One of the Boys

April 1, 2025
A former football star, who never thought she'd play again after she came out as transgender, steps back onto the field for one last season to help her team win state. Grace Woodhouse used to know where she belonged. She had Division I schools lined up to recruit her, but that was before what happened during playoffs last year, before she came out as trans, and before she quit the team. Although her single father and new friend group support her, Grace feels lost as her senior year begins. When one of her old teammates asks her to help him with his technique, she quickly realizes that he and the other captains are hoping for more than her expertise from the sidelines--they want her to rejoin the team. Grace can't resist the opportunity to play again, but her return draws unwanted national attention that makes her question her future and who she wants to be. Flashback chapters written in the second-person present tense bring Grace's past to life, which helps maintain momentum and makes her emotional journey feel more immersive. A heartfelt, goofy, and diverse cast of secondary characters surround Grace, who's white, as she navigates self-doubt, friendship, complicated feelings for her ex-girlfriend, and what she wants to do after graduation. Overall, this coming-of-age sports narrative is honest, gentle, and hopeful. A winning game of feelingsball.(Fiction. 14-18)

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Starred review from May 1, 2025
Grades 8-12 *Starred Review* When Grace Woodhouse came out as transgender, she was ready to say goodbye to her old life. She was the star kicker on the football team with D1 colleges on the horizon, a hotshot with plenty of friends and a popular girlfriend--and a nasty drinking habit to hide her inner turmoil. After forgoing summer football practice for hormones and a summer job, Grace is ready to take on senior year with a new batch of queer friends and her head down. However, she can't ignore the call of her old football pals, who are desperate for help training a new kicker. Except, they decide they'd like Grace to come out of retirement. Grace hesitantly agrees, but the clash of old and new friends and habits are more than she bargains for. Grace's journey through senior year is portrayed with nuance, noting the struggles of transition when one doesn't "pass" and of old friends learning to accept a "new" version of herself. Grace grapples with the challenges and transphobia of rural proximity, but this experience is thoughtful and well balanced, with a variety of queer side characters realistically enduring the challenges of accepting one's identity in high school. In this story set near Buffalo, New York, debut author Zeller speaks well to her roots as a native Western New Yorker, Bills fan, and trans woman. A standout first work, setting a high bar for the blooming subgenre of queer sports fiction.

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