Golden Boy

tw: rape of a minor, transphobia, homophobia, abortion, misgendering, lack of autonomy, drug use, vomiting, suicide attempt, emotional abuse

genuinely wtf was this shitshow of a book? this was written by a cis person right? how on earth was it nominated for a lammy and lauded on it's release?

so this book opens with an intersex teen being rped by their cousin. I should've realised then that it would only be downhill from there. literally everyone in the mc's life mistreats him because he's intersex. everyone is either so uninformed that he ends up feeling like a freak or just treats him as a medical marvel and wants to be ridiculously nosy as to what's going on with his anatomy.his parents suck, his brother is transphobic, his cousin is disgusting, his girlfriend isn't great, he just has no one in his life who is advocating for him.his parents make medical decisions on his behalf without his know-how or consent?? as a result of the rpe he becomes pregnant, which then leads his parents to believe he's gay and/or a girl. not once does it occur to them that it might not be consensual even when he protests that he's a straight dude and that's how he wants to identify. he's never listened to and his agency is taken from him time and again. his doctors break confidentiality, his gf and friends disclose private information about him to others. I just can't put into words how sorry I felt for the mc and how I wish this book was never written in the first place.