Nonbinary

April 1, 2019
Gender is explored by a diverse group of 30 writers who identify neither as male nor female and use nonbinary pronouns in this mixed collection of first-person narratives. Sand C. Chang, a Chinese-American psychotherapist, tries to free themselves from their internalized gender conditioning; Christopher Soto, a brown person and former punk, reflects on the acceptance a rebellious community brought them. Caleb Wilvich “long for a world where my actions weren’t gendered and I could just interact as a human... the constant pressure of gender roles”; Genny Beemyn laments being misgendered by other trans people. Jaye Ware’s Christian faith is shaken when rejected by their church community, and activist Jeffrey Marsh faces death threats due to being visibly gender-nonconforming. One of the most moving pieces is by “Abigail,” a mother who struggles to understand, accept, and support her child when that child rejects their assumed place on the gender binary. Her account will be a boon to readers new to the topic. The essays sometimes lack finesse, but carefully chosen, particular, quirky details reveal the writers’ personalities, and all the essays evince a sincere desire to candidly share difficult feelings on a complicated topic. This well-meaning book will be an asset in college classroom conversations about queer theory.

March 15, 2019
Gender is a slippery illusion that runs deeper than appearance, behavior, or preferences. There is no one "correct form," the editors go on to say in the introduction to this collection of 30 personal essays that address the sometimes bewilderingly multiple aspects of gender and identity, be they nonbinary, genderqueer, trans, or other. The essays are divided into five parts that deal with such considerations as "What Is Gender?" "Visibility, Community, Representation and Differentiation," and "Paradoxes and Possibilities of Gender." For readers, it quickly becomes apparent that there is no simple answer to the question, What is gender? Indeed, the book's nonspecific variety of approaches to the subject may leave some readers more at sea than before they encountered these extremely varied essays, which are arguably more accessible to an academic audience than one of general readers. Nevertheless, the time is certainly right for a book of this sort that puts a human face on an otherwise theoretical subject. It is, altogether, an original and necessary contribution to the ever-expanding body of LGBTQIA+ literature.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2019, American Library Association.)