty position at one of the local universities. She only has 110 days at her new school, but her feelings change when she develops a crush on Ollie.
Ollie is nonbinary. Ollie struggles with balancing being an advocate for the queer community versus just being a kid with a crush.
This is an incredible coming of age story that allows young people to explore identities and labels, and what that means for them.
I love that non only do we have on page nonbinary rep, but we also go on page pansexual rep! This is something that needs to be discussed well before adulthood and that needs to be normalized.
I’ve seen some negative criticisms regarding Essie being hung up on labels, but I really want people to take a step back and remember that story features 13 year olds in middle school. Essie questions labels and identity in order to understand both herself and her feelings for Ollie, which are both healthy and never leads to misgendering of Ollie.
Overall, I would love to see more stories like this in both middle grade and adult. This book was just one big hug, and I can’t wait to read more like it.
Thank you to FSG for providing a review copy. This did not influence my review. All opinions are my own.
Spin with Me features a dual narrative POV that first begins with Essie then later shifts to Ollie.
Essie is a thirteen year old who is apprehensive about being the new girl in middle school while her dad takes on a temporary faculty position at one of the local universities. She only has 110 days at her new school, but her feelings change when she develops a crush on Ollie.
Ollie is nonbinary. Ollie struggles with balancing being an advocate for the queer community versus just being a kid with a crush.
This is an incredible coming of age story that allows young people to explore identities and labels, and what that means for them.
I love that non only do we have on page nonbinary rep, but we also go on page pansexual rep! This is something that needs to be discussed well before adulthood and that needs to be normalized.
I’ve seen some negative criticisms regarding Essie being hung up on labels, but I really want people to take a step back and remember that story features 13 year olds in middle school. Essie questions labels and identity in order to understand both herself and her feelings for Ollie, which are both healthy and never leads to misgendering of Ollie.
Overall, I would love to see more stories like this in both middle grade and adult. This book was just one big hug, and I can’t wait to read more like it.
Thank you to FSG for providing a review copy. This did not influence my review. All opinions are my own.
July 9, 2020
Adorable story about two 13 year olds and how they navigate through their first crush. One of the main characters is non-binary. This is not a common thing in middle grade novels, so I was happy to see that. It is a good book to read at the same time as your middle schooler and discuss after reading. I did find that the author made Essie and Ollie too mature for their age, but that was really the only flaw.
June 28, 2021
DNF
I'm not enjoying this all that much, it's just not for me.
I'm not enjoying this all that much, it's just not for me.
June 25, 2021
i- i didn't know this was a kids book when i bought it. anyway.
(i'm nonbinary btw so. yeah.)
so even tho this was a kids book, i really enjoyed the story and thought the main characters were a lot of fun. the side characters lacked a bit of depth but i mean. kids book. i get it.
i'll start with the positive points, because there are a couple!
ollies parents are amazing and i'm extremely glad that they are as supporting and involed as they are. the amounts of love they show ollie made me feel very "welcome" into the family. also their relationship with their brother was very sweet!
i really enjoyed that ollie isn't the only queer person in the book but their neighbor and an old classmate of essies are nonbinary aswell! it really shows the reader (no matter the age) that nonbinary people are all around!
but there are obviously some parts about the book i didn't like. the most important one being: ami polonsky is cis gender, telling a story from the pov of a nonbinary kid. she mentions the way ollie feels, what ollie thinks about their gender, how they experience their gender, etc and i'm really conflicted about whether or not i'm 100% okay with that.
i'm glad that ollies story gets told and i'm excited for all the younger kids reading this story, getting to know the characters and maybe thinking about lables and gender differently, but. i think it might not be ami's place to tell the story.
but!! i will give the author the benefit of the doubt, because i think (i hope) that she asked her kid about the way they felt about their gender at that young age when writing this book. at least i really, really hope so.
that's also the reason why i forgive polonsky some of the rather.... "meh" descriptions of ollies thoughts.
