A Boy Named Queen

At only 96 pages, this short novel clearly sends the message to be accepting of others.  ‘Queen’ looks at gender roles, bullying in schools, acceptance and not being afraid to be who you are.  There is a new student in Evelyn’s 5th grade class. He immediately causes a stir when introduced. His name is Queen.  Not even the teacher is sure how to react. Evelyn is from a strict home who does things by routine. She realizes that she and Queen share some commonalities and, more importantly, like each other. There are some mean boys in class who tease Queen and Evelyn gets the fallout from that. Will she decide not to be friends with him to ensure she isn’t the bullies next target?  Evelyn recognizes that she doesn’t want to back down. She likes Queen too much to lose his friendship. The novel reads like a short vignette that teaches tolerance and celebrating our differences. Grades 2-6.