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I am Jazz! / by Jessica Herthel & Jazz Jennings ; pictures by Shelagh McNicholas.

By: Contributor(s): Material type: TextTextPublisher: New York, New York : Dial Books for Young Readers, an imprint of Penguin Group (USA) LLC, [2014]Description: 1 volume (unpaged) : coloUr illustrations ; 24 x 28 cmContent type:
  • text
Media type:
  • unmediated
Carrier type:
  • volume
ISBN:
  • 9780803741072
Subject(s): Awards:
  • ALA GLBTRT Rainbow Project Book List: Picture Books (2015).
Summary: From the time she was two years old, Jazz knew that she had a girl's brain in a boy's body. She loved pink and dressing up as a mermaid and didn't feel like herself in boys' clothing. This confused her family, until they took her to a doctor who said that Jazz was transgender and that she was born that way.
List(s) this item appears in: Banned and Challenged Books Fiction notes: Click to open in new window
Holdings
Item type Current library Collection Call number Status Date due Barcode Item holds
Childrens Non-Fiction Davis (Central) Library Children's Non-fiction Children's Non-fiction 306.76 HER In transit from Davis (Central) Library to Mobile Library since 10/07/2023 T00620168
Total holds: 1

Enhanced descriptions from Syndetics:

The story of a transgender child based on the real-life experience of Jazz Jennings, who has become a spokesperson for transkids everywhere

"This is an essential tool for parents and teachers to share with children whether those kids identify as trans or not. I wish I had had a book like this when I was a kid struggling with gender identity questions. I found it deeply moving in its simplicity and honesty."-Laverne Cox (who plays Sophia in "Orange Is the New Black")

From the time she was two years old, Jazz knew that she had a girl's brain in a boy's body. She loved pink anddressing up as a mermaidand didn't feel like herself in boys' clothing. This confused her family, until they took her toa doctorwho said that Jazz was transgender and that she was born that way. Jazz's story is based on her real-life experience and she tells it in a simple, clear way that will be appreciated by picture book readers,their parents, and teachers.

From the time she was two years old, Jazz knew that she had a girl's brain in a boy's body. She loved pink and dressing up as a mermaid and didn't feel like herself in boys' clothing. This confused her family, until they took her to a doctor who said that Jazz was transgender and that she was born that way.

ALA GLBTRT Rainbow Project Book List: Picture Books (2015).

Reviews provided by Syndetics

School Library Journal Review

Gr 1-3-This enlightening autobiographical picture book tells the story of a transgender child who knew from the time she was two that despite her physical body she wasn't really a boy. Young Jazz was passionate about her love of mermaids, dancing, dress-up, and pop stars, as well as her conviction that her gender identity was female. Readers are taken through her journey with upbeat, pink-hued watercolor illustrations that are a good complement to the cheerful tone and positive message of the story ("I don't mind being different. Different is special! I think what matters most is what a person is like inside."). Joining the ranks of new books targeted at young children that examine gender roles, such as Ian and Sarah Hoffman's Jacob's New Dress (Albert Whitman, 2014), this title highlights a topic that has not been well represented in children's literature in an uplifting and empowering way. Jazz's explanation of what transgender means ("I have a girl brain but a boy body") is somewhat simplified. However, for those looking to introduce the concept to young readers or those seeking books that value differences, this illustrated memoir is a solid choice.-Megan Egbert, Meridian Library District, ID (c) Copyright 2014. Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.

Booklist Review

In 2011, a documentary was released about transgender Jazz Jennings. Now 13, Jennings tells her story. I have a girl brain but a boy body, she explains, portraying herself from early childhood on preferring the color pink and mermaid costumes to playing with trucks or tools or superheroes, along with a typical array of interests in dancing, soccer, and drawing. The book gives a clear explanation, even for the youngest, of how she knew that she was born different and the importance of family acceptance. Aside from a trio of small photos at the conclusion, this draws on bright watercolor illustrations done with casual realism to underscore Jennings' determined femininity. The pictures at time go overboard on the girlishness, but both art and narrative accentuate the positive, though not without commenting on the negative. Jennings is mostly surrounded by smiling, supportive friends and family members (the film tells a similar, but more emotionally charged, story), but there are teasing peers and confused teachers, though most are persuaded into acceptance. I am happy. I am having fun. I am proud! is a reassuring message for other trans or different children and their families, too.--Peters, John Copyright 2014 Booklist

Kirkus Book Review

An autobiographical picture book describes trans-youth activist Jazz Jennings' story of embracing and asserting her transgender identity.Both the title and the opening text proclaims, "I am Jazz!" The book goes on to detail Jazz's various interests and tastes, which follow traditionally feminine gender norms. But as Jazz goes on to explain, she has "a girl brain but a boy body. This is called transgender. I was born this way!" Although the realistic watercolor illustrations consistently display only happy faces in these beginning pages, the text recounts her family's struggle to understand her early-childhood assertion of femininity: "At first my family was confused. They'd always thought of me as a boy." Jazz recalls her pain when compelled to wear "boy clothes" in public. "Pretending I was a boy felt like telling a lie." Her parents' efforts to understand prompt them to meet with a doctor who introduces the word "transgender," which enables the family's powerful affirmation: "We understand now. Be who you are. We love you no matter what." The story balances this acceptance with honest acknowledgement of others' ongoing confusion and intermittent cruelty, and it briefly addresses Jazz's exclusion from girls' soccer in her state. Ultimately, Jazz's self-acceptance, bolstered by her family's support and advocacy, acts as a beacon for readers, trans- and cisgender alike.An empowering, timely story with the power to help readers proclaim, in the words of Jazz's parents, "We understand now." (Picture book. 3 up) Copyright Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.

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