About this book
From the critically acclaimed author of Lies We Tell Ourselves comes an emotional, empowering story of what happens when love may not be enough to conquer all Toni and Gretchen are the couple everyone envied in high school. They've been together forever. They never fight. They're deeply, hopelessly in love. When they separate for their first year at college—Toni to Harvard and Gretchen to NYU—they're sure they'll be fine. Where other long-distance relationships have fallen apart, theirs is bound to stay rock-solid. The reality of being apart, though, is very different than they expected. Toni, who identifies as genderqueer, meets a group of transgender upperclassmen and immediately finds a sense of belonging that has always been missing, but Gretchen struggles to remember who she is outside their relationship. While Toni worries that Gretchen won't understand Toni's new world, Gretchen begins to wonder where she fits in this puzzle. As distance and Toni's shifting gender identity begin to wear on their relationship, the couple must decide—have they grown apart for good, or is love enough to keep them together?
Censorship history
In 2024, "What We Left Behind" by Robin Talley was banned at various school levels across the United States due to its LGBTQ+ content and perceived immorality. This ban was part of a broader trend of challenges against books featuring LGBTQ+ themes, often initiated by local parent-teacher associations and conservative advocacy groups. Specific instances included formal complaints lodged in school districts in states like Texas and Florida, where school boards voted to remove the book from library shelves, citing concerns over its appropriateness for students. The bans have sparked ongoing debates and protests, with some districts facing pushback from students and educators advocating for diverse representation in literature.
Bans
| Country | Year | Reasons |
|---|---|---|
| United States | 2024 | LGBTQ+Moral |
