Timothy grows up following the rules set by his father that state that when he is Lily Jo, he can't go outside the house. As he starts preparing for the eight grade, Timothy is preparing to start the year as Lily Jo. However, we soon find out that his father most certainly does not agree with this. At the same time we meet Norbert, who is starting his life over in a new place and he seems to be hiding a hard truth about his father. The first time they see each other, Norbert sees Lily and believes Lily is a girl, which she is, despite her father's mixed feelings about it. The next time he sees Lily, she's Tim and accepts the "I was dared into wearing a dress by my sister" answer to his confussion.
As the school year starts Lily's truth and Dunkin making it to the basketball team and unwillingly becoming a part of Vasquez's club. On a daily basis Lily struggles at home with his unaccepting father and Dunkin with the truth about his father. Eventually Lily's father accepts that he gets the treatment that she needs to stop the nature of his body change its course and redirect it and although Lily doesn't seem to understand what prompts the sudden change, she is glad he changes his mind. Unfortunatley, Dunkin stops taking his pills and eventually lands in the hospital. He is released right before the big dance at school, dance to which Lily goes dressed as herself.
Dunkin shows up at the dance and reveals to Lily that his father is dead because he committed suicide. They dance the last dance. Lily's father shows up to the dance wearing a shirt that says "I love my daughter" and finally reveals what made him change his mind about her treatment. The doctor tells him the statistics of transgender teenagers and the alarmingly rate of suicide amongst these kids. He chose to love a daughter than to mourn the death of a son.
This book is heartwarming. It makes you hurt for the trials Lily encounters and it makes you feel for the unaccepting father who we know loves his kid, he's just having a little bit of a hard time accepting his daughter's preferences. It is something that is not spoken off really, at least not where I'm from, but it makes us wonder how many of the kids in our schools struggle with these truths. The powerful message was my favorite: It's best to love a daughter than to mourn a dead son.
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