at one point they said (little spoiler maybe) "i'm not a boy. i'm a girl who is a boy." which really isn't the right description for being nonbinary, but once again: i believe that that's what their kid told them about their experiences with their gender, so i will not let that affect my star rating.
i don't believe the author wanted to do any harm with the descriptions and only wanted to write a story including a character based on her child.
something that DID affect my star rating was: the length of the chapters. they are so short oh my god! the "long" chapters that only come around once in a while are maximum 4 pages long. most of them are so incredibly short, you don't really get to see an entire scene or get to know the characters. i understand that short chapters are probably better for younger readers but i would have liked it if they were just a little bit longer.
once again, i'm far from the age group that this book wants to appeal to and i'm glad, actually really happy, that children today learn that being anything other than straight or cis gender is nothing bad and totally normal! not a reread, but if i ever have kids, it might be something i'd want them to read.
(i'm nonbinary btw so. yeah.)
so even tho this was a kids book, i really enjoyed the story and thought the main characters were a lot of fun. the side characters lacked a bit of depth but i mean. kids book. i get it.
i'll start with the positive points, because there are a couple!
ollies parents are amazing and i'm extremely glad that they are as supporting and involed as they are. the amounts of love they show ollie made me feel very "welcome" into the family. also their relationship with their brother was very sweet!
i really enjoyed that ollie isn't the only queer person in the book but their neighbor and an old classmate of essies are nonbinary aswell! it really shows the reader (no matter the age) that nonbinary people are all around!
but there are obviously some parts about the book i didn't like. the most important one being: ami polonsky is cis gender, telling a story from the pov of a nonbinary kid. she mentions the way ollie feels, what ollie thinks about their gender, how they experience their gender, etc and i'm really conflicted about whether or not i'm 100% okay with that.
i'm glad that ollies story gets told and i'm excited for all the younger kids reading this story, getting to know the characters and maybe thinking about lables and gender differently, but. i think it might not be ami's place to tell the story.
but!! i will give the author the benefit of the doubt, because i think (i hope) that she asked her kid about the way they felt about their gender at that young age when writing this book. at least i really, really hope so.
that's also the reason why i forgive polonsky some of the rather.... "meh" descriptions of ollies thoughts.
at one point they said (little spoiler maybe) "i'm not a boy. i'm a girl who is a boy." which really isn't the right description for being nonbinary, but once again: i believe that that's what their kid told them about their experiences with their gender, so i will not let that affect my star rating.
i don't believe the author wanted to do any harm with the descriptions and only wanted to write a story including a character based on her child.
something that DID affect my star rating was: the length of the chapters. they are so short oh my god! the "long" chapters that only come around once in a while are maximum 4 pages long. most of them are so incredibly short, you don't really get to see an entire scene or get to know the characters. i understand that short chapters are probably better for younger readers but i would have liked it if they were just a little bit longer.
once again, i'm far from the age group that this book wants to appeal to and i'm glad, actually really happy, that children today learn that being anything other than straight or cis gender is nothing bad and totally normal! not a reread, but if i ever have kids, it might be something i'd want them to read.
August 10, 2021
Great, accessible representation in a nuanced story!
May 14, 2021
I have many mixed feelings about this book. On the one hand, I think it's a very cute story about navigating crushes with a side dose of LGBTQ+ activism and personal growth, but on the other hand I feel like the surface of both of those things just barely broke.
I think the main reason I'm feeling that is because, in my opinion, the chapters are way too short. To me, they read like unfinished scenes. It could be argued that this is kind of representative of the way that Essie is avoiding thinking about anything big in her life, and the same with Ollie, but as a reader it's very frustrating. It also feels like there's a lack of internality despite the fact that this book is really about identity and self-discovery (again, there is the awkwardness/avoidance issue to consider), but that doesn't change the fact that the characters are the ones bringing up these things to themselves before shutting them down. I think these two issues are tied together, but I'm not a hundred percent sure what would have made it better.
