Book List
Please contact us at: info@translifeconference.org if you have a resource to add!
Books for Trans/Non-Binary Adults
Becoming a Visible Man
by Jamison Green
Written by a leading activist in the transgender movement, Becoming a Visible Man is an artful and compelling inquiry into the politics of gender. Brimming with frank and often poignant recollections of Green’s own experiences – including his childhood struggles with identity and his years as a lesbian parent prior to his sex-reassignment surgery – the book examines transsexualism as a human condition and sex reassignment as one of the choices that some people feel compelled to make in order to manage their gender variance. Relating the FTM psyche and experience to the social and political forces at work in American society, Becoming a Visible Man also speaks consciously of universal principles, particularly the need to live one’s life honestly, openly, and passionately.
Female Masculinity
by Judith Halberstam
In Female Masculinity Judith Halberstam takes aim at the protected status of male masculinity and shows that female masculinity has offered a distinct alternative to it for well over two hundred years. Providing the first full-length study on this subject, Halberstam catalogs the diversity of gender expressions among masculine women from nineteenth-century pre-lesbian practices to contemporary drag king performances. Through detailed textual readings as well as empirical research, Halberstam uncovers a hidden history of female masculinities while arguing for a more nuanced understanding of gender categories that would incorporate rather than pathologize them. She rereads Anne Lister’s diaries and Radclyffe Hall’s The Well of Loneliness as foundational assertions of female masculine identity. She considers the enigma of the stone butch and the politics surrounding butch/femme roles within lesbian communities. She also explores issues of transsexuality among “transgender dykes” – lesbians who pass as men – and female-to-male transsexuals who may find the label of “lesbian” a temporary refuge. Halberstam also tackles such topics as women and boxing, butches in Hollywood and independent cinema, and the phenomenon of male impersonators.
Gender Queer: Voices from Beyond the Sexual Binary
by Joan Nestle, Clare Howell, and Riki Wilchins
Perhaps more than any other issue, gender identity has galvanized the queer community in recent years. The questions go beyond the nature of male/female to a yet-to-be-traversed region that lies somewhere between and beyond biologically determined gender. In this groundbreaking anthology, three experts in gender studies and politics navigate around rigid, societally imposed concepts of two genders to discover and illuminate the limitless possibilities of identity. Thirty first-person accounts of gender construction, exploration, and questioning provide a groundwork for cultural discussion, political action, and even greater possibilities of autonomous gender choices. Noted scholar Joan Nestle is joined by internationally prominent gender warrior Riki Anne Wilchins and historian Clare Howell to provide a societal, cultural, and political exploration of gender identity.
Hung Jury: Testimonies of Genital Surgery by Transsexual Men
by Trystan T. Cotten
Hung Jury is the first book of personal testimonies focusing exclusively on FTM genital surgery and the important ways it changes our lives. Contributors write about the details and ups and downs of this transformative journey and dispel many myths and misinformation. They provide an in depth, understanding of the surgical, social, sexual, somatic, spiritual, and psychological aspects. Hung Jury appeals to readers from all walks of life. For those considering genitoplasty the book is a valuable resource of information for dealing with the ins/outs and ups/downs of surgery, how to decide which surgery is best for your needs, what to expect in the journey, and how to take care of yourself and optimize surgical results. For others who are curious, including the general public, you will be educated and enlightened about one of the most transformative experiences of female-to-male transitioning. Clinicians, therapists, and partners of trans men seeking genitoplasty will also gain tremendous insight and understanding of the emotional, psychological, and somatic factors underlying and motivating our journey down this path.
Letters for My Brothers: Transitional Wisdom in Retrospect
by Megan M. Rohrer and Zandere Keig
In today’s fast paced world, the internet can provide quick answers to personal questions. But when an individual raised by society to live, breathe, and look at the world with female eyes transitions to male, some of the most enlightening, helpful, and profound advice can only come in retrospect. Letter to my Brothers, features essays from respected transmen mentors who share the wisdom they wish they would have known at the beginning of their journey into manhood.
