The Passing Playbook is a YA contemporary about a transgender boy called Spencer who switches schools after being bullied by his former classmates and gets a fresh start at Oakley, the most liberal private school in Ohio. With new friends, a Queer Student Association and a shot at playing for the boy’s soccer team, things seem to finally look up for Spencer - even if nobody knows that he’s trans because he’s passing. But when he’s being kept from playing soccer, he has to decide between fighting for his spot on the team or coming out to everyone - including the guy he’s crushing on.


This kind of YA contemporary is my favorite to read: it’s cute and heartwarming but also tackles so many important themes such as discrimination against trans athletes, bullying, transphobia (also microaggressions from other LGBTQIAP+ students), being biracial , ableism (Spencer’s brother is autistic), bullying and religion. The Passing Playbook never sugarcoats any of these topics but still manages to have a hopeful tone and celebrates being queer/trans.


I loved how it explored Spencer’s relationships with his family, his friends and also him falling in love. His parents are supportive but they’re also worried about him and a big part of the story is that they won’t let him play for the boy’s soccer team and that they think he should join a co-ed team instead. They care about him but end up hurting him themselves by this. I also really like how it explored his new friendships and the students at this supposedly very liberal high school - how there are still microaggressions that Spencer and his new friend who’s non-binary have to deal with.


And then we’ve got a romance that’s just so adorable and lovely and I really like how their relationship developed. It felt realistic for their age (Spencer is 15) and just really warmed my heart.


I really enjoyed The Passing Playbook and highly recommend checking it out.

Thank you to NetGalley and Penguin UK for providing an eARC!

Always happy to read trans content - the book did feel a bit rushed for my taste but lovely characters!

After his safety is threatened due to being transgender, fifteen-year-old Spencer switches to a liberal private school and decides to spend his remaining years passing in the hope of being left alone. However, after joining the football (soccer) team, his new position is threatened by the ‘F’ on his birth certificate, meaning Spencer has to decide whether he should publicly come out and fight for his rights and for the rights of trans students like himself across the state or stay quiet. I loved how the author emphasised that staying quiet didn’t show a lack of courage but rather the awareness that one’s own emotional and physical safety is always paramount.
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Alongside this dilemma is Spencer’s burgeoning romance with his Christian teammate who comes from a super religious family. Justice’s character arc was beautifully nuanced and I loved how Coach protected him as best he could. I also appreciated how supportive the entirety of the football team was and Macintosh was probably my favourite character as he was just so kind and understanding.

As a cisgender person, it’s hard to truly appreciate how dangerous life can be for someone who is transgender but this book did a great job showing this to the reader. The importance of queer spaces for safe exploration and validation of one’s experience was another highlight of the book. For these reasons, I think THE PASSING PLAYBOOK would be an ideal addition to every school library.

The level of talent it takes to write a debut this good is astonishing and I can’t wait to read whatever the author writes next. If you’re looking for an LGBTQIA+ sports romance with some thought-provoking issues then definitely check this one out.

I adored this book.

Isaac wrote a young voice that seemed authentic (but I'm not trans so I don't know for sure how well represented this was.) Things I was glad about - he know he was a man, there was no angst over this just a surety that he was born the wrong sex and a need to be the person he actually is. There is some reference to his transition, but it is light and similarly when we are focused on the relationship, it didn't sexualise his partial transition.

There is a whole host of other representation in this book and that is also fantastic. What we also have represented are those that are not as accepting. I understand that they still exist, unfortunately, and I was glad that this wasn't the main focus of the story.

Whilst his attraction to Justice was one of the main themes, another huge part of the story was his love of football and how playing this also formed a huge part of his identity. There were also other parts of just normal teen life, making out with your boyfriend and your parents catching you, the awkward conversations that no kid wants re sex, solid friends who have your back and making new ones.

After the last book I read felt like a chore to read, this one was a delight. Long may we get love stories all across the rainbow that ourselves and our kids can enjoy.

The Passing Playbook is a book with beautiful writing that made me feel all warm and fuzzy inside. It is the story of a young trans teen, Spencer who has moved to a new school where no one knows he is trans. After an incident in P.E., he is invited to join the school's soccer team and that is where the story begins.

