Reviews tagging 'Body shaming'

Detransition, Baby by Torrey Peters

39 reviews

laudateluna's review against another edition

challenging funny reflective sad medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? It's complicated
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

Detransition Baby is a novel that equally feels made for me and not for me. It's a fantastic one, if you have any interest in exploration of gender or more specifically of femininity/womanhood; read it! It deserves to be thought about.

Please do not read the spoiler section until you have come to an understanding of what the book was talking about. In specific how it ended. This is not a "spoiler" of its content, its a mindset that could change how you experience the novel.

It was an enlightening journey that died for me with its concept. I was expecting the book to be more than it set out for, to go beyond what it was in text, however for me it was made impossible by its ending. Its not a "bad" ending, its just direct in telling you what it was about. That might work for you. For me it stopped my process of exploration of what it means to me. Because finding what I identified with was made so much harder by its purpous. I dont like when stories are literal. There is a genuine debate to be had of metaphorical effectiveness towards most people, but like I said before not for me. Maybe it is necessary and my experience is too novel. 

This book is perfect. I truly mean that. It's pacing is great so are its characters, dialogue, jokes, ideas, prose. I loved every page. Torrey Peters wrote one of the most compelling debut novels I have ever had the priviledge to read. (I also highly reccomend her novellas) 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Body shaming, Bullying, Chronic illness, Cursing, Emotional abuse, Infertility, Infidelity, Mental illness, Miscarriage, Misogyny, Self harm, Sexism, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Transphobia, Medical content, Medical trauma, Suicide attempt, Pregnancy, Outing, and Sexual harassment

bookishnatalia's review against another edition

challenging emotional informative inspiring reflective tense slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Body shaming, Deadnaming, Death, Drug abuse, Emotional abuse, Homophobia, Infertility, Miscarriage, Misogyny, Physical abuse, Sexism, Sexual content, Toxic relationship, Transphobia, Violence, and Grief

Moderate: Self harm and Suicide attempt

readerstephen86's review against another edition

dark emotional funny informative medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? A mix
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.5

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Bullying, Emotional abuse, Sexual content, and Toxic relationship

Minor: Body shaming, Suicidal thoughts, Violence, and Abortion

thespinystacks's review against another edition

challenging emotional funny informative sad tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

This is a story mainly centred around Reese and Ames, however we also get the foundation stories of many peripheral characters. I enjoy a story that acknowledges the world doesn’t revolve around simple one or two characters, that everyone has a story.

The story of Reese and Ames is complicated, a duo who are sometimes friends, sometimes lovers, sometimes suspected adversaries. Like their relationship each person is deeply complex, and that’s depicted beautifully throughout Detransition, Baby. 

The story poses complex emotions towards gender stereotypes and it had me thinking long after I put the book down. To further complicate the storyline it has time jumps, but is so clearly written out and depicted you won’t have trouble keeping up. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Miscarriage, Sexual content, Transphobia, and Pregnancy

Moderate: Body shaming, Death, Drug use, Hate crime, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, and Grief

Minor: Abortion

sydneyj's review against another edition

challenging emotional reflective

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Hate crime, Sexual content, and Transphobia

Moderate: Body shaming, Deadnaming, Domestic abuse, Drug use, Infertility, Miscarriage, Misogyny, Physical abuse, Sexual violence, Suicide, Toxic relationship, Violence, Grief, Medical trauma, Abortion, Suicide attempt, and Pregnancy

stayathomereader's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional funny hopeful informative inspiring reflective sad tense slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Alcoholism, Body shaming, Cursing, Death, Homophobia, Infertility, Infidelity, Misogyny, Self harm, Sexism, Sexual content, Suicide, Toxic relationship, Transphobia, Violence, Abortion, and Pregnancy

menapla's review against another edition

dark emotional informative slow-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? It's complicated
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.5

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Emotional abuse, Infertility, Sexual content, and Transphobia

