I Wish You All the Best
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4.7 • 81 Ratings
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- $10.99
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- $10.99
Publisher Description
"Heartfelt, romantic, and quietly groundbreaking. This book will save lives." -- Becky Albertalli, New York Times bestselling author of Simon vs. the Homo Sapiens Agenda
It's just three words: I am nonbinary. But that's all it takes to change everything.
When Ben De Backer comes out to their parents as nonbinary, they're thrown out of their house and forced to move in with their estranged older sister, Hannah, and her husband, Thomas, whom Ben has never even met. Struggling with an anxiety disorder compounded by their parents' rejection, they come out only to Hannah, Thomas, and their therapist and try to keep a low profile in a new school.
But Ben's attempts to survive the last half of senior year unnoticed are thwarted when Nathan Allan, a funny and charismatic student, decides to take Ben under his wing. As Ben and Nathan's friendship grows, their feelings for each other begin to change, and what started as a disastrous turn of events looks like it might just be a chance to start a happier new life.
At turns heartbreaking and joyous, I Wish You All the Best is both a celebration of life, friendship, and love, and a shining example of hope in the face of adversity.
PUBLISHERS WEEKLY
In an emotionally complex story about finding acceptance and redefining family, 18-year-old Ben is rejected by their parents when they come out as nonbinary. They're taken in by their older sister, Hannah, who was also driven out by their conservative and judgmental parents 10 years earlier. Together they have to learn how to advance from estranged siblings to a true, caring family while Ben works to complete senior year at a new high school. And as Ben cultivates an art practice and receives the love and support of rediscovered family and of new friends, including handsome neighbor Nathan, they begin to come to terms with their trauma. Debut author Deaver portrays Ben's reaction to the difficult situation, including panic attacks and anxiety, with care and empathy, and readers will be filled with joy and hope as Ben begins to grow toward self-acceptance. Ben's voice shines through with courage and vulnerability as they learn, slowly, to feel valued and deserving of respect. A powerful illustration of the ways that compassion and love can overcome intolerance. Ages 14 up.
Customer Reviews
THE BEST
the best book ive read
(♡w♡)
This was an incredibly meaningful and quite frankly adorable read. Deaver’s narrative hooked me from the first page. I would definitely recommend as a good, easy read for those looking for a story with a socially-conscious message without it being so overbearing. It was definitely a lighthearted look into the internal struggles, hope and love that ma beautiful non-binary sibs face. It’s truly a nice thing to see these representative things for my community. I hope to see many more novels from the author!
Amazing non binary representation
This book had something not many others have: a non binary character.
Ben’s story was one I was gushing over from the begging of this story. The family dynamic where it’s religion/beliefs vs gender identity and the well being of children really stood out to me personally. The book was a very elegant read, but it felt like it was missing something. It definitely went through the characters journey and did a superb job of navigating that, but it also didn’t touch on being non binary that much besides very briefly. I would have loved to have gotten a more thorough explanation delivered and the concept explored a little more, the friendship of Ben and Nathan does make up for it.
Overall very amazing book for including a non-binary character :)