The book felt like a whole rollercoaster of emotions; I was constantly smiling, laughing and getting emotional all the way through. Spencer is such a great character to read from the viewpoint of and his struggles (especially as a trans teen) were captured so well.; I love his sense of humor and I love stories that make me feel that way and it's why The Passing Playbook is going to become a favorite read of mine. I'm also a complete sucker for stories that have the found family trope; it's one of the best tropes ever and this book had it and does it so well. And the romance, oh it was beautiful. Spencer and Justice were a wonderfully cute couple and have my whole heart.

The Passing Playbook is a story that I highly recommend; it's beautiful and it's got everything you could ever want.

I was really excited for this book so I’m sad to say it ended up being a disappointment.

I will start off with the positives. This book had a strong start. It was fast-paced and I liked the writing style. I really liked Spencer’s character at first and it’s always good to see some well-written trans characters in books.

That said I had some significant problems with this book. Firstly the portrayal of Spencer’s autistic brother. I wouldn’t normally refer to him like that but that’s all he was to the narrative: Spencer’s autistic brother. He felt like a prop, used first as something for Spencer to feel guilty about (a plot point that never really got resolved) and then to make Spencer look like a good person for loving him. He was also a flat character; the only things I could tell you about him are that he’s autistic, he likes animals and he has an ipad he takes everywhere. If he had more character development and relevance in the narrative he could have been good representation but as an autistic reader I’d rather he wasn’t included than be portrayed like this. It wouldn’t make any difference to the overall story if he was left out entirely.

My next issue is something of a sensitive subject: religious bigotry, abuse and victim-blaming. If you haven’t grown up surrounded by religious bigotry and with abusive and controlling parents you may not understand the issue I have here. As someone with personal experience with these things I was very uncomfortable with the way Justice’s family was portrayed and Spencer’s reaction to them. Justice comes from a conservative family who are part of a cult-like right-wing Church. His father is emotionally abusive and controlling. Spencer breaks up with Justice for not standing up to his abusers for their homophobic bigotry and is depicted as in the right.

Thousands of queer people are subjected to conversion therapy, abuse and even exorcisms by abusive family members for coming out. Justice is a 15/16 year old kid. Expecting him to stand up to his family and Church is victim-blaming and the narrative shows little empathy to the situation Justice, and many very real queer young people, find themselves in.

In addition to these things there were some amateur writing mistakes in this book that became more and more grating to me as it went on. I may have been able to ignore these issues if it weren’t for the other issues I had with the book.

I’m sorry to say that I found this book to be a disappointment. I won’t tell anybody not to read it if they’re still interested but it gets a no from me.

I really enjoyed this book. It was extremely easy to read and had a good plot. Was it a bit under developed in places? Yes. For one, the ending felt very rushed and I would have liked a bit more development of the main romance. However, I can accept that's not really the main focus of the story and I look forward to seeing what the author writes next!

Thanks to netgalley for the arc in exchange for an honest review!

The Passing Playbook is a lot of love & care packed into one little book.It’s very clearly a book for LGBT youth, and especially for trans kids. A book showing them with every page that they are loved and deserve every ounce of that love.

Plot-wise it’s not a complicated book. But a book’s worth is not measured with its outline, rather - with the emotions it evokes in the reader. And The Passing Playbook understands that very well. It knows which strings to pull on to make the reader smile or cry.

And the one it pulls the hardest is the string of love. That is in abundance in The Passing Playbook. Spencer’s parents’ love for him, Spencer’s love for his brother, Spencer’s teammates’ love for him, his love for his crush… Every possible shade of the emotion, with all its highs and lows.

🌿BOOK REVIEW🌿

The Passing Playbook by Isaac Fitzsimons

After transitioning at his old school that led to bullying, Spencer is hoping to have afresh start at his new liberal private school. Not only is he a massive nerd, he is also a talented football player and is determined to join the male football team- much to his parents concern. Through football he gets to know one of his teammates, Justice, who comes from a highly religious family.

The author creates such a realistic teenage protagonist who is experiencing the everyday troubles of family life and school. They also discuss autism and the pressures it can place on a family. On top of this, Fitzsimons also explores transitioning, passing, transphobia and embracing your true self.

TW// transphobia, homophobia, bullying, religious bigotry, dead naming, drug use

The Passing Playbook is a story told through the eyes of are protagonists Spencer, who is is transitioning. It discusses many of the obstacles trans people might face in high school.

Spencer's parents are very supportive of his transitioning but the have made the dission to chance his school because of bullying. The new school claims to be the "most liberal, private school in the county". But despite this Spencer decides to go 'stealth' he believes "I just feel like the fewer people know, the better".