Before I read this book, I knew somewhere in the back of my mind that it was dual perspective, but it didn't really come up again until Essie's half ended and Ollie's began. I think that dividing the book in half—or at least giving each character a turn narrating—really helped fill in some gaps for me. However, I'm not sure I like the way the perspectives are formatted overall? I don't know if it would have been better flip-flopped between them, though. Honestly, I think what I would have liked was for this to be two books? Or just one book from one of their perspectives? I just wanted to get deeper into each of the characters and felt like they were hiding their feelings from the reader the whole time.
There are a few things I really liked about this book! I really appreciated the issues that each character was going through—Essie with her mom's aloofness and reconciling that, and Ollie trying to be more than just an advocate and getting their mom to back off a little —and the way they're both so insecure about putting themselves out there and unsure of what the other person is thinking feels really realistic. And I think it has a very accurate representation of what it feels like when friends start hanging out without you and talking about new developments in their lives when you're fixated on a crush. Also, weirdly, I appreciated the parents? While all the emotional arcs tied to that felt a bit stunted (see my reasoning above) I thought it was cool how once the kids pointed out they didn't like something the parent was doing, that the parent respected them enough to change their behavior.
My favorite part, though, was when Ollie joined stage combat. I know! That's so random, right? But it really got to what I thought was one of the strongest bits of the book, which was Ollie's struggle to balance their life as a young activist with being all of themself and the ordinary kid things they wanted to do. I felt like this was resolved really well (and so easily! sometimes it is just that easy!) and it just reinforced that I wanted the book to focus more on Ollie's side of the story, because I think that in itself is a whole narrative right there.
All that aside though, I would like to say that the ending is very cute! Good for them!
I think the main reason I'm feeling that is because, in my opinion, the chapters are way too short. To me, they read like unfinished scenes. It could be argued that this is kind of representative of the way that Essie is avoiding thinking about anything big in her life, and the same with Ollie, but as a reader it's very frustrating. It also feels like there's a lack of internality despite the fact that this book is really about identity and self-discovery (again, there is the awkwardness/avoidance issue to consider), but that doesn't change the fact that the characters are the ones bringing up these things to themselves before shutting them down. I think these two issues are tied together, but I'm not a hundred percent sure what would have made it better.
Before I read this book, I knew somewhere in the back of my mind that it was dual perspective, but it didn't really come up again until Essie's half ended and Ollie's began. I think that dividing the book in half—or at least giving each character a turn narrating—really helped fill in some gaps for me. However, I'm not sure I like the way the perspectives are formatted overall? I don't know if it would have been better flip-flopped between them, though. Honestly, I think what I would have liked was for this to be two books? Or just one book from one of their perspectives? I just wanted to get deeper into each of the characters and felt like they were hiding their feelings from the reader the whole time.
There are a few things I really liked about this book! I really appreciated the issues that each character was going through—Essie with her mom's aloofness and reconciling that, and Ollie trying to be more than just an advocate and getting their mom to back off a little —and the way they're both so insecure about putting themselves out there and unsure of what the other person is thinking feels really realistic. And I think it has a very accurate representation of what it feels like when friends start hanging out without you and talking about new developments in their lives when you're fixated on a crush. Also, weirdly, I appreciated the parents? While all the emotional arcs tied to that felt a bit stunted (see my reasoning above) I thought it was cool how once the kids pointed out they didn't like something the parent was doing, that the parent respected them enough to change their behavior.
My favorite part, though, was when Ollie joined stage combat. I know! That's so random, right? But it really got to what I thought was one of the strongest bits of the book, which was Ollie's struggle to balance their life as a young activist with being all of themself and the ordinary kid things they wanted to do. I felt like this was resolved really well (and so easily! sometimes it is just that easy!) and it just reinforced that I wanted the book to focus more on Ollie's side of the story, because I think that in itself is a whole narrative right there.
All that aside though, I would like to say that the ending is very cute! Good for them!