Letters for My Sisters: Transitional Wisdom in Retrospect
by Andrea James and Deanne Thornton
Letters for My Sisters is an anthology of collected wisdom by and for transgender women. This groundbreaking collection of letters tells raw, heartfelt stories of childhood, transitioning, and becoming women in a world where acceptance is sometimes elusive and costly. Brave, boldly vulnerable, and revealing, this collection adds to a growing body of literature where trans people tell their own stories as they lived them. Each writer addresses one simple question: If you could write just one letter to someone beginning transition, or to your younger pre-transition self, what would you say? Would you reassure or warn them, or lay your life out in vivid detail for them to draw their own conclusions? Would you have a secret to tell, a hard-won truth, or an unexpected triumph to share?
My Gender Workbook: How to Become a Real Man, a Real Woman, the Real You, or Something Else Entirely
by Kate Bornstein (Author) and Diane DiMasa (Illustrator).
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 with or without a gender.
Redefining Realness: My Path to Womanhood, Identity, and So Much More
by Janet Mock
In her profound and courageous New York Times bestseller, Janet Mock establishes herself as a resounding and inspirational voice for the transgender community and anyone fighting to define themselves on their own terms. With unflinching honesty and moving prose, she relays her experiences of growing up young, multiracial, poor, and trans in America, offering readers accessible language while imparting vital insight about the unique challenges and vulnerabilities of a marginalized and misunderstood population. Though undoubtedly an account of one woman’s quest for self at all costs, Redefining Realness is a powerful vision of possibility and self-realization, pushing us all toward greater acceptance of one another – and of ourselves – showing, as never before, how to be unapologetic and real.
Self-Disclosure: Being Bi-Gender and My Journey
by Clinton Rusthoven
This is a true story of a biological male who came from much adversity at birth. His quest to fit into society because of his gender non-conformity made life a struggle but interesting. Take a journey with this author from sandy coasts to rugged mountains. This is definitely not your ordinary autobiography by revealing only accomplishments; this true story has much self-reflection with as much honesty as a publisher will allow. This autobiography will read as though it’s fiction at times, but don’t be fooled! All is real and raw.
She’s Not the Man I married: My Life with a Transgender Husband
by Helen Boyd
Helen Boyd’s husband, who had long been open about being a cross-dresser, was considering living as a woman full time. Suddenly, Boyd was confronted with the reality of what it would mean if her husband were actually to become a woman – socially, legally, and medically. Would Boyd love and desire her partner the same way? Boyd’s first book, My Husband Betty, explored the relationships of cross-dressing men and their partners. She’s Not the Man I Married is both a sequel and a more expansive examination of gender in relationships. It’s for couples who are homosexual or heterosexual, and for readers who fall anywhere along the gender continuum.
She’s Not There: A Life in Two Genders
by Jennifer Finney Boylan
She’s Not There is the story of a person changing genders, the story of a person bearing and finally revealing a complex secret, and, above all, it is a love story. By turns hilarious and deeply moving, Jennifer Finney Boylan explores the remarkable territory that lies between men and women, examines changing friendships, and rejoices in the redeeming power of family. She’s Not There is a portrait of a loving marriage – the love of James for his wife, Grace, and, against all odds, the enduring love of Grace for the woman who becomes her “sister,” Jenny. To this extraordinary true story, Boylan brings the humorous, fresh voice that won her accolades as one of the best comic novelists of her generation. With her distinctive and winning perspective, She’s Not There explores the dramatic outward changes and unexpected results of life as a woman: Jenny fights the urge to eat salad, while James consumed plates of ribs; gone is the stability of “one damn mood, all the damn time.”
Top Surgery: Unbound: An Insider’s Guide to Chest Masculinization Surgery
by Drake Cameron Sterling
Chest masculinization surgery, also known as top surgery, is gender-affirming chest reconstruction that removes breast tissue and sculpts the remaining tissue into what is typically considered a more male-appearing chest. This book is a must-read for anyone considering top surgery. With clear and accessible language, Drake Cameron Sterling has created a blueprint to guide you through this process. You’ll learn how to interview surgeons, plan and pay for the procedure, make sound decisions, decrease your anxiety, and ready yourself before, during, and after your top surgery.
