Starred Review ALA Booklist (Mon May 08 00:00:00 CDT 2023)

Starred Review This affecting verse novel opens after Noah's best friend, Lewis, has died. The two kids shared a naive romantic connection, in addition to the secret of them each being trans boys, making Noah's grief especially layered and complex. As a way of working through his feelings, he intends to finish the sixth-grade science project they started together: proving the existence of Mothman, whom Lewis knew to be real. The story is quiet, measured, and deeply internal, related primarily through emotionally vulnerable letters from Noah to Mothman and left near the woods for the cryptid to read. As various signs convince Noah that Mothman is receiving his messages, tension builds over whether Mothman is real, or something else entirely, though more and more the evidence of the creature seems convincing, and it all culminates with an ill-advised journey deep into the woods. As a device to explore grief and an emerging queer identity, the Mothman conceit is particularly effective. "No one listens to kids or monsters," Noah reflects, and the book's tone excellently captures that middle-grade mindset of trying to figure out a bigger world, both internally and externally. Noah being autistic adds yet another layer of struggle, beauty, and meaning as he navigates the sixth-grade social scene. At times thrilling and always moving, Gow's middle-grade debut is unquestionably a must-have for all collections.

School Library Journal Starred Review (Wed Feb 01 00:00:00 CST 2023)

Gr 5 Up— Sixth-grader Noah is struggling after his best friend Lewis's unexpected death. No one seems to understand his deep grief, and now that Lewis is gone, no one knows that Noah is really Noah, not the name he was given at birth. The only connection Noah can find is to Mothman, a mythical cryptid that was a subject of fascination for Lewis. Noah begins leaving letters out for Mothman at night, writing of his isolation, sadness, and quest for understanding. When Mothman begins leaving scribbles in the notebook overnight, Noah's curiosity grows. As he slowly begins making friends, he introduces them to Mothman as well, and to his own true self. A book that so honestly depicts a transgender, autistic character is a rarity, and Noah's story is truly beautiful. His letters to Mothman, interspersed with first-person prose and occasional sketches, speak to a boy struggling to find himself after the one person who truly knew him is gone. Mothman may be symbolic to Noah's own journey, but the magical realism aspect of the book adds another, deeper layer as Noah begins to find his own strength and share who he is. VERDICT A triumphant coming-of-age story about gender identity, strength, and friendship, as well as the different ways that people discover who they are.— Kristin Brynsvold

Horn Book (Tue May 09 00:00:00 CDT 2023)

This verse novel follows sixth grader Noah as he processes his grief over the death of his best friend, Lewis, in a car accident. The two were connected by things the world didn't necessarily understand: a shared interest in the elusive cryptid Mothman and their own gender identities. Known to their families and friends by their assigned genders and birth names, the friends had shared their true identities as boys only with each other, making the loss even more heartbreaking for Noah. To honor Lewis's memory, Noah (whose autism spectrum disorder is naturally incorporated) decides to dedicate his science fair project to proving Mothman's existence. Through letters to Mothman, written in a journal that he leaves at the edge of the woods, Noah finds the companionship he is desperate for, which eventually leads to his bravely seeking out new friendships. Gow draws poignant comparisons between the misunderstood Mothman and Noah's burgeoning understanding of his queerness. "I think monsters are here / to make people like me feel less alone." Noah's journey through grief and coming out to the world is authentically messy and joyful. Hill Saxton

Kirkus Reviews

Grieving the loss of his best friend, an autistic transgender boy in a former coal-mining town in Pennsylvania dedicates himself to finding a cryptid for the sixth grade science fair.Unlike Lewis, Noah only pretended to believe in Mothman, but he doesn't have any other ideas for his project, because Lewis is all he's thought about since the car crash three months ago. Desperate for evidence, he writes a note to Mothman in a journal, leaving it under a tree in his yard. The next morning, Noah finds the notebook open to his letter. Scared and yearning for a friend who understands him, Noah pours his heart into completing the project even though no one else believes in it. Written in first-person verse and accompanied by pencil-sketch–style illustrations, the text alternates between Noah's reflective and earnest letters to Mothman and his narration of his school and home lives. Throughout, Noah questions what it means to be a monster. His exploration of monstrosity ties together themes of loneliness, discrimination, self-identification, and community. He expresses the value and necessity of support while acknowledging the barriers and challenges in seeking it. Gow captures the complexity of emotions that arise amid grief and self-discovery. Moments of humor, joy, and curiosity intertwine with heartache as Noah makes new friends and starts opening up about his queerness and gender identity. Noah is of Irish and Italian descent; Gow depicts ethnic diversity in the world around him.Poignant and sincere. (Verse novel. 9-13)