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A review by athenian_frog
Gender Queer: A Memoir by Maia Kobabe
emotional
hopeful
informative
inspiring
lighthearted
reflective
medium-paced
4.0
I thought this was a really cool look into the thoughts of someone who is genderqueer. I am cisgender, and have limited experience reading about/in the perspective of nonbinary/trans identities. I can only recount one other book where I’ve seen someone use e/em/eir (which, I also didn’t know they were under Spivak pronouns. Neat!).
I felt like Kobabe was very thoughtful about how eir experiences and upbringing affected how e approached eir gender. I found it funny that fanfiction and queer artists remain avenues through which LGBTQIA+ people have sought self discovery. E touches on a lot of other aspects of being queer, such as grappling with how one experiences sexual and romantic attraction, the different ways loved ones can react, and how one’s identity can affect existing relationships.
The illustrations served the story well. The one about the first Pap smear e had was especially striking. There are some very pretty page long spreads, and some good uses of space to place text in a thematically relevant way. The ending was a little puzzling, but I like to imagine it is hopeful in its implications.
I think this could be a good intro for someone who is questioning if they are transgender, or even just queer in general. It does not shy away from the bodily discomfort one can experience as a non-binary person. There are discussions of first periods, Pap smears, masturbation, and intimacy with other people. Sexual drive (and the deficit thereof, in Kobabe’s case) is also visited.
People who are cisgender could also benefit from listening to this perspective; now more than ever, I think, it’s critical to be aware of the existence of non binary/transgender individuals, and the struggles they may be experiencing.
Thank you for reading!
I felt like Kobabe was very thoughtful about how eir experiences and upbringing affected how e approached eir gender. I found it funny that fanfiction and queer artists remain avenues through which LGBTQIA+ people have sought self discovery. E touches on a lot of other aspects of being queer, such as grappling with how one experiences sexual and romantic attraction, the different ways loved ones can react, and how one’s identity can affect existing relationships.
The illustrations served the story well. The one about the first Pap smear e had was especially striking. There are some very pretty page long spreads, and some good uses of space to place text in a thematically relevant way. The ending was a little puzzling, but I like to imagine it is hopeful in its implications.
I think this could be a good intro for someone who is questioning if they are transgender, or even just queer in general. It does not shy away from the bodily discomfort one can experience as a non-binary person. There are discussions of first periods, Pap smears, masturbation, and intimacy with other people. Sexual drive (and the deficit thereof, in Kobabe’s case) is also visited.
People who are cisgender could also benefit from listening to this perspective; now more than ever, I think, it’s critical to be aware of the existence of non binary/transgender individuals, and the struggles they may be experiencing.
Thank you for reading!
Content Warnings
Moderate: Blood, Vomit, Medical trauma, and Dysphoria
Minor: Deadnaming and Sexual content
There is vomiting depicted in the latter half of the book in a panel after a doctor visit.
There is some deadnaming as people react to the new pronouns the author starts using. Another character has the wrong pronouns used repeatedly but these pronouns are blacked out usually.
There is medical trauma/fear revolving around Pap smears in general. A bloody medical tool is depicted.
Descriptions of pain involving the Pap smears sound very painful, may be disturbing to some readers.
Dysphoria and frustration with the inconclusiveness of one’s identity are themes in the book. There is a lot of awareness the author has over eir body due to established gender roles and peers.
There are some sexual scenes vaguely depicted, such as: sexting, use of a strapon for oral, descriptions of masturbation techniques.