February 22, 2021
I want to start this review by saying that I'm so incredibly glad middle grade kids now get more POC and LGBTQ+ representation in books. It's something I wish I'd had more when I was in middle school when I was nervous about my own sexuality. In addition to this, I haven't discovered very many books with nonbinary characters, so it was so refreshing to read this. It's honestly one of the best LGBTQ+ novels I've read.
This is quite possibly the cutest book I've read this year. I couldn't stop smiling while reading it. Essie and Ollie are both relatable, and it was easy to connect to each even if you don't identify with them. I personally did identify with Essie, and maybeOllie as well, so I can imagine how helpful and possibly educational this can be to young teens trying to find themselves.
I actually really liked the perspective switch in the middle. I loved that we got to see things from Ollie's side as well as Essie's. Essie's part counts down to the day she leaves North Carolina, while Ollie's section starts from they day they met Essie and counts up to the day she's supposed to leave. I've never read a book that does this, so I actually really enjoyed that. When you're reading Ollie's section, not only do we see the events Essie described through their eyes, but you also see new things that sort of change the entire story. You also get to know the other characters that Essie doesn't know as well as Ollie.
The tone did feel a bit mature for thirteen year olds at times, but as someone who was more mature at that age, it sort of does make sense. Overall, this was a sweet, quick read that I'll definitely recommend to nearly everyone!
Disclaimer: I received a gifted copy of this book via Rockstar Book Tours. This did not influence my opinion in any way.
This is quite possibly the cutest book I've read this year. I couldn't stop smiling while reading it. Essie and Ollie are both relatable, and it was easy to connect to each even if you don't identify with them. I personally did identify with Essie, and maybeOllie as well, so I can imagine how helpful and possibly educational this can be to young teens trying to find themselves.
I actually really liked the perspective switch in the middle. I loved that we got to see things from Ollie's side as well as Essie's. Essie's part counts down to the day she leaves North Carolina, while Ollie's section starts from they day they met Essie and counts up to the day she's supposed to leave. I've never read a book that does this, so I actually really enjoyed that. When you're reading Ollie's section, not only do we see the events Essie described through their eyes, but you also see new things that sort of change the entire story. You also get to know the other characters that Essie doesn't know as well as Ollie.
The tone did feel a bit mature for thirteen year olds at times, but as someone who was more mature at that age, it sort of does make sense. Overall, this was a sweet, quick read that I'll definitely recommend to nearly everyone!
Disclaimer: I received a gifted copy of this book via Rockstar Book Tours. This did not influence my opinion in any way.
May 17, 2023
If there was one book I could describe as emotional and realistic, this would be it. I love the *spoiler alert* love at first sight between Essie and Ollie, and how even though they face problems, they push through. Though I have to say Essie's dad in my opinion is a total jerk, and her mom should be more involved. Like I said though it is realistic and the problems they face a pretty average thing here. Anyways though, you should read it and support Ollie with GLOW 100%.
April 8, 2021
THIS IS SO UNDERRATED IT DESERVES MORE
SO ANYWAY EVERYONE ADD THIS TO YOUR TBR NOW OR ELSE 🗡🗡
SO ANYWAY EVERYONE ADD THIS TO YOUR TBR NOW OR ELSE 🗡🗡
August 22, 2023
<< *Every single person in this world can view a work of literature and have completely different thoughts and opinions. My opinion is not meant to offend you. If you do not want to see a review criticizing your favorite book (or a book you enjoyed), then I recommend not proceeding with reading this review.>>
This book had a sweet premise, but for me, it lacked in several areas. The writing felt very choppy, with the plot moving at a very fast speed. The first half of the book is told from Essie's perspective, while the second half is told from Ollie's perspective. In the second half, it goes over the same plot as the first half, just from Ollie's perspective. While I loved to see subtle differences between the moments from a new perspective, it felt a lot like recycled material. Some chapters had nothing changed from one chapter to another, while others only had a couple of changes. I would have loved to see alternating POVs that told the story from both perspectives, but there were times when Essie or Ollie's perspective could better support and tell the story. When discovering Essie's own sexuality, she would be insensitive to Ollie's emotions. I felt like certain subjects and situations could have been dealt with better. There were many things about the characters and the themes that felt like they had only touched the surface of what could have been profound.