However Spencer is a star soccer player and joins the boys team but a discriminatory law forces Spencer to be benched because his birth certificate has an 'F' on it. Which means he has some big life changing discussions to make, stay stealth' and have great friends but no soccer or come out but risk his friendships.

It also touches on autism, with Spencer brother Theo being on the spectrum which h was a nice touch.
Another element to the story is Spencer falling for one of the guys in his team Justice. The problem is that he comes from a super religious family. This is another coming out story line that adds a added element to this story.

All round this is a great coming of age Y/A book, that is undereprsentive in the genre.

Thanks to NetGalley and the publishers for giving me a digital copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

There’s something a little bit Heartstopper about this cute YA debut novel - it’s obviously not a graphic novel and it’s not the queer romance storyline, but there’s definitely a similar wholesome vibe about it.
Fifteen year old Spencer is starting a new high school after being bullied and threatened at his last school whilst he transitioned. He’s keen to join the football team, and he’s a popular player; but then his coach discovers the gender on his birth certificate, and Spencer has some choices to make.

This book was so easy to read and tackles some difficult topics well. The only issue was the fact that everything kind of goes a little bit too smoothly - and I think it would have better served to show teen readers in similar situations how to deal with people who aren’t as accepting as the characters in this book. The characters who weren’t were super religious and in reality, that’s not the entire truth of where in the world we are right now. Nevertheless, I enjoyed it and would recommend!

A sweet and simple story of a Black trans boy joining the football team and falling for his uber-religious teammate. At times the writing felt kinda juvenile, more like middle-grade? Maybe because despite the 3rd person narration, the parents were always referred to as Mom and Dad which seemed weird. But this was a touching story with a lot of heart.

ARC copy received from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. I like this story and it’s a bit surprising that this is the debut of the author. The language is humorous yet somewhat blue, that kind of teenager melancholy. I really enjoyed it.

Spencer Harris, a trans boy, was transferred to a new high school named Oakley after being bullied due to his transition. He bumped into Justice Cortes the first day at Oakley, and I’d say it’s love at the first sight! Justice turned to also be the vice captain of the football team to which Spencer became a member, but it seems that Justice doesn’t really like Spencer a lot. Spencer really likes football, but the fact of him being trans may create problems for him to participate in the games he would like so much to play….

Not my usual read but very interesting. I was taken in by the reference to Friday night lights which I absolutely loved. Didn't quite hit the highs of that show for me but I did still enjoy the storyline.
Tackles very current and important issues and would consider it a 'must read' for the YA audience!
Many thanks to netgalley for the opportunity to read and review!

DRC provided by Penguin Random House Children’s UK via NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.

Representation: Black queer trans protagonist, Black autistic secondary character, Black secondary character, trans non-binary secondary character, gay secondary character, bi secondary character, trans tertiary character, Black tertiary characters, queer tertiary characters.

Content Warning: anxiety, homophobia, transphobia, drug abuse mention, mention of overdose-related death, misgendering.

The Passing Playbook by Isaac Fitzsimons is an amazing contemporary novel about first love, feeling part of something, speaking up and this is unusual for me because I hate the sport and the toxic environment it generates and supports soccer.

After changing school because of the transphobic abuse he suffered following his coming out, Spencer is reluctant to share this part of himself again at his new private school. His passion for soccer and a sweet love interest are going to change that.

I loved the book and all the emotions and cuteness it contained. One of my favourite scenes was when Spencer and Justice rode on the same bicycle. I love all scenes where two people are riding the same two-wheeled vehicle, and one is “forced” to hold on to the other, because of the closeness and the feeling of safeness it creates, which always reminds me of the blossoming of one of the seeds of queerness in me.

To say I am not a fan of soccer is to say the least. I hate the sport with all my heart because of its intrinsic toxic masculinity and homophobia. That is probably one of the reasons which made me love the book so much as it showed what a soccer team should be more like, and frankly what soccer should be more like. An environment of support for every member of the team.

One scene I did not entirely like which has not in any way impacted my love for this incredible novel was the one where a girl in the Queer-Straight Alliance said that it was not necessary to fight for a gender-neutral bathroom because it would only benefit trans students and in that moment there was only one out student basically dismissing the existence of other trans students. At that point, Spencer came out to the group to make them understand they were showing their privilege and ignorance and fighting for a gender-neutral bathroom was good because it would help both current and future students of the school. I felt as if Spencer was somewhat forced to come out in that situation because the circumstances required him to, whereas in the other scenes in which he came out, he seemed more in control. Thinking more deeply about it though, I understand that Spencer, at that point, decided that speaking up was the right thing to do.

