A random collection of over 1910 books and audiobooks authored by or about my transgender, intersex sisters, and gender-nonconforming persons all over the world. I read some of them, and I was inspired by some of them. I met some of the authors and heroines, some of them are my best friends, and I had the pleasure and honor of interviewing some of them. If you know of any transgender biography that I have not covered yet, please let me know.
Original title: "Charlotte. Salome. Veronika. Transvestiten" (Charlotte. Salome. Veronica. Transvestites) by Susann Hillebrand and Irmgard Johannson.
In the book, three transgender women are portrayed in photos and interviews. Charlotte was born in 1900 and was 78 years old when the book was published, Salome was 22 and Veronika was 26. In their questions, the two authors show real interest in the analysis of the transgender phenomenon and transgender community in Germany.
1978,
German,
Irmgard Johannson,
Susann Hillebrand,
Full title: "Queer Diplomacy: A Transgender Journey in the Foreign Service" by Robyn McCutcheon.
"“This wildly compelling, beautifully written, first-of-its-kind memoir is an incredibly important, useful, and deeply humanizing story about one transgender woman’s unique experience navigating the complex world of foreign affairs and diplomacy. It’s a joy to read.” — Anthony Cotton, international inclusive development professional.
Join Robyn McCutcheon, an out and proud transgender woman, on her journey as a diplomat with the U.S. Department of State. Follow her on travels that took her through the Soviet Union as a historian, to the stars as an engineer in the Hubble Space Telescope project, and onward to Russia, Romania, Uzbekistan, and Kazakhstan as a Foreign Service Officer representing her country on everything from human rights to nuclear arms control. Find out what it was like to transition gender while serving full-time overseas and to become an icon to the LGBTQIA+ communities in Romania and in Central Asia."
2024,
English,
Robyn McCutcheon,
Original title: "O caso Bruna: Gênero, transexualidades e opinião pública" (The case of Bruna: Gender, transsexualities and public opinion) by Ubirajara de None Caputo.
"Transvestites and transsexual women demonstrate for the right to use women's restrooms open to the public in a shopping mall in São Paulo. The act has repercussions on a news site of great circulation, provoking the reaction of hundreds of readers. Ubirajara Caputo analyzed the opinions of this group of people, most of whom were against the right of use motivated by religious and social conceptions or by attributing to the plaintiffs a dubious character and distorted aspects of health and body.
2022,
Brazil,
Portuguese,
Ubirajara de None Caputo,
"Psychopathia sexualismus" is the English language version of "Psychopathia sexualismus" published in 1886 by Richard von Krafft-Ebing.
Psychopathia Sexualis, written by Richard Freiherr von Krafft-Ebing in 1886, is a pioneering work in the field of sexual pathology. This clinical-forensic study delves into a wide range of paraphilias and specifically focuses on male homosexuality and bisexuality - referred to as the “antipathetic sexual instinct” in the subtitle.
Crossdressing in the modern sense appeared with Karl Heinrich Ulrich as early as 1868, and Carl Westphal used the term "contrary sexual feeling" in 1870, although not yet differentiated from so-called uranism. Richard von Krafft-Ebing then published the first edition of "Psychopathia sexualismus" in 1886, which went through 17 editions. There he uses the term “Metamorphosis sexualis paranoica” (sex change madness).
1968,
English,
Richard von Krafft-Ebing,
Original title: "Bangkok Ladyboys" by Henrik List.
"In this unique book, the author Henrik List and photographer Anders Askegaard travel from the 'heterosexual matrix' and out of the closet, across the boundaries of prejudice and through the mirror to a Bangkok at the beginning of the 21st century, where nothing is what it appears to be - not even many of the "girls" in the city's nightlife and red light districts.
A raw, poetic and reflected portrayal in text and images of Thailand's "third sex" - an essay about and 48 pages of color photographs of these so-called ladyboys."
2006,
Danish,
Henrik List,
Thailand,
Full title: "Forty Years to Live" by Brenda Bradford Ward.
