ljrinaldi's review
4.0
They say that psychologists go into the profession to heal themselves.
Rhea started interviewing transfolk about gender and transgender and such, because they wanted to know what it was all about, both for a generally moving set of stories, but for how it related to them.
The interviews span over several years. Some people are identified, and others, such as the superhero woman, are not.
Each person has a different take on what it means to be transsexual, or gender fluid. Some have suffered more harassment than others. Rhea, themself, found that the harassment was worse in rural areas, then in a city.
The stories themselves are very moving, as is Rhea's which is interjected from time to time to show where they are now.
Rhea brings up how race plays a factor, because, it does, and how poverty plays into things.
Very comprehensive, but not something you would want to read to be entertained, so much, as informed, or validated.
Hard book to read, not because the language is hard, or the pictures are not easy to loook at, but because of all the sadness there is. That and the hatred.
Thanks to Edelweiss for making this book available for an honest review.
Rhea started interviewing transfolk about gender and transgender and such, because they wanted to know what it was all about, both for a generally moving set of stories, but for how it related to them.
The interviews span over several years. Some people are identified, and others, such as the superhero woman, are not.
Each person has a different take on what it means to be transsexual, or gender fluid. Some have suffered more harassment than others. Rhea, themself, found that the harassment was worse in rural areas, then in a city.
The stories themselves are very moving, as is Rhea's which is interjected from time to time to show where they are now.
Rhea brings up how race plays a factor, because, it does, and how poverty plays into things.
Very comprehensive, but not something you would want to read to be entertained, so much, as informed, or validated.
Hard book to read, not because the language is hard, or the pictures are not easy to loook at, but because of all the sadness there is. That and the hatred.
Thanks to Edelweiss for making this book available for an honest review.
juliescalzo's review
4.0
“Gender is complicated and variable. A language with a billion different dialects. What can I tell you about transgender and gender nonconforming people? We’re diverse. We’re complicated. We’ve always been here.”
I picked this book up for my YA lit class; it is an award winning graphic novel. Gender is such a hot button topic right now, and I really appreciated the author’s mission with this book. They wrote it in order to try and understand their own experience with gender. Interviewing 65 different people, they tell their stories of gender and race, gender and expressions, gender and healthcare, gender and relationships, and so many other topics. The author wrote with the goal to connect and to understand, and I felt that as I read this.
One of the things I love about books is their ability to be windows & to educate me on things I am unfamiliar with. I found a lot of education in this book, and I would encourage anyone to read it. The graphic novel format makes it very approachable and brings humanity to the stories told.
I picked this book up for my YA lit class; it is an award winning graphic novel. Gender is such a hot button topic right now, and I really appreciated the author’s mission with this book. They wrote it in order to try and understand their own experience with gender. Interviewing 65 different people, they tell their stories of gender and race, gender and expressions, gender and healthcare, gender and relationships, and so many other topics. The author wrote with the goal to connect and to understand, and I felt that as I read this.
One of the things I love about books is their ability to be windows & to educate me on things I am unfamiliar with. I found a lot of education in this book, and I would encourage anyone to read it. The graphic novel format makes it very approachable and brings humanity to the stories told.
zepysgirl's review
4.0
I think it’s pretty good. The author sure did interview a lot of varying people, but they’ve organized this in a way that makes sense.
kalifer's review
There were other books needing my attention, so I'll pick this one up at a later date.
mindlessmartyrr's review
4.0
I’m agender. This book was perfect. I loved to see how various people view gender. It was great to see the spectrums and how gender is so unique to each person. It was beautiful to see this done as a comic and to also see the journey of the author. I think this is a must read for all humans, and I can’t wait to have a finished copy to enjoy.
ecallahan's review
3.0
I read this book through an eARC on NetGalley. Fine is a great collection of stories Ewing collected and illustrated about gender. The varied people represented give a look into how different gender varies. Highly recommend if you are interested in the topic.
linnea0221's review
2.0
Let me start by saying that I enjoyed the artstyle, although I didn't think Rhea did themselves justice in their illustration versus their photo. I also think that this collection of comics was very well researched and included several invaluable perspectives. Having said that, I do think the story needed a harsher editor. Narratively, it would have been more coherent to deep dive into a handful of case studies than to flit between 56 people. I get that every individual story is important and folks each have a unique perspective on gender, but there were definitely common themes that could have been developed more. Additionally, making people so anonymous meant that there were key aspects of some people's identities missing, making it hard to follow their points. In a deep dive on identity it is relevant what people identify as and that background was either lacking or not close enough to the last panels about that person. My final point is that rather than briefly mention every aspect of identity that intersects with gender, it could have been beneficial to pick a handful and focus on them for a more in-depth and nuanced perspective.