This book had a sweet premise, but for me, it lacked in several areas. The writing felt very choppy, with the plot moving at a very fast speed. The first half of the book is told from Essie's perspective, while the second half is told from Ollie's perspective. In the second half, it goes over the same plot as the first half, just from Ollie's perspective. While I loved to see subtle differences between the moments from a new perspective, it felt a lot like recycled material. Some chapters had nothing changed from one chapter to another, while others only had a couple of changes. I would have loved to see alternating POVs that told the story from both perspectives, but there were times when Essie or Ollie's perspective could better support and tell the story. When discovering Essie's own sexuality, she would be insensitive to Ollie's emotions. I felt like certain subjects and situations could have been dealt with better. There were many things about the characters and the themes that felt like they had only touched the surface of what could have been profound.
June 19, 2022
A super sweet middle grade romance. I think I would have loved this in 6th grade
September 6, 2021
reread september 2021
I relistened to this one because I needed a wholesome read and it 100% delivers. I did find a few issues with the pacing this time around but even with the super short chapters, you still feel invested in the characters and feel like you know a lot about them even when its not all listed out on page.
5+
This is definitely a new favorite middle grade. This was so good. So this book is told from two perspectives first from Essie and then from Olly. It's done not in a every other chapter style but in a the first half of the book is asses and the second half of the book is the same timeline but from Olly's POV. Okay so that may sound repetitive but having Olly's POV absolutely made this book. It was already great and an easy five stars, but getting all of those little notes from them just brought me immense joy.
So this is about Essie who moves away with her dad to a new town on a temporary basis while he does a guest professor position or something like that. She is super nervous obviously going to a new school but she finds a friend in Olly, who is not binary. Essie has a lot of internal discussions about what it means for her that she likes Olly romantically. She's also dealing with her parents drama and potential divorce, the new school environment, trying to keep in touch with her old friends etc. When we get to Olly's POV they talk a little bit about coming out is non-binary and what their gender means to them and how their parents have reacted spoiler it's super positive,. Olly talks about their own hobbies and how they are now comfortable with their gender and are working to form the complete picture of themselves including other hobbies versus just advocacy. It's honestly a phenomenal book please go read it.
I relistened to this one because I needed a wholesome read and it 100% delivers. I did find a few issues with the pacing this time around but even with the super short chapters, you still feel invested in the characters and feel like you know a lot about them even when its not all listed out on page.
5+
This is definitely a new favorite middle grade. This was so good. So this book is told from two perspectives first from Essie and then from Olly. It's done not in a every other chapter style but in a the first half of the book is asses and the second half of the book is the same timeline but from Olly's POV. Okay so that may sound repetitive but having Olly's POV absolutely made this book. It was already great and an easy five stars, but getting all of those little notes from them just brought me immense joy.
So this is about Essie who moves away with her dad to a new town on a temporary basis while he does a guest professor position or something like that. She is super nervous obviously going to a new school but she finds a friend in Olly, who is not binary. Essie has a lot of internal discussions about what it means for her that she likes Olly romantically. She's also dealing with her parents drama and potential divorce, the new school environment, trying to keep in touch with her old friends etc. When we get to Olly's POV they talk a little bit about coming out is non-binary and what their gender means to them and how their parents have reacted spoiler it's super positive,. Olly talks about their own hobbies and how they are now comfortable with their gender and are working to form the complete picture of themselves including other hobbies versus just advocacy. It's honestly a phenomenal book please go read it.
August 7, 2021
Wow. Uh…I don’t think I’ve ever DNFed a book so fast. I’m on page 29 and I don’t think there’s anything that’s gonna redeem it for me. I was SO excited when I read the back of this and I seem to be in the minority here but it was SO awkward to read an absurd amount of misgendering in such a small amount of time. Anyone else literally taken aback by how many times it happens? I think what ended up killing it for me was putting them in a locker room so you’re being shown the enby lead’s assigned gender at birth. Like…bro. What? I hawk queer books nonstop at work and on tiktok and I seldom get a good enby book on my hands, but people ask for them all the time. I was excited to get a chance to share a new one with them, but I wouldn’t recommend this to enby readers. It feels like it’s Nonbinary People For Cis Dummies. This is a book for cis people with a nonbinary character.
