TARGET AUDIENCE: Young Adult (but, really, everyone should read it)

QUEER CONTENT/IDENTITY? Non-Binary (agender) & Aromantic main character

GENRE: Contemporary Fiction. Based on true events.

​BLURB: 

One teenager in a skirt.
One teenager with a lighter.
One moment that changes both of their lives forever.

If it weren't for the 57 bus, Sasha and Richard never would have met. Both were high school students from Oakland, California, one of the most diverse cities in the country, but they inhabited different worlds. Sasha, a white teen, lived in the middle-class foothills and attended a small private school. Richard, a black teen, lived in the crime-plagued flatlands and attended a large public one. Each day, their paths overlapped for a mere eight minutes. But one afternoon on the bus ride home from school, a single reckless act left Sasha severely burned, and Richard charged with two hate crimes and facing life imprisonment. The case garnered international attention, thrusting both teenagers into the spotlight.

REVIEW:

Dashka Slater's "The 57 Bus" is a riveting and essential read that explores themes of race, class, gender identity, and justice through the lens of a real-life incident. The narrative revolves around two high school students from Oakland, California—Sasha and Richard—whose lives intersect for a mere eight minutes each day on the 57 bus. Sasha, a white teen from a middle-class neighbourhood, and Richard, a black teen from a crime-ridden area, exist in vastly different worlds. A single reckless act on the bus one afternoon results in Sasha being severely burned and Richard facing charges of two hate crimes, thrusting both teenagers into the spotlight.
Slater's journalistic approach to the story provides a masterful examination of the complex issues at play. She deftly debunks stereotypes, challenging the notion of the hate-crime monster and the African-American thug. Through meticulous detail and compassionate storytelling, Slater probes the fine line between adolescent stupidity and irredeemable depravity, making readers question their assumptions about justice and morality.

The book excels in its exploration of gender identity, adolescent crime, and penal racism. Slater's nuanced portrayal of both Sasha and Richard offers no easy answers but instead encourages readers to engage in deep contemplation. Her ability to present the perspectives of both teenagers with empathy and complexity ensures that the narrative remains balanced and thought-provoking. The detailed recounting of their lives and the circumstances that led to the tragic event on the bus highlights the systemic issues that contribute to such incidents.
​
One of the most compelling aspects of "The 57 Bus" is its impact on readers. The book is likely to spark conversations and debates about justice, forgiveness, and the societal factors that influence behavior. Slater's compassionate writing underscores that there is often more to the story than what appears on the surface. The exploration of class, race, and gender identity is handled with sensitivity, making it a powerful and enlightening read.

​ "The 57 Bus" by Dashka Slater is an outstanding work that delves into the complexities of contemporary issues with grace and insight. The book's thoughtful examination of the diversity of creed and the consequences of impulsive actions leaves a lasting impression. It challenges readers to redefine justice for themselves and fosters a greater understanding of tolerance and forgiveness. For anyone seeking a profound and thought-provoking read, "The 57 Bus" is an invaluable addition to their bookshelf.

​* According to your author bio, you identify as trans and utilise gender neutral pronouns (their/them). How has your own life experience and identity influenced your writing?

I've been an avid reader my whole life, but characters with whom I could connect fully have always been few and far between. One of the reasons I started writing is to create stories that have queer and trans characters at the center, but aren't focused on gender or sexuality. I want action adventure stories with characters that truly resonate, and creating those stories has given me so much joy. I've made so many connections with youth and adults who feel the same way I do, that queer and trans stories deserve more than they're often given- as side characters or tokens, or solely defined by their gender/sexuality. Going through many different iterations of understanding my own sexuality and gender identity has allowed me to flesh out different experiences more fully, and the people I've met along my own journey have also heavily influenced my own writing. We all deserve to see ourselves as heroes, and more importantly, to be seen as heroes by others.  

* If you could re-make any Disney movie to include more gender and sexual diversity, which one would it be? 


MULAN, I'm still bitter that she's not officially genderqueer with her delightful pan boyfriend. It's so clear to me that this story deserved more depth and care for queer identities, and it would have been so important to young trans, gq and fluid people to see such an iconic character openly identify as not cis. 

* You have a series coming out soon, the Psionics. Who is your favourite character in this series? Why?
My favorite character in any series I've written is in this series! His name is Leaf and he's a pansexual transguy who makes his living as a trickster conman. He avoids fights at all costs, which makes me laugh, because I'm a martial artist and usually warrior characters are my favorites, but Leaf trumps all my tough guys by miles. He's sweet, witty, super quick and with a cutting sense of humor. He's just the best! Right now I'm actually working on a companion short story where he's the protagonist, and I'm having so much fun! His mission is to break an unknown spy out of jail, but first he has to get in... by getting arrested. While he's a major character in books 1, 3 and 4 of the Psionics, he's not a POV character, so getting to explore him more deeply is really satisfying. It's definitely going to inform my edits!  He's loosely based on a dude I met while backpacking in Australia, but I like my fictional version much better. 

* Tell us about Warp Weavers. What inspired a story about teens with super powers?
​
I love superpowers, I always have done. I've always been fascinated by the with-great-power paradigm. Warp Weavers deals a lot with what it means to be chosen as a hero, what if you don't want that burden? My protagonist for the first story in that series just wants to get her missing parents back and move on with her life, but that's not the way magic works in this universe. Once you're chosen, there's no backing out. To be honest, I think the main inspiration behind this series was the closing of Buffy the Vampire Slayer. The idea of thousands of superpowered teens working together, making friends and fighting evil side by side, has always appealed to me. I'm a sucker for a found family. In the Warp Weavers universe, the magic comes in three strains- there are warriors, (you can probably guess what they can do), warlocks, who work magic to support their team, and finally, weavers. Weavers have the power to sense rifts between dimensions, as well as open and close those magical doorways. They're a key part in the fight against the encroaching demonic armies, as without them the doors would stay open forever, and we'd all be overrun and enslaved. 

