SuitabookRick
Alex Gino
- Reading
- Read alongside the child if they want to talk, pausing over unfamiliar identity terms and the difference between understanding someone’s behaviour and excusing it. The ending remains unclear.
- Themes
- Identity and self-understanding: Rick has not previously examined his identity and begins learning terms while attending a Rainbow Spectrum club. He is described as questioning and considering whether he may be asexual or aromantic. The story presents exploration and self-identification as an ongoing process, with community helping Rick understand possibilities rather than requiring immediate certainty.
- Friendship, bullying and accountability: Rick has followed Jeff despite bullying and homophobic behaviour, then increasingly struggles with whether and how to challenge him while forming new friendships. Jeff’s conduct is presented as harmful, while Rick’s growing wish to set boundaries and act differently is treated as an important part of his development.
- Supportive relationships: The Rainbow Spectrum club offers a setting for LGBTQ students and allies, while Grandpa Ray is described as accepting, emotionally open and supportive of Rick. Support is shown through community, honest conversation and adults who can admit mistakes, offering alternatives to pressure from peers or family teasing.
- Worth knowing
- Be aware of bullying and homophobic behaviour, including name-calling, altered posters and a briefly burning flyer. Family teasing, comments about girls’ bodies and references to past fights also appear.