call me him. by River Braun

In the gritty world of Southern California skate-punk culture, 14-year-old Wylie Masterson faces a relentless battle—against the system, against his own body, and against the expectations of family and society. Wylie is not your typical teenager; he's a transgender male, born as Willow, but living as the person he truly is, a young man yearning for authenticity.

Puberty is challenging enough for any teenager, but for Wylie, it's compounded by the struggle to break free from a body and identity that don't align with his true self. His desire to escape the oppressive confines of his hometown and embrace his authentic identity as a man becomes a matter of survival.

Amidst the backdrop of his conservative and religious upbringing, Wylie's mother is determined to hold onto her perception of her "sweet, innocent daughter," setting the stage for a heart-wrenching journey of self-discovery and resilience. "Call Me Him" is a powerful and emotional coming-of-age story that explores the universal themes of identity, acceptance, and the courage to live life on one's own terms. Wylie's story is a testament to the strength of the human spirit and the determination to find one's true self, even in the face of overwhelming odds.

Reviews

  • I really couldn't put this book down. As a 60-ish hetro white person who is genetically born as, and identifies as female, I have spent most of my life thinking in fairly narrow ways about gender and gender identification. I've never judged but I also never really understood how things might be different for some people. River Braun so beautifully lays out the challenges of being born anatomically one way while identifying another, and my eyes have been opened to the beauty of finding ones own truth. Following Wiley on his path as he struggles with what might be "wrong" with him, and then finds help and the freedom to finally be who he really is was illuminating. I am a better person for reading this beautifully written book.

    Allison | Amazon Review

  • Call Me Him is one of the most beautiful, heart-wrenching and raw coming-of-age stories I’ve ever read. It’s such an honest, thought-provoking and important ownvoices-story about the struggles of a transgender teen boy that deserves to be read by everyone!

    Annie | Annie's Reading Tips

  • This is an extremely important book. It chronicles a young man's transition (FTM) and all he has to deal with, both medically/psychologically and in his daily life. He comes to understand and accept his desires as 'normal' and things that he has expectations of acceptance of himself as. Simple things, such as going shirtless and the freedom that that brings are monumental gains for Wylie. Being addressed by his preferred name and pronouns become mundane. Even saying all this, navigating family acceptance; school and institutional concerns and interpersonal conflicts take precedence. Early reading garnered the concern that the book glossed over some initial concerns; finding a therapist/counselor, guardianship and others were presented and then completed almost without any involvement. But I found that this was by design to leave more time to describe later issues and processes. I found the characters likeable and engaging; and given the events that were transpiring was amazing. I thought that I was pretty knowledgeable of the trans experience. Not so. Reading this book was truly an enlightening experience. I HIGHLY recommend it.

    Stanley Olszyna | Amazon Review

  • I don't often write reviews...well, ever really, but there are some books and some messages that need to be heard. I don't know that I have ever come across a mainstream book that speaks to the complexities of coming-of-age with the raw honest perspective of this transgendered protagonist. It is an ever-present reality that we need more vivid and vulnerable written accounts from unique and underrepresented individuals to ensure our young people can see themselves in the books they read and the world they live in...but this book offers more than just a platform. It's a wonderful story that expresses the usual challenges of growing up, layered with the complexities of life as a transgendered youth. It is a story of friendship, of innocence-lost, of strength, of perseverance, and of the many faces of love. The author brings the characters into your heart and forces you to feel each experience with them. It was both a heartwrenching and uplifting journey...a beautifully emotional ride. Looking forward to more books by this talented new author.

    T.L. Bragg | Amazon Review

  • An engrossing novel that tackles some really tough topics such as transphobia, body dysphoria, misgendering, sexual assault, and substance abuse. Braun did a great job of writing an entertaining, emotionally raw story that is also educational and informative. Many trans teens will be able to relate to Wiley, feel seen in their experience, and potentially learn something. I really did love this book, I didn’t rate it five stars for a few minor plot-related reasons but as a YA novel about trans representation, experience, and visibility I’d rate it among the best.

    Lindsey | Goodreads Review

  • More books need to be out there like this! You dive right in and the characters come alive. The writing feels so authentic - true to how it feels to come of age as an intelligent, soulful, soul searching, individual, where situations, complications & traumatic events, just happen! As we grow up, we then have the job of figuring out where we stand, who we are and how to make heads or tails out of any of it. In first-person, the writing flows like you’re reading someone’s true thoughts. Between eloquent lines there is also that angsty coming of age voice, too. Rare to find a story written with such honesty. The plot’s compelling, the characters aren’t what you expect them to be; they are who they are, with all their human idiosyncrasies.

