Transgender Lives

July 1, 2014

Gr 9 Up-This ambitious book combines interviews from self-identified transgender people with sections on trans-related information. It includes medical transition, historical information, and profiles of major figures, in ways both basic and more complex. Unfortunately, Cronn-Mills uses language that subtly alienates trans readers. For example, she states that trans people are "just like any individual you know," thereby assuming that readers are cisgender; the introduction relates a situation common to most trans people and then inquires, "Does this story seem strange to you?" The term "trans*" is often incorrectly used throughout the book. Cronn-Mills accurately defines the use of the asterisk as "a way to include all individuals who identify in some way with a 'trans' identity"; however, she also uses it when an individual is discussing their specific, discrete gender, rather than the whole spectrum. There are a lot of positives here, like her coverage of the CeCe MacDonald case and definitions of terms such as "transmisogyny" (albeit incompletely). But Cronn-Mills attempts to cover too much deeply complex information in a slim volume. Her resource list relies on Wikipedia and generic websites, and her bibliography is woefully limited. This title will provide a broad perspective, especially if presented alongside materials written by or with trans people about their lives and communities, such as Kate Bornstein's anthology Gender Outlaws: The Next Generation (Avalon, 2010), Susan Kuklin's Beyond Magenta: Transgender Teens Speak Out (Candlewick, 2014), and books published by Topside Press.-Kyle Lukoff, Corlears School, New York City

Copyright 2014 School Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

August 1, 2014
An outsiders' guide to the experiences of transgender individuals. Portraying a marginalized group for the consumption of the majority is always a dicey proposition, and Cronn-Mills' (whose Beautiful Music for Ugly Children, 2012, won a 2014 Stonewall Award) effort here illustrates many of the pitfalls. Short, third-person narrative portraits of transgender individuals-all adults and all but one apparently white-are interleaved with dry, overgeneralized informational segments about identities, health care, and historical and cross-cultural examples of gender nonconformity. Despite the title's promise of complexity, the portraits are too brief to give anything more than an impression of their subjects, and stories focus heavily on coming out and physical transition. Similarly, informational chapters give readers little to hold onto. A typically uninformative sentence begins, "Terms for individuals who have flexible gender identities may include..." and then goes on to list 10 terms without attempting to explain or contextualize any of them. Entries in an erratically selected "Who's Who" unnecessarily and inappropriately include transgender public figures' birth names, and accounts of violence against transgender people are slotted jarringly among neutral or positive informational segments. Susan Kuklin's Beyond Magenta (2014), which documents the lives of transgender teens in their own words, is a superior title in every way. (timeline, glossary, notes, bibliography, further information, index) (Nonfiction. 12-18)

COPYRIGHT(2014) Kirkus Reviews, ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.

October 1, 2014
Grades 9-12 In this collection of narrative and photographic portraits, Cronn-Mills introduces her readers to individuals who defy generalization and span the transgender spectrum. Natasha, like many others interviewed by the author, says that ever since she was a child she has felt that she had to live for myself. Hayden's sister claims that he is the same person. Brooke thinks it is an honor to represent trans youth. Julia, in her freedom to express her fluid gender identity, says that she is just being myself. Interspersed with the profiles of each individual are informational sections regarding history, language, medical and insurance concerns, and politics. But speaking loudest and clearest are the full-page photographs of the interviewees, who honestly describe the journeys toward their refreshingly genuine life choices. Respectfully included by Cronn-Mills in each portrayal are allies, friends, and family members, who see only the person that they love. Even readers familiar with transgender narratives will grow with deeper understanding and compassion.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2014, American Library Association.)