The Evolving Truth of Ever-Stronger Will

2024 Kansas NEA Reading Circle List

“A bittersweet portrait of an agender teen finding true family following parental abuse…MacGregor sensitively renders Will’s harrowing circumstances, culminating in an emotionally satisfying resolution.” —Publishers Weekly

“MacGregor’s second YA novel makes an artistic leap to second-person narration that gives Will distance from the many sources of pain and trauma in their life, and the author’s experiences being queer and autistic give Will and Julian deeper nuance.” —Booklist

“In Maya MacGregor’s empowering novel The Evolving Truth of Ever-Stronger Will, an agender teenager learns to acknowledge their trauma, find strength in others, and exist without apologies…The book is narrated to Will by Will, resulting in intimacy…and the people around them are diverse and authentic, too.” —Foreword Reviews

“Written in the second person, this work puts readers in Will’s shoes, following their harrowing story in a deeply personal way. Will’s life is one of perseverance and possessing the desire to move forward despite extreme hardship. The story also highlights how youths who have been through traumatic experiences can ultimately thrive. An intense and introspective exploration of trauma and survival.” —Kirkus Reviews

Maya MacGregor is a writer, singer, and artist. Maya sings and writes in G idhlig and in English. You can find their bilingual work on tor.com, in Steall magazine (summer 2020), and Uncanny magazine, with poetry in Poets’ Republic and elsewhere. The Many Half-Lived Lives of Sam Sylvester, which earned three starred reviews and was a 2022 Kirkus Best Book, was their debut young adult novel.

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