Trans Bodies, Trans Selves: A Resource for the Transgender Community
by Laura Erickson-Schroth
There is no one way to be transgender. Transgender and gender non-conforming people have many different ways of understanding their gender identities. Only recently have sex and gender been thought of as separate concepts, and we have learned that sex (traditionally thought of as physical or biological) is as variable as gender (traditionally thought of as social). While trans people share many common experiences, there is immense diversity within trans communities. There are an estimated 700,000 transgendered individuals in the US and 15 million worldwide. Even still, there’s been a notable lack of organized information for this sizable group. Trans Bodies, Trans Selves is a revolutionary resource – a comprehensive, reader-friendly guide for transgender people, with each chapter written by transgender or gender-queer authors. Inspired by Our Bodies, Ourselves, the classic and powerful compendium written for and by women, Trans Bodies, Trans Selves is widely accessible to the transgender population, providing authoritative information in an inclusive and respectful way and representing the collective knowledge base of dozens of influential experts. Each chapter takes the reader through an important transgender issue, such as race, religion, employment, medical and surgical transition, mental health topics, relationships, sexuality, parenthood, arts and culture, and much more.
Transgender Voices: Beyond Women and Men
by Lori B. Girshick (Author) and Jamison Green (Contributor)
In this extraordinary book, based on 150 in-depth interviews, Lori B. Girshick, a sociologist and social justice activist, brings together the voices of sex- and gender-diverse people who speak with absolute candor about their lives. Girshick presents transpeople speaking in their own voices about identity, coming out, passing, sexual orientation, relationship negotiations and the dynamics of attraction, homophobia (including internalized fears), and bullying. She exposes the guilt and the shame that “gender police” use in their attempts to exert control and points out the many ways transpeople are discriminated against in daily life, from filling out identification documents to gender-segregated bathrooms. By showing us a variety of descriptions of diverse real lives and providing a thorough exploration of the embodied experiences of gender variant people, Girshick demonstrates that there is nothing inherently binary about gender, and that the way each of us experiences our own gender is, in fact, normal and natural.
Transfigurations
by Jana Marcus (Author) and Jamison Green (Forward)
Known for her compassionate and revealing photographic images of underground subcultures, documentary photographer Jana Marcus brings to book format her award-winning work, Transfigurations, a startling and ground-breaking photographic series on the transgender community. Transfigurations explores transsexuals and their notions of masculinity and femininity as they change gender identities. Discovering that gender is both real and illusory, natural and constructed, Marcus’ photographs shed light on the transformation from one sex/gender to another. The series also explores the importance of the body to gender identity as well as the effects of transformative practices on the body, creating a reality beyond ordinary experience.
Trans Forming Families: Real Stories about Transgendered Loved Ones
by Mary Boenke and Dolores Dudley
A collection of positive short stories by parents, families, and friends of transgender people who have come to accept and embrace their transgender loved ones. It includes stories of male to female and female to male transgender sons and daughters of loving parents, siblings, grandparents, and friends who have helped them on their journey. These are invaluable stories intended to help those struggling with misinformation, pain, anger, and fear for their loved ones.
Transgender Explained for Those Who are Not
by Joanne Herman
Joanne Herman, a transgender woman who read everything in sight to understand her own gender incongruity, has been helping others with her non-complicated explanations of what it means to be transgender for almost a decade. Now she has written down her explanations for all to read in Transgender Explained For Those Who Are Not. Organized by topic into short, easy-to-read chapters, Transgender Explained is perfect for parents, relatives, colleagues, friends, allies, and even journalists who want to quickly get up to speed on what it means to be transgender.
The Transgender Guidebook: Keys to a Successful Transition
by The Transgender Guidebook: Keys to a Successful Transition
The Transgender Guidebook: Keys to a Successful Transition is a self-help book for transsexuals. It is a wise and practical guide for any transgender person considering or embarking on a gender transition. It covers everything from the beginning stages of exploration and planning through the process of transformation to life after transition. This is the first book written by an experienced professional specifically for transgender clients. It will also be of interest to family, friends, allies, clergy, teachers, helping professionals, and anyone who cares about the challenges faced by those who seek to change their physical appearance to match their gender identity.
Transition and Beyond: Observations on Gender Identity
by Reid Vanderburgh
Do you have a friend, co-worker, or family member who is trans? Are you trans yourself and looking for a book to help friends and loved ones better understand? Are you seeking understanding on your own behalf? This is the book for you! Transition and Beyond will help anyone seeking information of what it means (and doesn’t mean) to be trans. This book addresses issues that arise when considering transition, such as: partner/spouse issues, coming out to family, religious considerations, addiction and transition, workplace disclosure, children transitioning, “what does ‘support’ look like” “what does ‘post-transition’ mean,” and trans in the new millennium.
