kserra's review
4.0
Wilchins is such a good writer, and their takes are consistently thoughtful and interesting. However, I didn't realize when I bought the book that a significant part of it reprints "Read My Lips", which I had just read and is worth reading in its entirety.
andrea_f's review
4.0
I have to say that I got really excited when I saw that Wilchins was going to publish a new book, but I got even more excited because in this one they were going to deal with genderqueer and nonbinary issues.
In this compilation of writings, Wilchins tries to show how their views have changed throughout the years and how they are not afraid to listen to younger people. Well. the book is divided in three different parts. The first one is a compilation of articles that they wrote in 2016 and 2017. They deal with a lot of different topics because they were written in response to certain situations. For example, there's an article dealing with the US military. The second part of the book gets more personal, which I think it's like that because it presents fragments from their first book. One thing that was really interesting to me was the part where they explain their experience with Trans Camp in Michigan. It's so fascinating to know all the things they had to do to make cis people engage with them. The third part of the book is more philosophical. It deals with refutations of quotations by people like Foucault or Butler. It's really interesting because they explain how they see it as a genderqueer person.
My favourite thing about this book is that there is something for everyone. The first part leans towards opinion articles, so most of them have a definite structure and deal with broader subjects. This was probably my favourite. The second part is more autobiographical, so we get to know more personal things about the author and all the things they have had to deal with in their life and in their activism. The third part is definitely leaning towards queer theory. It's way more academic and it's a bit denser. It brings up interesting topics that everyone should read about from the point of view of someone who is not cis and who has been dealing with a cis-normative society all their life.
I honestly like how Riki Wilchins shows an evolution with their thinking and their politics. There are a lot of quotations that are going to stay with me.
"Passing-as a cisgendered female, what else?-was the grand finale. To be truly successful I should look just like what I was not, a cisgender woman. Moreover, real success meant the audience (and trans people never lack for an audience, no?) observing my little gender performance would never realize that I was succeeding. If they became aware that I was succeeding, then I had failed".
"But what happens when a genderqueer individual who genuinely looks and sounds profoundly nonbinary, and/or masculine, declares in a binary world s/he would be most comfortable accessing the girl's restroom? To say the least, the optics would no longer work. Nor would appeals to practicality. What really needs to be contested here is not just our right to use bathrooms with dignity (which would, personally, be very welcome), but the entire underlying hetero-binary structuring of the world that queers must inhabit".
*I received an e-ARC copy of the book from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review*
In this compilation of writings, Wilchins tries to show how their views have changed throughout the years and how they are not afraid to listen to younger people. Well. the book is divided in three different parts. The first one is a compilation of articles that they wrote in 2016 and 2017. They deal with a lot of different topics because they were written in response to certain situations. For example, there's an article dealing with the US military. The second part of the book gets more personal, which I think it's like that because it presents fragments from their first book. One thing that was really interesting to me was the part where they explain their experience with Trans Camp in Michigan. It's so fascinating to know all the things they had to do to make cis people engage with them. The third part of the book is more philosophical. It deals with refutations of quotations by people like Foucault or Butler. It's really interesting because they explain how they see it as a genderqueer person.
My favourite thing about this book is that there is something for everyone. The first part leans towards opinion articles, so most of them have a definite structure and deal with broader subjects. This was probably my favourite. The second part is more autobiographical, so we get to know more personal things about the author and all the things they have had to deal with in their life and in their activism. The third part is definitely leaning towards queer theory. It's way more academic and it's a bit denser. It brings up interesting topics that everyone should read about from the point of view of someone who is not cis and who has been dealing with a cis-normative society all their life.
I honestly like how Riki Wilchins shows an evolution with their thinking and their politics. There are a lot of quotations that are going to stay with me.
"Passing-as a cisgendered female, what else?-was the grand finale. To be truly successful I should look just like what I was not, a cisgender woman. Moreover, real success meant the audience (and trans people never lack for an audience, no?) observing my little gender performance would never realize that I was succeeding. If they became aware that I was succeeding, then I had failed".
"But what happens when a genderqueer individual who genuinely looks and sounds profoundly nonbinary, and/or masculine, declares in a binary world s/he would be most comfortable accessing the girl's restroom? To say the least, the optics would no longer work. Nor would appeals to practicality. What really needs to be contested here is not just our right to use bathrooms with dignity (which would, personally, be very welcome), but the entire underlying hetero-binary structuring of the world that queers must inhabit".
