Book Review: None of the Above by I.W. Gregorio

Publish Date: April 7, 2015
352 pages [Kindle edition]
Balzar + Bray 

Synopsis:
A groundbreaking story about a teenage girl who discovers she was born intersex . . . and what happens when her secret is revealed to the entire school. Incredibly compelling and sensitively told, None of the Above is a thought-provoking novel that explores what it means to be a boy, a girl, or something in between.

What if everything you knew about yourself changed in an instant?

When Kristin Lattimer is voted homecoming queen, it seems like another piece of her ideal life has fallen into place. She's a champion hurdler with a full scholarship to college and she's madly in love with her boyfriend. In fact, she's decided that she's ready to take things to the next level with him.

But Kristin's first time isn't the perfect moment she's planned--something is very wrong. A visit to the doctor reveals the truth: Kristin is intersex, which means that though she outwardly looks like a girl, she has male chromosomes, not to mention boy "parts."

Dealing with her body is difficult enough, but when her diagnosis is leaked to the whole school, Kristin's entire identity is thrown into question. As her world unravels, can she come to terms with her new self?


My Thoughts:
I was gifted this book via Netgalley.
Kristin is an 18 year old NY high school student who is an excellent hurdler. She lost her mother to cervical cancer when she was in 6th grade. When her first time with her boyfriend, Sam, doesn't go as expected, Krissy makes an appointment to see a gynecologist. It is there she finds out she is intersex. This is my first book with an intersex character and it was incredibly interesting to read about Androgen Insensitivity Syndrome, even from a fictional standpoint. I definitely want to learn more about AIS after reading this book. I felt that this story was a little more realistic feeling, in that Kristin was not met with compassion and understanding when word got out that she was intersex. The disgusting way the teens reacted really seemed authentic. Of course, there were some here and there who did not treat Kristin any differently after her diagnosis, but again... the reactions seemed true to what I would expect. I was hooked with the story and loved the characters. The plot and characters were very fleshed out and it made for an easy read. I highly suggest this book to anyone looking for a great story and anyone wanting to read about someone with AIS.