Trans People in Love
by Tracie O’Keefe and Katrina Fox
Trans People in Love is an illuminating resource for members of the trans community and their partners and families, gay/lesbian/bisexual/queer/intersex people, sexologists, sex therapists, counselors, psychologists, psychotherapists, social workers, psychiatrists, medical doctors, educators, students, and couples and family therapists. Trans People in Love provides a forum for the experience of being in love and in relationships with significant others for members of the trans community. This honest and respectful volume tells clinicians, scholars, and trans people themselves of the beauty and complexity that trans identity brings to a romantic relationship, what skills and mindsets are needed to forge positive relationships, and demonstrates the reality that trans people in all stages of transition can create stable and loving relationships that are both physically and emotionally fulfilling.
True Selves: Understanding Transsexualism – For Families, Friends, Coworkers, and Helping Professionals
by Mildred L. Brown and Chloe Ann Rounsley
Combines authoritative information and humanitarian insight into the transsexual experience. Filled with wisdom and understanding, this groundbreaking book paints a vivid portrait of conflicts transsexuals face on a daily basis, and the courage they must summon as they struggle to reveal their true being to themselves and others. True Selves offers valuable guidance for those who are struggling to understand these people and their situations. Using real life stories, actual letters, and other compelling examples, the authors give a clear understanding of what it means to be transsexual. They also give other useful advice, including how to deal compassionately with these commonly misunderstood individuals – by keeping an open heart, communicating fears, pain and support, and respecting choices.
Whipping Girl: A Transsexual Woman on Sexism and Scapegoating of Femininity
by Julia Serano
In the updated second edition of Whipping Girl, Julia Serano, a transsexual woman whose supremely intelligent writing reflects her diverse background as a lesbian transgender activist and professional biologist, shares her powerful experiences and observations – both pre- and post-transition – to reveal the ways in which fear, suspicion, and dismissiveness toward femininity shape our societal attitudes toward trans women, as well as gender and sexuality as a whole. Serano’s well-honed arguments stem from her ability to bridge the gap between the often-disparate biological and social perspectives on gender. In this provocative manifesto, she exposes how deep-rooted the cultural belief is that femininity is frivolous, weak, and passive, and how this “feminine” weakness exists only to attract and appease male desire. In addition to debunking popular misconceptions about transsexuality, Serano makes the case that today’s feminists and transgender activists must work to embrace and empower femininity – in all of its wondrous forms.
Books for Parents of Trans/Non-Binary Children
Becoming Nicole: The Transformation of an American Family
by Amy Ellis Nutt
When Wayne and Kelly Maines adopted identical twin boys they thought their lives were complete. But it wasn’t long before they noticed a marked difference between Jonas and his brother, Wyatt. Jonas preferred sports and trucks and many of the things little boys were “supposed” to like, but Wyatt liked princess dolls and dress-up and playing Little Mermaid. By the time the twins were toddlers, confusion over Wyatt’s insistence that he was female began to tear the family apart. In the years that followed, the Maineses came to question their long-held views on gender and identity, to accept and embrace Wyatt’s transition to Nicole, and to undergo an emotionally wrenching transformation of their own that would change all their lives forever. Becoming Nicole chronicles a journey that could have destroyed a family but instead brought it closer together. It’s the story of a mother whose instincts told her that her child needed love and acceptance, not ostracism and disapproval; of a Republican, Air Force veteran father who overcame his deepest fears to become a vocal advocate for trans rights; of a loving brother who bravely stuck up for his twin sister; and of a town forced to confront its prejudices, a school compelled to rewrite its rules, and a courageous community of transgender activists determined to make their voices heard. Ultimately, Becoming Nicole is the story of an extraordinary girl who fought for the right to be herself.
Gender Born, Gender Made: Raising Healthy Gender-Noncomforming Children
by Diane Ehrensaft and Edgardo Menvielle
We are only beginning to understand gender. Is it inborn or learned? Can it be chosen, or even changed? Does it have to be one or the other? These questions may seem abstract, but for parents whose children live outside of gender “norms,” they are very real. No two children who bend the “rules” of gender do so in quite the same way. Felicia threw away her frilly dresses at age three. Sam hid his interest in dolls and “girl things” until high school when he finally confided his desire to become Sammi, and seven-year-old Maggie, who sports a boys’ basketball uniform and a long blond braid, identifies as “a boy in the front, and a girl in the back.” But all gender-nonconforming children have one thing in common – they need support to thrive in a society that still subscribes to a binary system of gender.