*I received an e-ARC copy of the book from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review*
lovelybookshelf's review
hopeful
informative
medium-paced
5.0
This collection of Wilchins' writings is provocative and thought-provoking. I felt like everything I thought I believed was being turned inside out and back again. Also, Wilchins seems to be speaking to others within the queer community, which felt like a big hug. I recently read Serano's Whipping Girl, and this was a perfect follow-up book for working through concepts that were still spinning their wheels in my mind. Love the hopefulness of this book, too!
xandercarter's review
4.0
Through collaboration, Riki has created an amazing and unique collection. The book is very different from a large number of trans* related books that I have read due to the fact that the stories have come from an older persons perspective. As a young, trans person the world is very different in how it treats trans* people today than it did 20, 40 years ago etc. and this book shows the progression over the years. It's easy to forget that things weren't 'always this way' and that there was a time period where majority of people didn't even know what 'trans*' meant.
I would like to comment on the fact that if you are not comfortable with the use of the word 'transsexual' then this book may not be for you. The author goes onto explaining their reasoning for using this word instead of using transgender, so don't let it put you off.
Overall, I am so glad I read this book. I have gained a huge insight into the 'older' trans* community and am now going to pursue more research into other generations experiences.
I would like to comment on the fact that if you are not comfortable with the use of the word 'transsexual' then this book may not be for you. The author goes onto explaining their reasoning for using this word instead of using transgender, so don't let it put you off.
Overall, I am so glad I read this book. I have gained a huge insight into the 'older' trans* community and am now going to pursue more research into other generations experiences.
aceofbens's review
4.0
NOTE: I received an advance reader copy from the publisher through NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. This does not affect my opinions or the way I talk about the book.
It’s been a while since I’ve read something by Riki Wilchins, but she certainly knows how to leave a lasting impression. Between her wide experience and knowledge base to pull from and her “Suck it!” attitude toward injustice, it’s hard not to stand out. This collection, Burn The Binary! just continues to prove that she’s not here to take cis bull shit and never has been.
I typically have a tough time reading anthologies and collections. Once one part is over, my ADHD mind thinks the whole book should be over. So starting a new story/essay every few pages is rather frustrating, unlike chapters which are constantly building off of each other. However, this book is just one of the few topics that will keep my attention in just about any format! Reading this felt more like a biography that a collection of essay, which one could argue it is. A lot of these essays are just so personal. Even the ones that don’t focus on her own life show enough of her personality for anyone familiar with her work to pick it out in a stack.
The collection is organized by where the piece was first published instead of chronologically or by topic. Yet the jumping around didn’t get too confusing for me. It felt natural to go from a recount of a specific moment in the transgender rights movement to a piece admiring Leslie Feinberg to a narrative about Wilchin’s bottom surgery experience. It definitely is a book full of her greatest hits.
Final thought: Wilchins was one of the loudest voices in the transgender rights movement when it first started, and, although she might not be the first name we think of anymore, she certainly hasn’t slowed her efforts. Filled with history, passion, and first-hand accounts of the queer experience, Burn the Binary!
Support Me Elsewhere!
It’s been a while since I’ve read something by Riki Wilchins, but she certainly knows how to leave a lasting impression. Between her wide experience and knowledge base to pull from and her “Suck it!” attitude toward injustice, it’s hard not to stand out. This collection, Burn The Binary! just continues to prove that she’s not here to take cis bull shit and never has been.
I typically have a tough time reading anthologies and collections. Once one part is over, my ADHD mind thinks the whole book should be over. So starting a new story/essay every few pages is rather frustrating, unlike chapters which are constantly building off of each other. However, this book is just one of the few topics that will keep my attention in just about any format! Reading this felt more like a biography that a collection of essay, which one could argue it is. A lot of these essays are just so personal. Even the ones that don’t focus on her own life show enough of her personality for anyone familiar with her work to pick it out in a stack.
The collection is organized by where the piece was first published instead of chronologically or by topic. Yet the jumping around didn’t get too confusing for me. It felt natural to go from a recount of a specific moment in the transgender rights movement to a piece admiring Leslie Feinberg to a narrative about Wilchin’s bottom surgery experience. It definitely is a book full of her greatest hits.
Final thought: Wilchins was one of the loudest voices in the transgender rights movement when it first started, and, although she might not be the first name we think of anymore, she certainly hasn’t slowed her efforts. Filled with history, passion, and first-hand accounts of the queer experience, Burn the Binary!
Support Me Elsewhere!
More...