Into the little library it goes!
Into the little library it goes!
August 4, 2025
This was cute, though it won't stick out in my mind. The first half of this book is narrated by Essie, who has moved to a new town for the semester with her dad and is counting down the days until she can go back home. The second half of the book is narrated by Ollie, Essie's love interest. Though Ollie's perspective gives the reader some perspective, it really just feels like reading the same story twice. The chapters were also so, so short, which made the pace really fast.
I also have to be real, even though Ollie's whole shtick was that they're more than non-binary and have other interests, it still felt like they were ultimately the manic pixie dream enby. I wanted a little more of their storyline to be just about them being a kid and a student rather than so much being about advocacy. I'm sure there are kids that will love this though--this is just my opinion.
I also have to be real, even though Ollie's whole shtick was that they're more than non-binary and have other interests, it still felt like they were ultimately the manic pixie dream enby. I wanted a little more of their storyline to be just about them being a kid and a student rather than so much being about advocacy. I'm sure there are kids that will love this though--this is just my opinion.
April 9, 2023
I picked this up because this is the book my child read that gave a name to what they had been feeling about themselves: non-binary. They told me that they didn't know there was such a thing, and it felt so good to know that there was a word to describe them.
The book handled the concept of non-binary well for a middle school book. I appreciated the points of view from both Essie and Ollie. I also loved that the book focused more on love and support than it did on hate.
The book handled the concept of non-binary well for a middle school book. I appreciated the points of view from both Essie and Ollie. I also loved that the book focused more on love and support than it did on hate.
January 11, 2022
honestly kinda disappointing but it was cute i guess
July 20, 2023
A light romance for tweens that focuses on Essie, new girl in a new school, who develops an insta-crush on Ollie. Ollie happens to be non-binary and the beginning of the story leans heavily on how Essie feels about this, her curiosity about the whole Ollie, and even curiosity about what this means for herself.
The reader does eventually get Ollie’s perspective on all this, too. But instead of interweaving the two points of view, there is a “rewind, let’s watch that again” approach that left Ollie’s perspective as secondary instead of integral, and made it harder to hold the chronology of the story in place.
I did appreciate that through Ollie’s perspective we see how having a support system of friends and family is great, but that doesn’t mean there’s not still some minor conflict and irritations that happen. Most of that tension is with Ollie’s mom; their relationship with their brother remains pretty positive the whole time. I just couldn’t get over that one of Ollie’s pet names for their brother is maxi-pad. I viscerally cringed every time.
Essie also works through some friendship friction, tension with her mother, and watching her parents’ relationship fray. There are some really nice moments, and plenty of awkward ones. I really wish that Ollie’s perspective had been woven in more seamlessly, so it could have felt as much their story as Essie’s.
The reader does eventually get Ollie’s perspective on all this, too. But instead of interweaving the two points of view, there is a “rewind, let’s watch that again” approach that left Ollie’s perspective as secondary instead of integral, and made it harder to hold the chronology of the story in place.
I did appreciate that through Ollie’s perspective we see how having a support system of friends and family is great, but that doesn’t mean there’s not still some minor conflict and irritations that happen. Most of that tension is with Ollie’s mom; their relationship with their brother remains pretty positive the whole time. I just couldn’t get over that one of Ollie’s pet names for their brother is maxi-pad. I viscerally cringed every time.
Essie also works through some friendship friction, tension with her mother, and watching her parents’ relationship fray. There are some really nice moments, and plenty of awkward ones. I really wish that Ollie’s perspective had been woven in more seamlessly, so it could have felt as much their story as Essie’s.