The Gender Creative Child: Pathways for Nurturing and Supporting Children Who Live Outside Gender Boxes
by Diane Ehrensaft and Norman Spack
In her groundbreaking first book, Gender Born, Gender Made, Dr. Diane Ehrensaft coined the term “gender creative” to describe children whose unique gender expression or sense of identity is not defined by a checkbox on their birth certificate. Now, with The Gender Creative Child, she returns to guide parents and professionals through the rapidly changing cultural, medical, and legal landscape of gender and identity. In this up-to-date, comprehensive resource, Dr. Ehrensaft explains the interconnected effects of biology, nurture, and culture to explore why gender can be fluid, rather than binary. As an advocate for the gender affirmative model and with the expertise she has gained over three decades of pioneering work with children and families, she encourages caregivers to listen to each child, learn their particular needs, and support their quest for a true gender self. The Gender Creative Child unlocks the door to a gender-expansive world, revealing pathways for positive change in our schools, our communities, and the world.
Helping Your Transgender Teen, 2nd Edition: A Guide for Parents
by Irwin Krieger
Going through puberty and adolescence presents unwelcome changes for many transgender youth, and this book provides advice to parents of transgender teens to help them understand what their child is experiencing and feeling during this challenging time. Addressing common fears and concerns that parents of transgender teens share, the book guides them through steps they can take with their child, including advice on hormones and surgery and how to transition socially. It addresses the recent increase in teens presenting with non-binary identities, and reflects major legal, social, and medical developments regarding transgender issues. The author’s insights are gained from his professional experience of providing psychotherapy regarding gender identity. He provides resources and further reading to help parents expand their knowledge. Although aimed predominantly at parents, this book is useful for anyone working with teenagers and young adults as it provides many answers to common questions about adolescent gender identity.
Rainbow Family Collections: Selecting and Using Children’s Books with Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender and Queer Content
by Jamie Campbell Naidoo
As one of the only highly praised resources on this important topic, this thoughtfully compiled book examines and suggests picture books and chapter books presenting LGBTQ content to children under the age of 12. An extensive bibliography of picture books, easy chapter books, nonfiction books, and nonprint materials with LGBTQ content is included, and an index of key terms for each title provides easy access to resources representing a specific aspect of LGBTQ culture.
Stuck in the Middle with You: A Memoir of Parenting in Three Genders
by Stuck in the Middle with You: A Memoir of Parenting in Three Genders
A father for six years, a mother for ten, and for a time in between, neither, or both, Jennifer Finney Boylan has seen parenthood from both sides of the gender divide. When her two children were young, Boylan came out as transgender, and as Jenny transitioned from a man to a woman and from a father to a mother, her family faced unique challenges and questions. In this thoughtful, tear-jerking, hilarious memoir, Jenny asks what it means to be a father, or a mother, and to what extent gender shades our experiences as parents. Through both her own story and incredibly insightful interviews with others, including Richard Russo, Edward Albee, Ann Beattie, Augusten Burroughs, Susan Minot, Trey Ellis, Timothy Kreider, and more, Jenny examines relationships between fathers, mothers, and children; people’s memories of the children they were and the parents they became; and the many different ways a family can be. With an Afterword by Anna Quindlen, Stuck in the Middle with You is a brilliant meditation on raising – and being – a child.
The Transgender Child: A Handbook for Families and Professionals
by Stephanie Brill and Rachel Pepper
This comprehensive first of its kind guidebook explores the unique challenges that thousands of families face every day raising their children in every city and state. Through extensive research and interviews, as well as years of experience working in the field, the authors cover gender variance from birth through college. What do you do when your toddler daughter’s first sentence is that she’s a boy? What will happen when your preschool son insists on wearing a dress to school? Is this ever just a phase? How can you explain this to your neighbors and family? How can parents advocate for their children in elementary schools? What are the current laws on the rights of transgender children? What do doctors specializing in gender variant children recommend? What do the therapists say? What advice do other families who have trans kids have? What about hormone blockers and surgery? What issues should your college-bound trans child be thinking about when selecting a school? How can I best raise my gender variant or transgender child with love and compassion, even when I barely understand the issues ahead of us? And what is gender, anyway? These questions and more are answered in this book offering a deeper understanding of gender variant and transgender children and teens.