Another aspect of the book I thought was quite brilliant was the use of the word passing. The term has connotations in both the trans community and soccer. And while in soccer its meaning is a simple one, in the trans community the word has a double-edged effect.

The Passing Playbook was not a reading experience I will forget easily.

PS: Thank you Isaac for making me want to watch a ridiculous horror movie which does not exist.

‘“But seriously,though. I think that the more people who are out and visible, the safer it is for everyone. BUT, and this is a big but, you need to make sure that you’re safe first. Physically safe, yes, but also emotionally and psychologically. Whether you come out tomorrow or in five years, or thirty years, I guarantee that the fight will still be going on in some form or another. And I promise that when you join us, we’ll welcome you with open arms.”’

*4.5 stars out of 5*

Wow, just wow. This is probably one of the best debut novels i’ve read in a long time.

This was such a fun book and I absolutely flew through it even though I didn’t want it to end. Although it is written relatively simply, it is evident the care that Fitzsimons has put into every character, their development and the overall message. In this book Fitzsimons has an amazing way of conveying important topics into a simple format that is accessible for younger readers without losing any of the meaning or overall message. I especially loved how difficult topics were addressed through dialogue between the characters as it came across so naturally.

In terms of the characters, the representation was so amazing and I especially loved the inclusion of an autistic side character through the MC’s younger brother. Although mainly focusing on Spencer and Justice, all the side characters were fully formed, well crafted characters with their own struggles so I felt just as close to them as the main characters. There are characters who are at different stages of coming to terms with and defining their sexuality or gender identity which I believe offers so many opportunities for relatability for readers who are also on this journey.

In addition, I really feel like I learned something from this book and was given a new perspective on LGBTQIA+ issues, especially those that transgender individuals may face. I feel that LGBTQIA+ books often focus on the individual coming to terms with their own identity and fighting for acceptance but in this book the main character is initially perceived to be cisgender and questions whether he is denying his identity by not coming out. This is not a theme I have ever encountered in fiction before so I particularly enjoyed seeing this represented and educating myself on it. In my opinion, the discourse about never feeling forced to come out or outing another individual is one of the most important messages in this book and I love that it was included.

The only reason this wasn’t a 5 star read for me is that I have no knowledge of soccer and its rules so I did find myself losing focus when the dialogue drifted into discussion of gameplay and tactics. However, this is purely a personal opinion and I do not think this should put anyone off reading it. I highly recommend this book and wish it came into my life when I was in my teens.

I’m not crying, YOU ARE! Mostly fluff with a hint of real life angst and oppression. I love that this book was not focused on suffering and was more focused on joy, acceptance, companionship and team work. I love Spencer with all my soul (but also justice, Spencer’s whole family, the whole soccer team and the coach) it was fast paced, which I’m grateful for, but also happy to say it was done really well. I would die for these characters and I will be buying the book. I’m going to cry now about how happy my trans heart is after reading this. Not the most professional review but this book did things to me. Will be posting on insta soon

The American cover of The Passing Playbook sports a blurb from Kacen Callender that calls it “A simultaneous warm hug and a lightning strike of courage”, and I couldn’t agree more with that statement. While this book deals with transphobia in high school sports and religiously motivated homophobia, it also features a young biracial trans protagonist who finds support, falls in love, and empowers himself and others. The Passing Playbook felt both heart-warming and empowering to me, and I completely and utterly adored it in every way.

The book follows 15-year-old Spencer as he moves to a new school where nobody knows he’s transgender. After an incident in PE class, he’s invited to join the school’s soccer team, although this comes with several complications. His parents do not necessarily approve of their transgender son joining a boy’s football team, and Spencer doesn’t quite hit it off right away with the team’s vice-captain, Justice. Spencer gradually manages to find his place, however, and even when he faces hardships there is always a light in the darkness. When he is at odds with his parents, his friend Aiden is there to support him. When he can’t sit with his soccer team during lunch, he has a friend from his school’s Queer-Straight Alliance he can sit with. When the soccer league forbids him from playing because he is transgender, his team and coach still support him every step of the way. Whenever my heart ached for Spencer in sympathy, there was always a sense of support elsewhere to soften that ache.

