Review by Frank Plowright

Jackie Locklear is a stand-up comedian still in the early stages of a career, meaning they still have to play bars populated by the ignorant and offensive. They appear as a woman, but know internally that they’re a man, which makes the heckling during an act about their trans Aunt Sheila all the more upsetting.

To all but the irreparably bigoted, Morgan Boecher raises considerable sympathy for Jackie over the early chapters, showing both the acts in progress and Jackie’s true feelings, also delivered as a faux performance. We also learn that Sheila retreated from the wider world to form a rural community named Chicken Heart, and that she specifically requested Jackie’s presence for a funeral. Jackie duly visits.

While the emotions can be universally understood, there’s an initial feeling of Boecher writing to a selective audience. The reasons for the Chicken Heart commune’s existence are clear, yet some residents are portrayed as defensively quick to judge and slow to welcome. For all the emphasis on which pronouns are to be used, there’s little encouragement and Jackie is left feeling an outsider among her Aunt’s friends, while her attempts to fit in only compound matters. The awkwardness isn’t easily dealt with, but as Chicken Heart continues there’s a greater exploration of attitudes, with fear being behind the most confrontational.

Boecher’s art is two-dimensional with a minimal depth supplied by bright spot colours, either blue, green or pink, and the transition from one to the next is based on the location. It’s simple art, but conveys what’s necessary, and the primary focus is Jackie’s confusion and frustration. At times Boecher seems to exaggerate the anger at trans people, but the lack of understanding among family members fuels the entire story, and perhaps broad strokes are needed to hammer points home.

Compassion and humanity are high on the agenda, so things eventually working out won’t come as a surprise. However, while readers will want things to turn out well for Jackie as she discovers herself, the almost fairy tale ending comes too easily in several respects, but for many in Jackie’s shoes the prospect of hope betters another dose of reality.