Transitions of the Heart: Stories of Love, Struggle and Acceptance by Mothers of Transgender and Gender Variant Children
by Rachel Pepper
Transitions of the Heart is the first collection to ever invite mothers of transgender and gender variant children of all ages to tell their own stories about their child’s gender transition. Often “transitioning” socially and emotionally alongside their child but rarely given a voice in the experience, mothers hold the key to familial and societal understanding of gender difference. Sharing stories of love, struggle, and acceptance, this collection of mother’s voices, representing a diversity of backgrounds and sexual orientations, affirms the experience of those who have raised and are currently raising transgender and gender variant children between the ages of 5-50. Edited by Rachel Pepper, a gender specialist and co-author of the acclaimed book The Transgender Child, Transitions of the Heart will prove an invaluable resource for parents coming to terms with a child’s gender variance or transition.
Books for Trans/Non-Binary Young Adults
Being Jazz: My Life as a (Transgender) Teen
by Jazz Jennings
Jazz Jennings is one of the youngest and most prominent voices in the national discussion about gender identity. At the age of five, Jazz transitioned to life as a girl, with the support of her parents. A year later, her parents allowed her to share her incredible journey in her first Barbara Walters interview, aired at a time when the public was much less knowledgeable and accepting of the transgender community. This groundbreaking interview was followed over the years by other high-profile interviews, a documentary, the launch of her YouTube channel, a picture book, and her own reality TV series – I Am Jazz – making her one of the most recognizable activists for transgender teens, children, and adults. In her remarkable memoir, Jazz reflects on these very public experiences and how they have helped shape the mainstream attitude toward the transgender community.
Beyond Magenta: Transgender Teens Speak Out
by Susan Kuklin
Author and photographer Susan Kuklin met and interviewed six transgender or gender-neutral young adults and used her considerable skills to represent them thoughtfully and respectfully before, during, and after their personal acknowledgment of gender preference. Portraits, family photographs, and candid images grace the pages, augmenting the emotional and physical journey each youth has taken. Each honest discussion and disclosure, whether joyful or heartbreaking, is completely different from the other because of family dynamics, living situations, gender, and the transition these teens make in recognition of their true selves.
Freakboy
by Kristin Elizabeth Clark
From the outside, Brendan Chase seems to have it pretty easy. He’s a star wrestler, a video game aficionado, and a loving boyfriend to his seemingly perfect match, Vanessa. But on the inside, Brendan struggles to understand why his body feels so wrong – why he sometimes fantasizes about having long hair, soft skin, and gentle curves. Is there even a name for guys like him? Guys who sometimes want to be girls? Or is Brendan just a freak? In Freakboy‘s razor-sharp verse, Kristin Clark folds three narratives into one powerful story: Brendan trying to understand his sexual identity, Vanessa fighting to keep her and Brendan’s relationship alive, and Angel struggling to confront her demons.
The Gender Quest Workbook: A Guide for Teens and Young Adults Exploring Gender Identity
by Rylan Jay Testa, et al.
If you are a transgender or gender-expansive teen, you may experience unique challenges with identity and interpersonal relationships. In addition to experiencing common teen challenges such as body changes and peer pressure, you may be wondering how to express your unique identity to others. The Gender Quest Workbook incorporates skills, exercises, and activities from evidence-based therapies – such as cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) – to help you address the broad range of struggles you may encounter related to gender identity, such as anxiety, isolation, fear, and even depression. Despite outdated beliefs, gender no longer implies being simply male or female, but rather a whole spectrum of possibilities. This fun, engaging workbook is designed specifically for teens like you who want to explore the concept of gender and gender identity and expression – whether you already identify as TGNC or are simply questioning your gender identity.
