Gender euphoria : stories of joy from trans, non-binary and intersex writers

by Laura Kate Dale

Paper Book, 2021

Status

Available

Call number

HQ77.7.G46 2021

Genres

Collections

Dennis R. Neill Equality Center, Women-Loving-Women, People of Color Rep, Men-Loving-Men, Transgender, Nonbinary, Neurodivergent Rep, Disabled Rep, Intersex

Publication

London : Unbound, 2021.

Description

"So often the stories shared by trans people about their transition centre on gender dysphoria: a feeling of deep discomfort with their birth-assigned gender, and a powerful catalyst for coming out or transitioning. But for many non-cisgender people, it's gender euphoria which pushes forward their transition: the joy the first time a parent calls them by their chosen name, the first time they have the confidence to cut their hair short, the first time they truly embrace themself. In this ground-breaking anthology, nineteen trans, non-binary, agender, gender-fluid and intersex writers share their experiences of gender euphoria: an agender dominatrix being called 'Daddy,' an Arab trans man getting his first tattoos, a trans woman embracing her inner fighter. What they have in common are their feelings of elation, pride, confidence, freedom and ecstasy as a direct result of coming out as non-cisgender, and how coming to terms with their gender has brought unimaginable joy into their lives."--Publisher's description.… (more)

User reviews

LibraryThing member fred_mouse

Early on, it felt like this was going to be a UK/USA book, and while it is dominated by those voices, there were a range from around the world. Still not balanced, but one suspects that for someone living in the UK, these were the voices that the main author/editor could reach out to.

There was one

Australian essay, and it was great to see that it was written by an Indigenous individual, and so a very unique perspective.

Overall, this is a really great set of essays. It doesn't attempt to present itself as all encompassing. The mix of single essays by many individuals, and multiple essays by one worked much better than I was expecting. Yes, there were thematic and detail similarities between the multiple essays by the editor/author, but it did a great job of illustrating the multiple ways that gender euphoria can present, and that comfort in self comes from multiple places.

Other than one essay by a Brazilian individual, there wasn't much I remember that touches on government mandated mistreatment of trans and gender non-conforming individuals.

I think my favourite of the essays is by Halo Jedha Dawn, focusing on being a gender queer parent, and the challenges that has brought, particularly with the covid lockdown situation, and the complexities of navigating gendered expectations when there are multiple conflicting reasons that ones household is structured the way it is.

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LibraryThing member greeniezona

The strength of this book was definitely its diversity, so while the first handful of stories are all white and in the UK, there are also stories from all over the world, both inside and outside of Christian contexts, and with wildly differing views on gender. There are authors who seem entirely

wedded to the gender binary and authors on a mission to queer all of it they can. Very "beginner friendly" in that you don't have to have much or any familiarity with trans issues or terminology in order to follow right along. Somehow there ended up being a lot more dysphoria and trauma than I expected, as each essay put their euphoric moment in context of all that went before. My favorite essay was definitely "The Radical Vulnerability of Trans Sex," as I loved the way the author, Katherine Cross, writes. I will have to seek out more of her writing after this!

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