Minor: Body shaming, Cursing, Deadnaming, Death, Infidelity, Suicide, Toxic relationship, and Abortion

whatjaimereads's review against another edition

challenging emotional reflective slow-paced

• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? No
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

Detransition, Baby follows the story of two and a half women, their joint foray into the world of queer parenting, and what it means to be yourself when that self is an interloper to society.
The discussions within this book around gender, fetishisation, and parenthood are handled fluidly, and sensitively, and are unique to any other queer fiction that I’ve read. Peters has written deeply realistic, multi-faceted characters that each offer their own insight into the struggles faced by marginalised communities. This novel is driven by its characters and discussions of their flaws, and it visibly benefits from the author’s Own Voice perspective as a queer woman. 
However, this insight comes with the weight of knowledge that the reflections in Detransition, Baby are true-to-life. There is a huge amount of graphic, sensitive content, and some of the storytelling can become over-indulgent within these areas. Our cast of characters are all suffering from deep trauma in their past/present, which makes for some really heavy reading. By about chapter 9 I was completely emotionally exhausted, so I urge you to proceed with caution. 
This is not the book that I was expecting from its synopsis, but it probes some really important topics, and for that reason it is undeniably an important read. 
*ARC gifted by Serpents Tail in exchange for an honest review*

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Addiction, Body shaming, Deadnaming, Death, Domestic abuse, Drug abuse, Drug use, Hate crime, Homophobia, Infertility, Infidelity, Mental illness, Miscarriage, Physical abuse, Racial slurs, Racism, Self harm, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, Toxic relationship, Transphobia, Blood, and Grief

caseythereader's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional funny reflective medium-paced

• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.25

Thank you to One World Books for the free advance copy of this book.

✨MINI REVIEW✨ [ @oneworldbooks #partner ]

Reese almost had it all: a loving relationship with Amy, an apartment in New York City, a job she didn't hate. But then her girlfriend detransitioned and became Ames, and everything fell apart. When Ames's boss and lover, Katrina, reveals that she's pregnant with his baby, Ames wonders if this is the chance he's been waiting for. Could the three of them form some kind of unconventional family? (via Goodreads) 📚

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📚 This book is messy, beautiful and thoughtful. It's a deep exploration of the thousands of tiny things that add up to make gender, and what happens when your understanding of those building blocks shifts.

📚 It really showcases how fluid gender and sexuality are and the joy that can bring, but doesn't shy away from exactly how mentally and physically hard it can be to exist publicly as a trans person.

📚 I honestly can't think of one aspect of the idea of womanhood or the margins of queerness this book doesn't touch on - it has so much packed in and yet it remains compellingly readable.

📚 Also, it covers all this heavy, complicated stuff and is still very funny!

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📚 I am almost certain DETRANSITION, BABY will be polarizing. On the surface, before reading it, it seems to be endorsing the idea of detransitioning and that transness is a choice - much like the idea of being an ex-gay. Keep in mind that I am a cis person, but I don't think it's doing that at all. The central tension of Ames' story is that he detransitioned but can never not be trans, even if it doesn't show outwardly. Please read it if you're in a place to do so - it's a wonderfully nuanced portrait of the complexity of trans life.

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Content warnings: biphobia, body shaming, child abuse, deadnaming, death, domestic abuse, drug use, emotional abuse, grief, hate crime, homophobia, infertility, infidelity, miscarriage , misogyny, physical abuse, self harm, sexism, sexual content, sexual violence, suicidal thoughts, suicide, toxic relationship, transphobia, and violence. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Biphobia, Body shaming, Child abuse, Deadnaming, Death, Domestic abuse, Drug use, Emotional abuse, Hate crime, Homophobia, Infertility, Infidelity, Miscarriage, Misogyny, Physical abuse, Self harm, Sexism, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Suicidal thoughts, Suicide, Toxic relationship, Transphobia, Violence, and Grief