My Daughter, My Son: An Adolescent’s Gender Transition Experienced by Mother and Child
by Betsie Harvey and Luca Harvie
My Daughter, My Son is a riveting inside view from mother and child of a gender transformation. You will be drawn into this human interest story of a middle class family struggling with one of the most emotionally challenging, financially devastating, dangerous, and awkward situations they could be thrown into. It will take Betsie’s seemingly endless capacity to love and Luca’s unwavering determination to bring congruity to the young man’s body and life. Ultimately, the authors’ bravery and tenacity will carry the day. Brimming with wit and wry charm, Betsie and Luca are candid and relatable. My Daughter, My Son includes photographs ranging from Betsie holding her baby daughter to Luca as an adult. They put regular faces you can identify with to the issue of being trans. In contrast to autobiographies of trans persons co-authored by polished professionals who have no experience with transsexualism themselves, Betsie and Luca’s words flow straight from their hearts to the page. Topics in this autobiography include: gender dysphoria, gender identity, transsexualism, hormone therapy, transition, gender reassignment surgery, bullying, rape, drug and alcohol addiction, attempted suicide, police brutality, domestic abuse, and depression.
Parrotfish
by Ellen Wittlinger
Angela Katz-McNair has never felt quite right as a girl, but it’s a shock to everyone when she cuts her hair short, buys some men’s clothes, and announces she’d like to be called by a new name, Grady. Grady is happy about his decision to finally be true to himself, despite the practical complications, like which gym locker room to use. And though he didn’t expect his family and friends to be happy about his decision, he also didn’t expect kids at school to be downright nasty about it. But as the victim of some cruel jokes, Grady also finds unexpected allies in this thought-provoking novel that explores struggles any reader can relate to.
Real Talk for Teens: A Jump-Start guide to Gender Transitioning and Beyond
by Seth Jamison Rainess
The first book devoted exclusively to issues of gender transitioning for youth, Real Talk takes early transitioning seriously and offers a road map of the issues that youth can expect to encounter in their journey. But Seth doesn’t stop there. He provides youth with a guidebook of sound advice for getting through gender reassignment, including treatment options available for hormones and surgery, coming out to friends and family, and tips for dating and disclosure. Seth offers an essential toolkit for building mental toughness and teaches youth how to take control of their destiny, achieve success, and live a happy, fulfilled life.
Some Assembly Required: The Not-So-Secret Life of a Transgender Teen
by Arin Andrews
Seventeen-year-old Arin Andrews shares all the hilarious, painful, and poignant details of undergoing gender reassignment as a high school student in this winning first-of-its-kind memoir. Now with a reading group guide and an all-new afterword from the author! In his captivatingly witty, honest voice, Arin reveals the challenges he faced as a boy in a girl’s body, the humiliation and anger he felt after getting kicked out of his private school, and all the changes – both mental and physical – he experienced once his transition began.
Books for Trans/Non-Binary Children
10,000 Dresses
by Marcus Ewert and Rex Ray
Every night, Bailey dreams about magical dresses: dresses made of crystals and rainbows, dresses made of flowers, dresses made of windows… Unfortunately, when Bailey’s awake, no one wants to hear about these beautiful dreams. Quite the contrary. “You’re a BOY!” Mother and Father tell Bailey. “You shouldn’t be thinking about dresses at all.” Then Bailey meets Laurel, an older girl who is touched and inspired by Bailey’s imagination and courage. In friendship, the two of them begin making dresses together. And Bailey’s dreams come true! This gorgeous picture book – a modern fairy tale about becoming the person you feel you are inside – will delight people of all ages.
About Chris
by Nina Benedetto
This book affirms the worth and dignity of a child who asserts his own gender identity. This book is an affirmation for all people who are longing to claim their birthright to be themselves. It goes to the heart of teaching compassion for children with gender dysphoria. My goal is to open a conversation that helps navigate through this transition with empathy, understanding and acceptance.
All I Want To Be is Me
by Phyllis Rothblatt
All I Want To Be Is Me is a beautifully illustrated children’s book reflecting the diverse ways that young children experience and express their gender. The book gives voice to the feelings of children who don’t fit into narrow gender stereotypes, and who just want to be free to be themselves. This book is a celebration of all children being who they are, and is a positive reflection of children, wherever they experience themselves on the gender spectrum. All I Want To Be Is Me offers a wonderful way for all children to learn about gender diversity, embracing different ways to be, and being a true friend.
But I’m Not a Boy!
by Katie Leone and Alison Pfeifer
David has a big problem – she is really a girl named Sarah. But nobody knows, and everyone assumes she is a boy. When her parents ask why she is so sad, is she brave enough to tell them the truth?
