SuitabookIdentity beyond imposed categories
Kivali questions whether they are a girl, boy, human, lizard, both or neither while living under pressure to conform to rigid categories.
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Book details
Pat Schmatz - Author
This is a thoughtful coming-of-age science-fiction novel about questioning imposed categories and finding connection. Expect emotionally charged relationships, an atmosphere of suspicion, and language that may take time to settle into.
Fifteen-year-old bender Kivali has had a rough time in a gender-rigid culture. Abandoned as a baby and raised by Sheila, an ardent nonconformist, Kivali has always been surrounded by uncertainty. Where did she come from? Is it true what Sheila says, that she was deposited on Earth by the mysterious saurians? What are you? people ask, and Kivali isn’t sure. Boy/girl? Human/lizard? Both/neither? Now she’s in CropCamp, with all of its schedules and regs, and the first real friends she’s ever had. Strange occurrences and complicated relationships raise questions Kivali has never before had to consider. But she has a gift—the power to enter a trancelike state to harness the “knowings” inside her. She has Lizard Radio. Will it be enough to save her? A coming-of-age story rich in friendships and the shattering emotions of first love, this deeply felt novel will resonate with teens just emerging as adults in a sometimes hostile world.
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Sign in for personalised guidanceThis is a thoughtful coming-of-age science-fiction novel about questioning imposed categories and finding connection. Expect emotionally charged relationships, an atmosphere of suspicion, and language that may take time to settle into.
Kivali questions whether they are a girl, boy, human, lizard, both or neither while living under pressure to conform to rigid categories.
At CropCamp, Kivali finds friends and a strong community spirit while increasingly suspecting that the camp’s kindness and leadership conceal something troubling.
Consider whether the combination of gender policing, secrecy, attraction, surveillance and possible exile feels manageable for the reader. The novel’s terminology and figurative style may also call for patience or occasional discussion.
This is a grounded book brief while Suitabook strengthens the analysis: some draft conclusions still depend on unresolved evidence.
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