    J. Dave | Goodreads Review

  • Vivid, powerfully written, evocative, Call Me Him had me engaged in Wylie's life from the first page. What a tremendous, heartfelt story, bigger and more haunting that you would guess from its fairly short length at just under 260 pages. Readers should note the thoughtful trigger warning at the start of the book. I started reading and kept reading, finishing in a few hours, because, while you're in this story, you want what Wylie wants-- to be the sex you intrinsically are, not the sex assigned at birth by the betrayal that your physical attributes represent. Your obstacles seem ever moving, the challenges confounding, in a way that rings true to all our experiences as humans, especially when young and oppressively manipulated by our circumstances. The world always feels to adolescents like it's yelling at them, with rare moments of insight and peace, and you accompany Wylie through his compelling experiences. There's room for champions in this novel, and friends in a complex world. These are believable, flawed friends, even as Wylie himself is imperfect. The grit and passion and failures of Wylie make him particularly real, and it's fascinating that the author manages to depict some of Wylie's biggest mistakes in a way that makes it clear Wylie doesn't see anything wrong with these choices, even while you as a reader may. I rooted for Wylie even when he stepped into disaster, or couldn't control his responses to yet another blow, because of the level of engagement the novel sustained. The agony of his passionate emotions, the conflict within and the conflict without were gut-level persuasive, even wrenching. I'm not a skateboarder, so I can only say that I found Wylie's passion for the sport persuasive and energizing. Here is the one great freedom and skill that carries him, and the friends he makes through the exercise of his talents feel true and strongly individual. Still, there is no magical solution to Wylie's conflict through his sport, though in one section of the book I imagined there might be. No, instead, solutions arise through choices, even bad choices, and human kindness. I note that some reviews are negative about the idea that sexuality is a preoccupation for characters in this age group. Anyone who finds that so, likely has not yet raised a child to adulthood. The powerful perception and necessity of taking responsibility for sexual activity, respectfully represented as it is in this novel, are positive. Are the characters minors? Yes. Are they all of exactly the same age? No. But they are in the same stages of accepting and choosing the identities and roles of sex, where consent is the major key. I appreciate the relationship between Wylie and his new friend, Alex, who evolves to be his best friend and his betrayer, in a humanly convincing way. The redemption of the relationship is a struggle, not a simple persuasion, and again, it feels authentic. Alex's mother Reyna, plays a pivotal part in the narrative, but you also read in her the motives and emotional life that have helped form Alex into the person he is, and the person he becomes. River Braun states that his intent was to write a story that he wishes had been available to him when growing up. Yes, though I am not myself directly part of the trans community, I wish I could have read this book when I was growing up, because it would have broadened my understanding of myself and of the people who share the world with me. The restraint and power with which the work is balanced and honed, moves me to admiration as a reader, and envy as a writer. It may tell you a great deal that I'm turning around and purchasing eight copies for friends, with whom I believe it will resonate profoundly. I loved the book. It managed to be both tender and powerful without pause. It never lost its heart. I would recommend it to anyone who wants to better understand humanity.

    miakhky | Amazon Review

  • This was a novel outside my more typical readings, because I don't read Young Adult books, even the mega blockbusters like the Hunger Games. I do enjoy fiction centering around coming of age themes. Not since Wally Lamb's She's Come Undone have I stayed up late to finish a story about a middle school child in a struggle to become who they are. I don't skateboard, but I so appreciated how the vivid descriptions of the sights and sounds of this world-- of freedom, movement, independence, the challenge of competition-- was woven throughout the story. As a trans character, Wylie drew me in immediately. I really wanted to know how it was going to go for him, and the author created just the right amount of tension at the right time, moving the story forward while also creating twists in the plot that I absolutely loved. The author's storytelling style reminded me of the classic Stone Butch Blues by Leslie Feinberg. I thought the ending was brilliant and the allies Wylie made along the way, his friend Alex, Alex's mother the therapist who specialized in trans issues, and ultimately Wylie's family and classmates were vividly drawn. The antagonists were not cartoonish or cast in an evil light. My guess is that most of us can see ourselves in any or all of the characters, especially with Wylie-- whose charming openness to the flawed humans around him drives the larger experience of young people wanting love and acceptance.

    K. Fischer | Amazon Review

  • In this coming-of-age tale, River Braun tells the story of Wylie, a young man and skater trying to find his way in the world of post-Y2K. The character of Wylie was so endearing, it was almost difficult to keep reading whenever he would experience a formative challenge on his way towards understanding and acceptance of himself. I enjoyed the perspective shift between Wylie and his best friend; showcasing an ally's perspective as they also learn what it means to support and care for a trans friend. It can help to see the experience from a first-hand perspective, but some people also need a positive example of what it looks like to be a good 3rd party to someone in the LGBT community- or what it looks like to mess up. I look forward to reading more from this author as this book was a beautiful telling of the trans experience.

    Elijah | Amazon Review

  • I know transgender youth from the outside. I have a daughter who is much stronger than I am in so many ways to have come out and is living her life as herself. It is not always easy by any means, but being a support person for a transgender child is very different than beings the trans person. River Braun does an amazing job of putting us into the roller coaster experience of going through adolescence as a trans person. I was engrossed from the beginning and the story was wonderfully written and engaging when it could have been preachy and obvious. Wylie is a great character with depth and conflict. It was a remarkable walk in my daughters emotional shoes and I am grateful to have been given that gift. I believe I gained important perspective on my child’s, and all other trans children’s, emotional development. My wife found it all too real and she could not read the book. I will encourage her to try again but she just got too wrapped up in the emotion. It is quite powerful for those of us parenting a trans child. Whether you have a friend, spouse, or child who is trans, or if you want to simply better understand the transgender experience, this book will help you wrap your head around the emotional experience. I highly recommend this book!!

    Latell Sailmakers | Amazon Review

  • I was struck by how the emotions of growing up, in any circumstance, were brought out by the author to engage the reader. With little direct experience of the trans community, I could relate to Wylie regardless, and feel the challenges through his perception. How you fit in, how you grow into your adult self, and the friends, enemies, authority figures, and support figures, are captured in this unflinching look at his experience. It is not just a trans coming of age book, it is an every person coming of age book. The details may be unique for Wylie, but the fundamental morality of being true to yourself, being loyal to your friends, the complexities of intimacy, and knowing what matters, and what doesn't, make the story, and the characters, compelling and oh so human.

    Tina Brockett | Kindle Review

  • My niece just share with us that they would like to go by they/them/their or he/him/his. I bought this book to seek to have a better understanding of non-binary and trans experiences. I really enjoyed reading Wylie’s and Alex’s journey through their final year in middle school. This was really well written and I will be sharing with my kiddo once they get to middle school.

    Sydney Jackson | Amazon Review