I Am Jazz
by Jessica Herthel and Jazz Jennings
This is an essential tool for parents and teachers to share with children whether those kids identify as trans or not. From the time she was two years old, Jazz knew that she had a girl’s brain in a boy’s body. She loved pink and dressing up as a mermaid and didn’t feel like herself in boys’ clothing. This confused her family, until they took her to a doctor who said that Jazz was transgender and that she was born that way. Jazz’s story is based on her real-life experience and she tells it in a simple, clear way that will be appreciated by picture book readers, their parents, and teachers.
Jacob’s New Dress
by Sarah Hoffman and Ian Hoffman
Jacob loves playing dress-up, when he can be anything he wants to be. Some kids at school say he can’t wear “girl” clothes, but Jacob wants to wear a dress to school. Can he convince his parents to let him wear what he wants? This heartwarming story speaks to the unique challenges faced by boys who don’t identify with traditional gender roles.
My Favorite Color is Pink
by Nina Benedetto
This book affirms the worth and dignity of a child who asserts his own gender identity. This book is an affirmation for all people who are longing to claim their birthright to be themselves. It goes to the heart of teaching compassion for children with gender dysphoria. My goal is to open a conversation that helps navigate through this transition with empathy, understanding and acceptance.
My New Daddy (“My New” Series Book 2)
by Lilly Mossiano (Author) and Sage Mossiano (Illustrator)
My New Daddy is a short illustrated work of fiction following young Charles through the journey of his mother’s transition from female to male, and his transition from calling him “Mommy” to “Daddy.” It explains, in easy to convey ideas, the hows and whys of female to male gender reassignment surgery and the emotional and mental changes that occur during transition. It is designed to instill a sense of understanding in young children to prevent confusion and mistrust of transgender individuals.
My New Mommy (“My New” Series Book 1)
by Lilly Mossiano (Author) and Sage Mossiano (Illustrator)
My New Mommy is a short illustrated work of fiction following young Violet through the journey of her father’s transition from male to female. It explains, in easy to convey and appropriate for young children words, the basic steps of and reasons for male to female gender reassignment surgery, and the emotional and mental changes that occur during transition. It is designed to instill a sense of understanding in young children to prevent confusion and mistrust of transgender individuals.
My Princess Boy
by Cheryl Kilodavis and Suzanne DeSimone
Dyson loves pink, sparkly things. Sometimes he wears dresses. Sometimes he wears jeans. He likes to wear his princess tiara, even when climbing trees. He’s a Princess Boy. Inspired by the author’s son, and by her own initial struggles to understand, this is a heart-warming book about unconditional love and one remarkable family. It is also a call for tolerance and an end to bullying and judgment. The world is a brighter place when we accept everyone for who they are.
Parts & Hearts: A Kid’s (and Grown-Up’s) Guide to Transgender Transition
by Jenson Hillenbrand (Author) and Quinlan Omahne (Illustrator)
Stories about transgender transformation are increasingly in the news. Children find themselves dealing with a subject they probably don’t know too much about. It can be difficult to find a source that provides the answers they need in a way they can understand. Author Jenson Hillenbrand’s Parts and Hearts: A Kid’s (and Grown-Up’s) Guide to Transgender Transition helps readers understand transgender transformation, both male to female and female to male. Aimed at children between the ages of nine and twelve, Hillenbrand’s work, with the accompanying illustration by Quinlan Omahne, helps readers understand what transgender transformation means and what it involves. Parents can use it as a resource to explain the subject to their children in an age-appropriate manner as well as prepare themselves to answer the many questions children will likely have. Transgender transformation can be difficult for children and some adults to understand. This book shows it’s natural and not a scary thing as some may think.
Truly Willa
by Willa Naylor and Bex Naylor
This is a real life first person account of a trans advocate child’s journey from early beginnings of knowing her true self through transition into out public advocate. Willa has written this children’s book to inspire hope and empowerment in children just like her, and help educate society at large, on what it’s like to be a trans child in the world today. The book also has simplified quotes at the top of each page for the benefit of any younger readers, with the main paragraph having more detail, so children of different reading levels can still read along.
When Kayla was Kyle
by Amy Fabrikant (Author) and Jennifer Levine (Illustrator)
Kyle doesn’t understand why the other kids at school call him names. He looks like other boys, but doesn’t feel like them. Can Kyle find the words to share his feelings about his gender – and can his parents help him to transition into the girl he was born to be? When Kayla Was Kyle is a picture book children of all ages will want to read because it addresses the increasingly emerging ideas around gender diversity.