The question at the heart of Spencer’s inner conflict is ultimately whether he should stay “stealth” or come out as transgender. Seeing Spencer weigh the pros and cons of both was something that resonated so deeply within me. I haven’t transitioned (yet), but Spencer’s reasoning behind why he should stay closeted versus why he should come out was so recognizable. He wants to be an ally to fellow trans people at his school—and elsewhere—but as a biracial Black transgender boy, he is also faced with so many potential dangers. At the beginning of the book, he switches schools because of anti-trans violence threats at his old school, so Spencer knows firsthand what dangers could potentially await him if he does decide to come out. I won’t say anything else about this—you can read for yourself how this plays out—but to see my own worries mirrored in a book like this was something that struck a nerve deep within me.

Besides Spencer’s inner conflict, his relationships with others are also just built so well. His romance with Justice develops at a pace that feels natural, and I loved seeing the two slowly get to know each other beyond their initial (largely wrong) judgment of one another. The soccer team’s dynamic is all about “boys will be boys” but in the best way possible. Spencer’s relationship with his parents and brother is at times complicated, but ultimately they are all there to support him. His little brother is autistic, which sometimes complicates life at home. I will admit that I, as an autistic reader, was at first a bit taken aback by the way Spencer sometimes frames his brother’s autism. At the beginning of the book, it almost felt like Spencer thought of his brother as a burden because of his autism, but I think as the book goes on it is shown that Spencer cares a lot about his little brother and that some of his earlier feelings about his brother’s autism (and how it influenced him and his family) were wrong.

I will note, for those who might struggle with reading about such topics, that Justice is part of a very strict Christian family and community who are not supportive of his sexuality. He is closeted for the majority of the book but is eventually outed to his family and ends up in a situation where he is distanced from them. Spencer struggles with Justice’s homophobic family and is initially not very understanding of why Justice needs to stay in the closet for his own safety. There are also several scenes with explicit portrayals of homophobic ideas from Justice’s community, which might be difficult to read for some readers. I believe that ultimately this conflict was resolved in a realistic yet relatively positive way, but if you plan on reading this book, just be aware of that going into it.

All in all, I absolutely adored this book. Everything felt so well-crafted and was handled with so much care, and I’m so happy this kind of book exists for trans readers, especially teens. And books like this, about trans teens in sports, are so incredibly needed at the moment with all the anti-trans legislation that seems to be on the rise in the United States. I highly recommend this one!

I really enjoyed this YA novel. It’s about Spencer, a black gay, trans teen who is absolutely obsessed with football. Did I ever see myself enjoying a novel that was so much about people playing football and winning footballs and losing footballs? No, I did not. However, it was so well written it kind of didn’t matter. Spencer was a great protagonist, mostly super relatable and fun to read, occasionally childish and / or unforgiving. His flaws and strengths were present throughout and his characterisation was consistent. For me, reading books like this provides a base line in understanding issues that I may not be faced with on a daily basis. Just by the way Spencer and Riley discussed / reacted to certain issues I learned another vocabulary / further embedded that vocabulary around LGBTQI+ issues. There was also some lovely imagery in this novel, alongside great connections between various characters.
I also loved the way this book dealt with past trauma. There was a whisper but it did not define any of the characters. You did not get to know the details of some of it, because it wasn’t your business. I feel like those lines being drawn were important too. I would definitely recommend this read.
Thank you Netgalley for the ARC!

You know when you share some parts of your identity with a character and said character is written with so much care and love that it feels like someone is putting the softest and warmest blanket over your shoulders? Yeah, that’s kind of how I felt reading this. There aren’t any incredible plot line or super complex characters in this, but there’s so much love.

There were many things to enjoy in The Passing Playbook, from the characters to the empowering plot. This will definitely appeal to readers who like sports, especially soccer, as it holds an important place in the book. The romance, though it is a smaller part of the story, is really cute! I really liked the writing too. The novel is told in the third person but the pov is really personal like you’d usually expect of a first person point of view. I thought that was really interesting and made the book quite different from other YA contemporaries I’ve read.

It’s definitely not easy to explain exactly why the rep in this brought me so much comfort, but thinking about it, I guess it has something to do with all the little details and small scenes, with the way we get to meet Spencer and learn things about him.

Such a great book!!

content warning: homophobia and transphobia (sometimes motivated by religious beliefs), misgendering, references to deadnaming, mentions of child death and drug overdose, past bullying, threats, and school lockdown.