Scan barcode
whatthekatdraggedin's review against another edition
informative
reflective
medium-paced
3.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Body shaming, Deadnaming, Fatphobia, Homophobia, Transphobia, and Dysphoria
emmaemmaemmaemma's review against another edition
3.0
As a cis person, I am entirely unqualified to speak on how accurately this book portrayed the experiences of the 6 people it documented. (But I’m going to anyway, so take what I say with a grain of salt) So my initial response to the book was “okay, well, it was good to get some more insight into lives I haven’t lived” but something still felt missing.
It wasn’t until I finished the book that I realized it was by a cis author. Her voice is very predominant in the book, and while she does a great job threading together the narratives, for reasons other reviewers have said far more eloquently than I can, it can’t help but take on a more gender normative lens than it would have in the hands of a trans author.
The stories themselves of the teenagers are so extremely compelling, and heartbreaking. As others have said though, it could have benefitted from less of her voice, and more voices of trans activists, trans adults, anyone that could continue to broaden the perspective.
If the book is setting out to share a few compelling stories, I think it accomplishes that, and I did genuinely enjoy reading it, but this book could have been so much more.
It wasn’t until I finished the book that I realized it was by a cis author. Her voice is very predominant in the book, and while she does a great job threading together the narratives, for reasons other reviewers have said far more eloquently than I can, it can’t help but take on a more gender normative lens than it would have in the hands of a trans author.
The stories themselves of the teenagers are so extremely compelling, and heartbreaking. As others have said though, it could have benefitted from less of her voice, and more voices of trans activists, trans adults, anyone that could continue to broaden the perspective.
If the book is setting out to share a few compelling stories, I think it accomplishes that, and I did genuinely enjoy reading it, but this book could have been so much more.
mollyseidl's review against another edition
1.0
dnf: normalization of intentional misgendering by an intimate partner, deadnames (without touching on the idea of deadnames), use of 'transsexual' without explanation of updated terminology, self-insertion by the cis author throughout the teens stories - and that's just in the first 1.5 stories
that_person_logan's review against another edition
3.0
Useful introductory reading on transgender and nonbinary experiences. A little outdated but still useful.
birdinflight1's review against another edition
4.0
I hardly knew anything about this topic, so I learned a lot. It's very interesting to contemplate the idea of gender being non-binary. I did find some of the attitudes of the a few of the teens rather odd/spoiled, like complaining about never being able to use a tampon. The female to male people shared enlightening views of the effects of testosterone on their entire life outlook. Another takeaway was the power of a supportive family on the teen.
jmrprice's review against another edition
4.0
Understanding transgender covers a range, that it isn’t one-size-fits-all, makes this work useful in reinforcing the humanity of all. People are people and there should be no requirement otherwise.
abtw789's review against another edition
emotional
informative
inspiring
fast-paced
5.0
Listened to it as an audiobook like a decade ago and I just remember how it impacted my existence. It made me not feel wrong or isolated for being me. It was very helpful. Love trans joy ❤️
bwray1's review against another edition
challenging
informative
sad
fast-paced
4.5
Content Warnings
Graphic: Dysphoria