My gender workbook : how to become a real man, a real woman, the real you, or something else entirely

by Kate Bornstein

Paper Book, 1998

LCC

HQ1075 .B69

Status

Available

Call number

HQ1075 .B69

Publication

New York : Routledge, 1998.

Description

Gender isn't just about "male" or "female" anymore - if you have any doubts, just turn on your television. RuPaul is as familiar as tomato ketchup with national radio and television shows, and transgendered folk are as common to talk-shows as screaming and yelling. But if the popularization of gender bending is revealing that "male" and "female" aren't enough, where are we supposed to go from here? Cultural theorists have written loads of smart but difficult-to-fathom texts on gender, but none provide a hands-on, accessible guide to having your own unique gender. With My Gender Workbook, Kate Bornstein brings theory down to Earth and provides a practical approach to living withor withouta gender. Bornstein starts from the premise that there are not just two genders performed in today's world, but countless genders lumped under the two-gender framework. Using a unique, deceptively simple and always entertaining workbook format, Bornstein gently but firmly guides you to discover your own unique gender identity. Whether she's using the USFDA's food group triangle to explain gender, or quoting one-liners from real "gender transgressors", Bornstein's first and foremost concern is making information on gender bending truly accessible. With quizzes and exercises that determine how much of a man or woman you are, My Gender Workbookgives you the tools to reach whatever point you desire on the gender continuum. Bornstein also takes aim at the recent flurry of books that attempt to naturalize gender difference, and puts books like Men are from Mars, Womenare from Venussquarely where they belong: on Uranus. If you don't think you are transgendered when you sit down to read this book, you will be by the time you finish it!… (more)

User reviews

LibraryThing member orangejulia
This book is a must for people with an interest in gender, nature vs. nurture, queer issues, trans issues, fabulosity, and introspection. If you've ever colored outside of the lines, read this book. It deals with difficult issues with a deceptively light touch. You'll find yourself being
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introspective when you thought you were just playing with quizzes.
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LibraryThing member olyra
this book literally changed my life drastically. it basically served as an introduction to being a queer gender freak. it is an amazing book by an amazing author.
LibraryThing member caedocyon
Read in college, for leisure. A lot of other books and blogs I was reading referenced My Gender Workbook, so I was excited to finally get my hands on a copy. Sadly, it's not really what it says on the tin. Rather than presenting different options and asking difficult interesting questions, My
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Gender Workbook has a strong agenda, all the exercises push you towards that agenda, and there's not a lot of other interesting stuff, especially if you're already familiar with the (101-level) arguments. I ended up skimming it.

tl;dr: Good for people who haven't ever thought about it before; less good for people who already have significant trangst.
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Language

Physical description

292 p.; 23 inches

ISBN

0415916739 / 9780415916738

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