Welcome to St. Hell: My Trans Teen Misadventure – Lewis Hancox
Welcome to St. Hell: A Trans Teen Misadventure by Lewis Hancox is part autobiography, part memoir and part guide to figuring out gender as a trans teen. It is an invaluable resource, and I hope one that many questioning teens get their hands on.
Huge thanks to Scholastic for sending me a review copy, all opinions my own as always.
RELEASE DATE: 02/06/2022
SUMMARY: Lewis has a few things to say to his younger teen self. He knows she hates her body. He knows she’s confused about who to snog. He knows she’s really a he and will ultimately realize this… But she’s going to go through a whole lot of mess (some of it funny, some of it not funny at all) to get to that point. Lewis is trying to tell her this … but she’s refusing to listen. In Welcome to St Hell, author-illustrator Lewis Hancox takes readers on the hilarious, heartbreaking and healing path he took to make it past trauma, confusion, hurt and dubious fashion choices in order to become the man he was meant to be. (from Scholastic)
OPINIONS: Telling creator Lewis Hancox’s own story of discovering his trans identity, this touching graphic novel is a great resource for teens questioning their own gender identity. It isn’t a straightforward or easy story, and shows that being queer is not a sudden choice for most. It is a slow process, and one that often includes a lot of denial and internalised prejudice and fear.
Autobiographical and benefitting from the perspective of adult Lewis, the author self-inserts his adult persona into the story throughout, interacting with his younger self and the people around him, both to give reassurance and to have sometimes uncomfortable conversations about how especially his initial coming out went and how it affected their feelings. And that is something I found interesting to see – the acceptance of others struggling with the change, not because they struggled with Lewis being a guy but because it is a major change and comes with fears of their relationship changing and insecurity. Lewis comes across as wise, and it is great to see his insight into people’s thoughts and behaviour, even if it is clear that the journey to get there wasn’t easy.
I think this graphic novel is a valuable resource and I am incredibly glad it exists. It is nuanced and informative, and I think it will help many teens. While the specific humour didn’t always fully click with me, I think ultimately, the messages and content are far more important. This is an essential book to have in every school library and I hope one that is made accessible to the teens that need it. Add Welcome to St. Hell to your Goodreads here, and pre-order a copy from Bookshop here (affiliate link).