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A review by alybwrites
Before We Were Trans: A New History of Gender by Kit Heyam
challenging
funny
hopeful
informative
inspiring
medium-paced
5.0
“The truth is much more complicated.” My best friend actually recommended this a month earlier and the Trans Rights Readathon felt like the perfect opportunity to read it. Dr. Heyam traces the roots of trans history with the care of tracing a family tree: identifying where trans history shares lineage with other lgbtqia history and navigating the intersection of marginalizations across cultural lines. Dr. Heyam’s area of expertise is primarily set in the UK, but they start and end the book with political and spiritual gender history in indigenous Africa, India and the Americas. While they are cautious about speaking over voices, they consciously choose to use this platform to call in members of the global minority with a reminder that trans identities have siblings, not ancestors, in multiple cultures across the globe.
One of the most valuable lessons I took from this was the way the journey of gender identity has always been complicated and unique to each individual. Just because two or more people present in similar ways does not mean their path to that point was the same or even slightly adjacent.
I cannot recommend this book highly enough! This was an easy, sometimes funny, sometimes poignant read in uncomplicated language with a truly necessary perspective.
One of the most valuable lessons I took from this was the way the journey of gender identity has always been complicated and unique to each individual. Just because two or more people present in similar ways does not mean their path to that point was the same or even slightly adjacent.
I cannot recommend this book highly enough! This was an easy, sometimes funny, sometimes poignant read in uncomplicated language with a truly necessary perspective.