​
* How do you choose your character names when writing fiction?

Ha, I'm not sure I should answer this question. Most of my characters are named after students! I'm a teacher, and that provides a lot of name inspiration. I try really hard to not base characters on my students though, just pinch their names. Working in Vancouver is especially good for this because we have such a vibrantly diverse community I'll never end up with five main characters with similar names. 

* If you could have dinner with two of your own characters in real life, who would you choose and why?

Leaf, my amazing conman as mentioned above, and Dent. Dent is actually Leaf's adopted father, but when he's not rescuing dozens of kids from poverty, he's actually the King of the Slums. He's a smuggler, land pirate and all around swashbuckler who loves playing tricks, having fun, and making sure everyone is well fed. I think having dinner with these two would be a barrel of laughs, although I'd probably leave without my wallet, cell phone and jewelry. I wouldn't put it past them to be able to get my lip rings out without me even noticing. I consider that to be a small price to pay, though, as I'm sure that the hilarity would be well worth it.
​
* Coffee or tea?

Why do people try to enforce false binaries?! :D I drink both. Usually tea on weekdays, both before and after work while coffee is more of a nice weekend treat. I have ADD and caffeine hits me pretty hard, so it's nice to have time to work off the extra buzz before having to function in public on the weekend. 

* Can you tell us about the BRAVE NEW GIRLS anthology? I understand you have a story featured in Volume 3.

It's an awesome project that is a collection of YA short stories all starring girls (trans inclusive!) who use science, tech, engineering or math skills to save the day. http://bravenewgirls.weebly.com/ you can find out more here if you like! My new story is about a trans lesbian mechanic who lives on Io (one of Jupiter's moons) and accidentally ends up embroiled with some outlaws because of a cute girl. 

REVIEWED BY ANONYMOUS​

Genre: science fantasy 


Pairings: m/m/f


Queer Representation: bisexual, gender fluid, nonbinary, agender, third gender


Warnings: none--but so many enbies you might have to fan yourself


Rating: five stars





Review

After watching his parents die in a freak storm as a child, Sam's anxiety has kept him from leaving his house. When another inexplicable force of nature drags him out of his house, across space, and into the Nether--a place outside our universe--Sam must learn how to live with his anxiety amongst aliens while also discovering the magic that lives inside himself. 
 
Plot

At it's most basic, yes, this is a 'white boy goes on a journey' story. But it is so much more than that. At 400 pages, this is a high fantasy story (science fantasy, mind) with multiple POVs, a well-defined magic system (music!), and a relatable, flawed MC. The world is rich and lush, well described but never ad nauseum, the characters well rounded, and the species distinct and colorful. Tension builds steadily throughout, the ending is satisfying, and narration is easy to read. Bonus - the cover art and interior illustrations are gorgeous. I was also really pleased that Sam (our MC) does not get over his mental illness, but instead, learns coping mechanism throughout the story that help him interact more with his friends. Even at the end Sam is still gripped by his anxiety, but is able to do his part to save the day. It's rare to find books that do not treat mental illness as something to get over, but rather, allow for it to simply be a part of a character.
 
Relationship

The main relationship is a polyamorous one, between Sam and Inas (male) and his twin sister Enos. Sam is on-page bisexual (an argument could be made for pansexual, as one line notes Sam is interested in the twins for their personalities, not their forms). He is not closeted at the start, and as his interests unfold there is no mental turmoil about being attracted to another male, or being attracted to two people at once. This was all very refreshing, and it was nice to see not only aliens being fine with canon queerness, but an actual human being okay with it, too. 
 
Enbies. Enbies everywhere

I want to do a special callout to the gender representation in this book. It seems ridiculous that this is so rare in SFF, as any time you deal with new species there should never be an inherent assumption of a gender binary. And yet, SFF, especially science fiction, is rife with the strict male/female dynamic. Tracy presents species with genders of all variants, from agender, to third gender, to straight up uncategorized nonbinary, to a gender fluid main character (and no one, no one, freaking cares that they have to pronoun check every so often for this character!). None of the POV characters were outside the binary, but the world was so rich with enby characters I didn't even mind. It felt nice, for once, to be 'included' in a SFF narrative without being the reason for the narrative existing, if that makes sense. Sometimes the most useful way to show your support for a group of people is to make them everyday players, and this book does just that. 
 
The joy of self publishing
​
This book is a great example of why self-publishing can be a wonderful thing. Books like this, which walk right between science fiction and fantasy, which have a YA-aged protagonist mixed with much older POV characters, and which have a high word count (book is right at 400 pages), can be a very hard sell to agents and publishers. SEEDS is exceptionally well written, avoids the pitfalls I see with many self-pubbed books (lack of editing, unattractive cover art, lack of act structure and/or through line) and delivers a quality story. The interior art, as well, is a hallmark of Tracy's stories and really adds the finishing touch to this novel. 
 
Overall, this book should appeal to readers across science fiction and fantasy, as well as YA and adult readers. Queer readers, especially those outside the gender binary, will feel right at home in the Nether, and there is plenty of 'standard' fantasy fare to keep general readers interested. I'm very much looking forward to the next installment!