September 25, 2021
This book I feel like I would have enjoyed when I was younger. It's a good book and well written, but it's definitely a book that was written for younger readers probably in middle school or older elementary kids. Honestly, I wish I read this when I was younger, because it's a good introduction to the LGBTQ+ community and something I probably would have enjoyed a lot.
August 13, 2021
please tell me there's a sequel...
(okay I just found out that there isn't a sequel)
(okay I just found out that there isn't a sequel)
August 2, 2021
This book was split into two parts: Essie counting down the days until she leaves North Carolina, and then the same amount of days from Ollie's perspective, counting up until Essie leaves. It's a cute, quiet story of Essie meeting Ollie, who is non-binary, and suddenly having feelings for them. She struggles with what that means for her, all while dealing with her parents splitting up and moving towards a divorce. Ollie's half is about how they have feelings for Essie, but find that anxieties over their gender gets in their way of being open with Essie about those feelings.
This was a simple and cute middle grade. While I very much enjoyed reading it and I especially love that there is a book out there for non-binary kids to see themselves represented in, I was still expecting a little bit more out of this. Especially since I read Gracefully Grayson by this same author and absolutely ADORED it and how deep it was and how well it handled Grayson's story and inner monologue.
This was a simple and cute middle grade. While I very much enjoyed reading it and I especially love that there is a book out there for non-binary kids to see themselves represented in, I was still expecting a little bit more out of this. Especially since I read Gracefully Grayson by this same author and absolutely ADORED it and how deep it was and how well it handled Grayson's story and inner monologue.
October 25, 2020
Essie isn't happy about spending half of seventh grade with her dad in a whole new state, and it's even stranger that her mom isn't joining them... have her parents been more distant than normal? Things start to look up when she befriends a new group of kids, including Ollie, whom Essie mistakes for a boy-- but Ollie being nonbinary doesn't change the "zaps" Essie feels when she is with them. Ollie is out and proud about their identity, but lately, it feels like everyone sees only that single part of them, and not other pieces of what makes Ollie who they are. Spin With Me is a quiet, sweet, and introspective novel centering on the timeless middle school dilemmas of identity and friendships, told in two different parts: Essie's and Ollie's. This novel is a reminder that there is far more good and supportive people than there is hate... and I can't forget to mention how much I love Ollie's charming pet rabbit named Froggy!
June 30, 2022
Essie is bummed that she has to spend 110 days in a new school after having temporarily moved with her Dad who has taken a temporary teaching position in a new place. But Essie's feeling start to change when she meets Ollie a fellow non-binary classmate who Essie has an insta-crush on. It's not long before Essie is now dreading the count down of her 110 days because it means the end of her time with Ollie. All the while Ollie is crushing on Essie and trying to figure out making time for all their various interests. The first half of the book is told from the perspective of Essie and the second half is told from the perspective of Ollie.
This was very cute but I really wish the perspectives had switched off rather than been in 2 chunks it felt like reading the same book twice though I did enjoy reading Ollie's perspective. A very cute romance with non-binary and possibly-pan representation for middle grade readers.
This was very cute but I really wish the perspectives had switched off rather than been in 2 chunks it felt like reading the same book twice though I did enjoy reading Ollie's perspective. A very cute romance with non-binary and possibly-pan representation for middle grade readers.
November 2, 2025
A two-perspective YA non-binary love story about being authentically yourself
One of my 8th-grade students recommended this book to me, having described it as "The most beautiful book I've ever read." I'm so happy they trusted me with that confidence and asked me to read this. I loved how the story is told from both peoples' perspectives, with all of the curiosity, uncertainty, and openness of a 7th-grader's perspective. The author defly applies a clever metaphor of an optical illusion for how what appears to be true from one person's perspective is not always what is true from someone else's viewpoint. Through this duality lens, the characters explore their insecurities about themselves and their relationship, traversing a path of self-discovery that is so common to all middle schoolers' experiences. The author deftly showcases the non-binary budding romance amidst the story of two people learning what it is to see the world through someone else's lens, and discovering how to be true to themselves. It provided a delicate space for the characters to question how their labels defined themselves, while simultaneously noticing that those labels were irrelevant to the "just me" core of who they are, both individually and to each other.
