Larque on the Wing by Nancy Springer

 

You will know from the first paragraph whether you’ll want to read this book or not:

Mother used to call it change of life, but Larque never expected to change quite so much. Gender, for God’s sake, which is really basic, the first thing anybody notices about a person. Then, becoming not only male but gay—what a way to do the big Four-Oh, when all along she thought she was quite happy.

This won the James Tiptree award, which is all about gender examination, and this is a tour-de-force of such an examination. So if you believe in two genders, or immutability of sexuality (especially by puberty), read no further.

The strange gender extrapolations is the novel’s strength. The narrator is a painter in her mid-life and suddenly to the chagrin of some of her family undergoes changes and gains a doppelganger named Sky who says, “Boogers” upon meeting our protagonist. The doppelganger is a youthful version of the protagonist:

“Who are you?” 

“Traitor,” the kid shot back, “you should know. I’m you.”

Sky is Larque’s adolescent escort not only through the changes of life, gender, and sexuality but also through adolescent difficulties—high expectations from her mother, abandonment of her father once her mother divorced him. There’s also Shadow, the cowboy animus, who knows the male side of her.

The weakness is the voice, which feels more light-hearted YA than adult, although perhaps that can be explained by the narrator going through a second puberty—a time of confusion. It isn’t just the colloquial expressions but the reactions. Examples:

“for God’s sake.... Childhood’s a bitch.... Adolescence was hell.... She’s a twerp.”

and

Sky snorted like a pony and got up from the table. “Look what you turned into,” she muttered. 

“Look what I was to start with,” Larque shot back. 

“You like this place you’re living in? Looks like a dump to me.” 

Larque felt all the attractiveness of child abuse as a life option. Yet, the obnoxious kid spoke truth. The place was in fact a dump. Dog hair rolled everywhere.

and

[Hoot, her husband, inquires about her doppelganger’s abilities:] “Does [Sky] walk through doors?” 

“I don’t think so.” 

“Are you sure?” 

“Reasonably sure.” Actually. I don’t know and I don’t really care. Give me a break.
 

and

“Liar. You lie all the time.” 

Larque slapped the brat.

If you like many extrapolations and playful YA, you may well like Larque on the Wing. It takes lots of risks.