Reviews with content warning for Sexual content - Nevada

It is written as a collection of experiences and commentary without conclusiveness, which contributes to the appeal of Nevada being subjective. I found myself wanting more. I was hoping for Maria to have significant character development after a fistful of chapters, but the continuous self loathing is probably the point. It may force you to reflect upon your own monologues of insecurity and bitterness if you recognize any transcribed unresolved, messy thought-- That, I find value in. Whilst at times frustrating, I think the psyche is well constructed. I enjoyed the punk elements, nerdiness, and criticisms. However, the tonal similarity between James, Maria, and the narrator made me long for further differentiation between each voice. Despite this, I enjoyed the biting narration, finding it very memorable, but I acknowledge that may be due to my underconsumption of 2000s writing.

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hazelwood's review against another edition

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adventurous emotional funny reflective sad fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? It's complicated
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.5

For those who feel dead inside and don't understand why: Read this book before you buy $400 of heroin, steal your ex's car, and drive across the country hoping to figure out why you feel so empty. Hint: you're probably transgender and dealing with the trauma of repressing it for so long.

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alphabetmafiamember's review against another edition

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challenging emotional reflective medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? It's complicated
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

4.0

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calciferrous's review against another edition

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emotional funny reflective slow-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

You've done it. You've transitioned! ... Now what?

Nevada deals pretty heavily with the intertia that comes from transitioning only to realize that while you've left the closet, you have no clue how to leave behind the habits it left you with. Many of the major complaints about this book - the navel-gazing, the aimlessness, the pointless ending - *are* the point. That's what it's like.

I'm not sure how many other reviewers here are trans, but AS a trans dude I will say that Maria rung very true to a period of my life I was just moving past when I encountered the book, down to claiming that she "barely" thinks about being trans while spending all her time navel gazing about transition and seething about ~~Kenneth Zucker~~ Ray Blanchard. Likewise, Maria reminds me of the trans women I met who ushered me into my own transition back in 2012, both in person and online. I don't know if this novella would ring as true for the new generation of trans people - I only entered the scene at the tail end of this era myself. But I think it's a brilliant portrait of a generation of trans people.

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readingwithgoose's review against another edition

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challenging emotional funny reflective fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Diverse cast of characters? Yes

4.5

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reayboi's review against another edition

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adventurous challenging emotional informative reflective medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

This is the second book I’ve read where the main character is trans. I like that you get to read about the experience of two characters that are “post” and “pre” transition and it’s honestly given me a lot more context to what a trans experience is actually like . Really enjoyed this book and the afterword from the author.

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vidoc's review against another edition

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dark emotional reflective sad medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Plot
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? Yes

5.0

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cronasbookshelf's review against another edition

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adventurous emotional funny reflective medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? It's complicated
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.75

i think the book is okay, i don't think it's awesome but i also don't think its a bad book. personally, the way the author writes makes it difficult for me to understand what the characters are saying out loud and what the characters are thinking in their minds. i didn't really get to love the main character, but i ended up liking james & steph more. i did like the way the author made maria speak about trans exclusion inside the trans community and the fact that the queer community as a whole isn't this wonderful place all the time, there's also still lots of hatred inside of it, and we have to continue to change that

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