One of my 8th-grade students recommended this book to me, having described it as "The most beautiful book I've ever read." I'm so happy they trusted me with that confidence and asked me to read this. I loved how the story is told from both peoples' perspectives, with all of the curiosity, uncertainty, and openness of a 7th-grader's perspective. The author defly applies a clever metaphor of an optical illusion for how what appears to be true from one person's perspective is not always what is true from someone else's viewpoint. Through this duality lens, the characters explore their insecurities about themselves and their relationship, traversing a path of self-discovery that is so common to all middle schoolers' experiences. The author deftly showcases the non-binary budding romance amidst the story of two people learning what it is to see the world through someone else's lens, and discovering how to be true to themselves. It provided a delicate space for the characters to question how their labels defined themselves, while simultaneously noticing that those labels were irrelevant to the "just me" core of who they are, both individually and to each other.
September 5, 2022
i liked ollie's perspective a lot more but still, reading the same book twice over was a bit weird. the chapters spanned over a whole day but they were about a very select, small part of that day and took up like two pages on average so often it felt like we were cut off in the middle of some event. some of the chapters even continued the same conversation from the previous one which puzzled me a bit. i don't vibe with their love at first sight either, sorry 😭 overall, i didn't like the writing either. appreciate the non-binary rep in a middle grade novel though. it felt like it was meant to show cis folks that nb people exist but that's not necessarily a bad thing in this age category, kids have to learn somehow
November 23, 2020
ARC courtesy of NetGalley.
There's no shortage of cute moments in this MG novel about the crush between a cis girl and her non-binary classmate. Unfortunately, I didn't feel like there was much more to the characters besides this crush (which I get from the standpoint as someone who has had crushes in her life) so the character development was off for me. I really liked the relationship between Ollie and Essie and their parents. I've had patron requests for books with non-binary rep before so I would add it to my collection -- and hopefully add some OwnVoices novels alongside it.
There's no shortage of cute moments in this MG novel about the crush between a cis girl and her non-binary classmate. Unfortunately, I didn't feel like there was much more to the characters besides this crush (which I get from the standpoint as someone who has had crushes in her life) so the character development was off for me. I really liked the relationship between Ollie and Essie and their parents. I've had patron requests for books with non-binary rep before so I would add it to my collection -- and hopefully add some OwnVoices novels alongside it.
May 13, 2021
This was actually closer to a 2 for me personally but I gave it a 3 because of the message. I like that part of the book was about thinking about what your identity is when you start to like someone who is nonbinary. However, I felt that the characters and the story were pretty one dimensional. I also wish that if the book was going to be told from 2 perspectives, it would have been done in an alternating way. It was exhausting reading half of the book from Essie's perspective and then having to start ALL OVER AGAIN with Ollie, especially when some scenes were almost identical.
October 13, 2022
This one was just ok for me. I felt like I didn't really know the characters very well, which made it hard for me to feel invested in them. The writing felt choppy and unfinished in places. The narrative voices of the two characters were too similar to be realistic, it felt like the author channeled her idea of a generic middle-schooler's voice and just used that across the board. Although I liked the idea of telling the story through both of their perspectives separately, the story itself was not so compelling that I needed to read it twice, and the switch in narration came at a point in the book where it was so unexpected as to feel jarring. Oh well!
June 12, 2021
This was a solidly good middle grade book featuring nonbinary and pansexual characters. Admittedly, I found the way the entire romance not working thing could have been solved in two sentences a bit frustrating, but I do think that could be quite true to the characters/age group. Enjoyable, and Kait listened to parts of the audio with me and seemed to like it as well, though she’s a few years away from reading this herself.
February 1, 2023
When I finished this book I found myself wishing that I had read part one and part two together, so that I knew what both characters were thinking at once. I did enjoy this though, especially since there are so few books that include characters who are nonbinary.
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