My Sister’s Girlfriend

My Sister’s Girlfriend, by Gail Marlene Schwartz and Lucie Gagnon, is one of the first middle grade novels to tackle issues of internalized homophobia as they might manifest for a Grade 5 girl whose older sister embarks on a lesbian relationship. Suitable for readers aged 10-12, this book could appeal to middle school children whose siblings are coming out in a homophobic environment, as well as to teachers aiming to include SOGI (sexual orientation and gender identity) curriculum in Grades 4 through 6.

Much of My Sister’s Girlfriend is interchangeable with a plethora of cookie-cutter middle grade problem novels—except, in this case, the “problem” is that 11-year-old Talia’s older sister Jade embarks on a lesbian relationship with Emily. The novel unfolds in the slow, quiet manner of many domestic problem novels, with lengthy descriptions of everyday conundrums at school and home, magnified into mountains. While Talia faces several molehills in My Sister’s Girlfriend, the mountain she must scale is her hostility towards Emily. Although homophobia is an important theme in the novel, the real “problem” is that Jade functions as a mother figure for Talia (because their mother is dead), and, therefore, Talia is extremely jealous of Emily. This emotionally charged situation could conceivably occur with any new partner regardless of their gender, which somewhat detracts from the impact of Schwartz and Gagnon’s attempt to portray the complexities of homophobia.

The slow narrative pacing and minute quotidian detail in My Sister’s Girlfriend is at odds with the grand themes and high emotional stakes at play in the conflict. And, unfortunately, since Talia is motherless and relies on Jade for maternal support, the conflict is somewhat muddied and conflated in a way that may not be fully impactful for the intended audience. While LGBTQ+ content is now well-established in both picture books and YA fiction, finding an effective tone and balance for a middle school fiction remains an immense challenge. Schwartz and Gagnon have volleyed this ball onto the field; it will be interesting to see how other Canadian middle grade authors take up play over the next few years.

In the meantime, My Sister’s Girlfriend will likely prove too “slow” for many readers. However, it could appeal to middle school children whose siblings are coming out in a homophobic environment and to teachers aiming to include SOGI curriculum in Grades 4 through 6.