Over the last few days
I have been spending
A lot of time with
Jamie
Jamie is a young
Non-binary pupil
In Year 6
They are a happy child
Who loves spending
Their time with their
Best friends
Ash and Daisy
Their time at school together
Is coming to an end
As for Year 7
They will head off to
The school for girls
And the school for boys
At least Daisy and Ash will
Jamie is not at all sure
Where they can go
They are not a boy
Or a girl
There is no school for them
The end of primary school
And choosing a secondary school
Can be stressful enough
Without feeling that
The world has forgotten you
Or not realised you exist
Jamie decides
With his fiercely loyal friends
To make a stand
To try to make a difference
Make a change
For Jamie and for all
Non-binary students
They want to raise awareness
Of non-binary and transgender rights
The trio are brave and passionate
And their friendship means
Everything to them
They mean everything
To each other
Together they take action
They make posters
To put up around their school
They try to get the local council
To fly the non-binary flag
Above the council building
It feels like they will never
Be seen or heard
Until their protest
Accidentally goes rather wrong
This is such a
Brilliant and beautiful book
I adored Jamie
From the moment I met them
I have learned so much
From reading their story
Written with such passion
Understanding and empathy
By LD Lapinski
My 12 year old twins
Know people who
Are non-binary
And this book
Will help us all
To better understand
What it means to be
Non-binary
And the challenges
They face in our society
Through Jamie we learn
That the world makes
Life difficult for those of us
Who are transgender and
Non-binary
And it really doesn’t need to
“… being trans is fine, it’s the world that’s the problem. And that’s what people don’t seem to get. There are loads of us as well. Whether you make room for us or not, whether you accept us or not, whether you include us or not, we’re still going to be here. And us existing doesn’t take anything away from you, or make your life more difficult. Making space for me doesn’t mean you have to give up your seat.
Some people seem to think that if they don’t give us a space, we’ll stop existing. They’d like us to be denied access to toilets or doctors’ appointments or correct pronouns on forms. They hope that if they could do all that,we might decide to go away. Even though nothing we’re doing is hurting them, they wish we didn’t exist.
Being my true self is easy.
I wish other people could see that.”
There are HUGE chunks of this
Brilliant and beautiful book
That I want to copy out
And share with everyone I know
But really I just need to say
PLEASE read this book
Please read Jamie’s story
And share it with
Your young people
They need to read this story
They need to hear it
They need to talk about it
It will help all of us
Become better
More inclusive human beings
It will help us better
Understand people that
We know
People that we love
It will help us all
Better understand ourselves
This is story that is filled with
Joy and heartbreak
Filled with courage
Creativity and humour
A story of acceptance
Of belonging
Of finding your place in the world
At the end of each chapter
In this book
There is
Jamie Rambeau’s
Guide to Words
This has really helped me
To better my own understanding
Of words and acronyms
Linked to the LGBTQ+ community
I feel that having read Jamie
And Glitter Boy
I have learned so much about
The history of the community
And of Pride
I hope that through reading
These brilliant and beautiful books
I will be better able to
Understand all the people
I meet in my life
And I think that the same
Will be true for all children
Who read these stories
These books are important
For children to see themselves
To see their friends
To see family members
People from their community
Included in the stories that they read
These books help us to feel seen
To know that we are not alone
This book will spark discussions
About stereotypes
Prejudice
Use of inclusive language
The power of protest
The history of Pride
LGBTQ+ flags
How practical things need to change
To make our society more inclusive
For everybody
So that everyone can feel included
Can feel safe
It will do all these things and more
But at the heart of LD Lapinkski’s
Powerful and incredibly moving book
Is a coming of age story
A story for anyone who has
Ever felt that they did not belong
This is a call to us all
To be proud of who we are
To stand up for what we believe in
And to be kind and welcoming
To everyone x
I have absolutely adored
My time with Jamie
And I cannot wait
To introduce them
To my children x
In the words of Emma Carroll
Jamie is
FABULOUS
HOPEFUL
IMPORTANT
Please read it x