And She Was by Jessica Verdi

Once again I was given the opportunity to review a book for ALAN Picks.  And She Was by Jessica Verdi was the book I was sent and the following is the review that was written for publication:

Dara Baker is a recent high school graduate who is working to fulfill her dreams.  Since she was young she has dreamed of becoming a professional tennis player, taking on the best in the game on the biggest stages.  But achieving this isn’t easy.  She lacks the financial resources of many of the other young players.  To complicate things even further, her single mother, is not supportive of what Dara is trying to accomplish.  Mellie Baker offers little in terms of support, both emotionally and financially.  Her mother is often distant, keeping the details of her past a secret. 

When Dara needs a passport to play in her first professional tournament, she goes in search of the birth certificate her mom tells her is lost.  What she finds changes her life forever.  Her birth certificate contains the names of a mother and father. But the mother’s name does not match up with the woman who has raised her and the father’s name is one that Dara has never heard before.  When Dara’s mom finally reveals the truth, it causes Dara’s world to spin out of control.  But could that spin bring Dara to a greater place in her life?

In the last novel from Jessica Verdi, she gives us a novel about self-discovery, love, and family.  The reader will see the growth, not only in Dara the narrator, but in her mom Mellie.  Verdi does something in her story that isn’t often done in young adult literature.  She presents to us the perspective of an adult in the story through the series of emails Mellie will end up sending to her daughter.  Readers will be able to gain a better understanding of the struggle she has gone through in trying to protect her family in a world that is not always kind to people who do not conform to the norms of society. 

From Amazon:

Dara's lived a sheltered life with her single mom, Mellie. Now, at eighteen, she's dreaming of more. When Dara digs up her never-before-seen birth certificate, her world implodes. Why are two strangers listed as her parents?

Dara confronts her mother, and is stunned by what she learns: Mellie is transgender. The unfamiliar name listed under "father"? That's Mellie. She transitioned when Dara was a baby, after Dara's birth mother died. She changed her name, started over.

But Dara still has more questions than answers. Reeling, she sets off on an impromptu road trip with her best guy friend, Sam, in tow. She is determined to find the extended family she's never even met. What she does discover -- and what her mother reveals, piece by piece, over emails -- will challenge and change Dara more than she can imagine.

This is a gorgeous, timely, and essential novel about the importance of being our true selves. The back matter includes an author's note and resources for readers.