Reviews tagging 'Colonisation'

Before We Were Trans: A New History of Gender by Kit Heyam

22 reviews

rideauriverreads's review against another edition

challenging emotional hopeful informative inspiring medium-paced

4.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Homophobia, Transphobia, and Colonisation

jeti's review against another edition

emotional informative inspiring reflective medium-paced

4.5

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Content Warnings

Minor: Adult/minor relationship, Pedophilia, Physical abuse, Racism, Rape, Sexism, Sexual assault, Transphobia, Acephobia/Arophobia, and Colonisation

torismazarine's review

emotional informative inspiring medium-paced

4.25

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Biphobia, Deadnaming, Genocide, Homophobia, Mental illness, Misogyny, Racism, Sexism, Sexual assault, Transphobia, Xenophobia, Police brutality, Medical content, Religious bigotry, Medical trauma, Lesbophobia, Outing, Cultural appropriation, Colonisation, Dysphoria, and Classism

g_whitt's review against another edition

challenging emotional hopeful informative medium-paced

4.75

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Homophobia, Racism, Sexual violence, Torture, Transphobia, Violence, Xenophobia, Medical trauma, Outing, Sexual harassment, Colonisation, and Classism

I had so little understanding of the history covered in this book, and never expected to find a work like it. The author is very cautious in defining terms, explaining differences in culture, sharing histories before colonization & globalization, displaying episodes of appropriation, and shows special care in representing people who were individuals in their own time. Though there is a lot of hope in the sentiment that we have always been here, the author doesn’t present a golden or idealistic version of the past. There are some passages that were difficult to listen to, and there were passages I had to return to again at a later time. However, these difficult moments were not needlessly gruesome, and though there was no dwelling on evils, it was not shied away from either. The reader-author has a calm voice which expressed care for the topic and the people who were shared with the audience. I feel like I could write an essay on this work, but will leave it at this: excellent work, well presented, hopeful in spite of tragedy and difficulty. A good read for anyone interested in a more complete reading of world history.

starryeyedreads's review against another edition

informative reflective

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Genocide, Homophobia, Misogyny, Rape, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Transphobia, Forced institutionalization, Xenophobia, Medical content, Religious bigotry, Medical trauma, Cultural appropriation, and Colonisation

arinheck's review against another edition

emotional hopeful informative inspiring reflective sad slow-paced

5.0

Incredible. My favourite history book to date. Gave me a new perspective on how historians are taught to approach people from the past and why that has prevented more books like this one being written. Loved it so much. Cannot recommend it enough!

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Slavery, Transphobia, Xenophobia, and Colonisation

Moderate: Homophobia

Minor: Dysphoria

rorikae's review against another edition

informative reflective medium-paced

4.5

'Before We Were Trans: A New History of Gender" by Kit Heyam is a thoughtful look at trans history through sections that focus on specific aspects. From clothing to performance, Heyam looks at how trans people have lived throughout time and in different places throughout the world. They do a good job of breaking down important aspects into bite sized pieces and packaging this history in an easy way to understand. With histories, it can be easy to try and focus on too much or end up feeling like more of a timeline than a cohesive narrative. Heyam does a great job of making the history span a good chunk of time and subjects by focusing on specifics and then extrapolating from there. I think this is an important book for many people to read as they learn more about gender and trans history. I also appreciate that Heyman very clearly addresses that they are a white trans man and how this may impact their work. This book feels very open and informative in the best ways. 

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Homophobia, Misogyny, Sexual content, Transphobia, Violence, Medical content, Medical trauma, and Colonisation

Minor: War

angelfireeast24's review against another edition

dark informative inspiring reflective fast-paced

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Ableism, Adult/minor relationship, Biphobia, Body shaming, Bullying, Deadnaming, Domestic abuse, Hate crime, Homophobia, Misogyny, Racism, Rape, Sexual violence, Torture, Transphobia, Violence, Excrement, Police brutality, Religious bigotry, Murder, Outing, Cultural appropriation, Colonisation, Injury/Injury detail, and Classism

joensign's review against another edition

emotional informative reflective medium-paced

4.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Sexual assault, Sexual violence, and Transphobia

Moderate: Racism, Xenophobia, and Colonisation

nilescrane's review against another edition

5.0

I felt so grounded and at home in my transness when reading this.

Comfort, desperation, love: this is the emotional register in which I, too, experience trans and queer history. Like Shapland, I came to identification with the queer past before I came to full articulation of my queer present: I knew that I felt deep hurt and anger about past injustices against queer men, and deep emotional identification with them, long before I realised that was one aspect of my trans experience.... But it's through such indecorous emotion that history has provided me with some of the most intensely important experiences of my life.

Heyam reifies the watered down arguments I have in my head when I am met with the transphobic rhetoric of transness being a 'new fad'. My copy is tagged, dogearred, and annotated to the brim. I treasure this reading experience and I thank you, Dr. Heyam, for giving us hope in the form of history.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Racism, Sexual violence, Transphobia, and Colonisation