George Read online

  So far.

  I am inexpressibly indebted to so many people who have helped my baby grow over the last twelve years from “There should be a book about a trans kid!” to the story you hold in your hands. And yet, let me try.

  Deepest and sincerest gratitude to Jean Marie Stine, without whom this book would still be a pile of chapters on a long-defunct hard drive. Infinite thanks to my aerobics instructor of an agent, Jennifer Laughran: “You’re doing great! Just one more revision!” And with great appreciation for my editor, David Levithan, whose relentless enthusiasm for George is downright inspiring. Thanks to Ellen Duda for a cover that brought me tears of joy and to the copy editors who perfected every last dot and dash.

  Powerful fondness and dearness for Beth Kelly, my oldest writing buddy, and Blake C. Aarens, my newest writing buddy. And so much love and thankfulness for the endless friends and family who read this story in its many stages: my parents, Cindy and Steve Gino, and my sister, Robin Gino Gridgeman. My dear partner in life, James McCormack. And Amy Benson, Lilia Schwartz, Matilda St. John, and Amithyst Fist.

  And to the friends and family whose love and support allowed me to write and finish this book. Nana and Papa Gino, Aunt Sue, Uncle Paul, Nana and Rick Scott, Aunt Jerilynn, Wes, Anna, Kadyn, and Brinley. And Sondra Solovay, Joe Libin, Frankie Hill, Alicia Stephen, NOLOSE and all the radical fats, and so many more people—I would need another book to thank you all. I love you more than I know how to tell you.

  Alex Gino loves glitter, ice cream, gardening, awe-ful puns, and stories that reflect the diversity and complexity of being alive. George is their first novel. For more about Alex, please visit www.alexgino.com.

  Copyright © 2015 by Alex Gino

  All rights reserved. Published by Scholastic Press, an imprint of Scholastic Inc., Publishers since 1920. SCHOLASTIC, SCHOLASTIC PRESS, and associated logos are trademarks and/or registered trademarks of Scholastic Inc.

  The publisher does not have any control over and does not assume responsibility for author or third-party websites or their content.

  This book is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, and incidents are either the product of the author’s imagination or are used fictitiously, and any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, business establishments, events, or locales is entirely coincidental.

  Library of Congress Control Number: 2014957885

  First edition, September 2015

  Cover design and art by Ellen Duda, © 2015 Scholastic Inc.

  e-ISBN 978-0-545-81258-0

  All rights reserved under International and Pan-American Copyright Conventions. No part of this publication may be reproduced, transmitted, downloaded, decompiled, reverse engineered, or stored in or introduced into any information storage and retrieval system, in any form or by any means, whether electronic or mechanical, now known or hereafter invented, without the express written permission of the publisher. For information regarding permission, write to Scholastic Inc., Attention: Permissions Department, 557 Broadway, New York, NY 10012.