45 pages • 1-hour read
Too Bright to See
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Background
Authorial Context: Kyle Lukoff
Kyle Lukoff is an American author of children’s fiction. His most famous books are When Aidan Became a Brother and Call Me Max, both of which were published in 2019. He has also published Max and the Talent Show (2019), Different Kinds of Fruit (2022), and If You’re a Kid Like Gavin (2022, with Gavin Grimm), among other works. In addition to working as a writer, Lukoff has also been a school librarian. In the acknowledgments of Too Bright to See, he explains the positive impact that his students had on his writing.
Lukoff is a transgender man, and many of his books are about young trans people and their experiences. In 2004, Lukoff transitioned while attending Barnard College in New York City. Although his experience was different from Bug’s in Too Bright to See, the text draws on common experiences that many trans people share. The novel was inspired by Lukoff’s father, who provided the opening line, as well as by Lukoff’s desire to write a middle grade coming-of-age story about a transgender character.
Some of Lukoff’s books, including Call Me Max, have been challenged and banned in American schools. Anti-trans sentiments have resulted in many books featuring trans characters being banned from school libraries. According to The New York Times, “[a]mong the most frequent targets are books about race, gender and sexuality.” (Harris, Elizabeth A. and Alexandra Alter. “Book Ban Efforts Spread Across the U.S.” The New York Times, 2023)
The New York Times asked teenagers what they thought of book banning:
[T]he overwhelming majority of students were opposed to book bans in any form […] They argued that young people have the right to read unsanitized versions of history, that diverse books expose them to a variety of experiences and perspectives, that controversial literature helps them to think critically about the world, and that, in the age of the internet, book bans just aren’t that effective (The Learning Network. “What Students Are Saying About Banning Books From School Libraries.” The New York Times, 2022).
Social Context: Transgender Experiences
Transgender people feel that the gender they were assigned at birth (boy or girl) does not match with how they feel about themselves. Some people who are raised as girls feel that they are actually boys, and vice versa. Other people might feel that neither binary gender reflects their experiences, leading them to identify as non-binary, or as neither a boy nor girl.
Different human cultures have understood gender differently around the world and throughout history. Some cultures have long recognized more than two gender categories, while others have taken a more strictly binary view. As the World Health Organization reports:
Gender refers to the characteristics of women, men, girls and boys that are socially constructed. This includes norms, behaviours and roles associated with being a woman, man, girl or boy, as well as relationships with each other. As a social construct, gender varies from society to society and can change over time (“Gender and health.” World Health Organization, 2023).
Bug’s experience in Too Bright to See is just one way to be transgender. Everyone’s journey will be different; there is not one correct way:
Some transgender people choose to medically transition, and some don’t. Some transgender people choose to legally change their names or ID documents, and some don’t. Some transgender people choose to change their appearance (like their clothing or hair), and some don’t. Likewise, some transgender people may want to do many of those things but are unable to because they can’t afford it or for safety reasons. A transgender person’s identity does not depend on what things they have or haven’t done to transition, and no two transgender people’s journeys are exactly alike (“Supporting the Transgender People in Your Life: A Guide to Being a Good Ally.” National Center for Transgender Equality, 2023).
Family support for trans people is key: “[T]ransgender children are more likely to experience anxiety, depression, and [are] at greater risk of substance abuse and homelessness when their immediate caregivers are rejecting or hostile” (“Transgender Children & Youth: Understanding the Basics.” Human Rights Campaign, 2023). An aggregate of 16 studies indicates potentially positive mental health outcomes when young trans people receive social support and, if needed, gender-affirming medical care (Turban, Jack. “The Evidence for Trans Youth Gender-Affirming Medical Care.” Psychology Today, 2022).
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