"Discover the captivating journey of self-discovery and resilience in "FORTY YEARS to LIFE" by Brenda Bradford Ward. In this compelling narrative, Ward paints a vivid picture of a life lived in secrecy, offering readers a rare glimpse into the struggles faced by individuals navigating gender identity conflicts. Society's response to such conflicts often swings between permissiveness and suppression, yet true understanding remains elusive. Ward skillfully delves into this complex issue, shedding light on the challenges faced by those grappling with their true identity amidst societal pressures.
With meticulous research and heartfelt storytelling, "FORTY YEARS to LIFE" invites readers to confront the age-old questions surrounding gender identity. As Ward explores the history and intricacies of this deeply personal journey, she prompts us to reflect on how best to support and empower individuals facing similar challenges. Engaging, thought-provoking, and deeply compassionate, "FORTY YEARS to LIFE" is a must-read for anyone seeking insight into the human experience and the quest for authenticity. Join Brenda Bradford Ward on a transformative odyssey towards understanding, acceptance, and ultimately, liberation."
2024,
Brenda Bradford Ward,
English,
Original title: "Cartas pra Pepita" (Letters to Pepita) by Mulher Pepita.
"The program "Cartas pra Pepita", a public success on IGTV and YouTube, completes one year on the air and to celebrate brings the best letters in the debut book of Selo Monocó! Hosted by LGBT activist, singer and songwriter Mulher Pepita, one of the first transsexual funk singers in Brazil, the program brings the author's sometimes affectionate, sometimes acidic advice and tips about relationships and questions about love and sex from readers-viewers, who send their letters to the program and are read on the air, without shame!"
Mulher Pepita, also known as Pepita, is a Brazilian singer, composer, and dancer. Born Priscila Nogueira on January 25, 1983, in Rio de Janeiro, she gained prominence as one of the first trans women in the Brazilian funk music scene. Her work is closely associated with LGBT activism1.
Pepita began her journey as a funk dancer in Rio de Janeiro’s nightclubs. During this time, she received a song titled “Tô à Procura de um Homem” from a friend. Inspired by the music, she transitioned into a music career and performed her first show in São Paulo.
2019,
Brazil,
Mulher Pepita,
Portuguese,
Full title: "Dr. Jeanne Hoff's Unwavering Fight for Acceptance and Equality for Transgender Individuals: Beyond the Binary" by El Rudolph.
"In a world struggling to grasp gender beyond the binary, Dr. Jeanne Hoff ignited a revolution. This inspiring biography chronicles her pioneering research, shattering the silence on gender dysphoria and paving the way for compassionate healthcare for transgender individuals. Witness her tireless advocacy, challenging discrimination and championing legal recognition for all.
Through insightful research, personal stories, and Jeanne's own unwavering voice, this book illuminates the ongoing fight for equality while offering a roadmap for a future where everyone can live authentically. Join this inspiring journey and discover the enduring legacy of a woman who dared to see the world with empathy and courage, lighting the way for a more inclusive future."
2023,
El Rudolph,
English,
Jeanne Hoff,
Original title: "La fille d’elle-même" (The Daughter of Herself) by Gabrielle Boulianne-Tremblay. The book was published in 2021 and republished in 2023.
"Winner 2022, Prix des Libraires Rights for TV adaptation purchased by Zone 3 A runaway bestseller in Québec, where it has captured the hearts of readers and pushed trans-identity into the mainstream conversation, Dandelion Daughter is an intimate, courageous portrait of what it’s like to grow up having been assigned the wrong sex at birth.
Set against the windswept countryside of the remote Charlevoix region some five hours north of Montreal, Gabrielle Boulianne-Tremblay’s autobiographical novel immortalizes her early years as an alienated boy trapped in a world of small-town values and her parents’ dissolving marriage, through complex adolescent years of self-discovery and first loves, to the harrowing episodes that fuel the growing realization that she must transition and give birth to her new self if she is to continue living at all. One of the first novels of its kind to appear in Québec, this inspiring story has already connected with a wide readership, and has been adopted by many schools to help expand worldviews and curriculums."
2021,
2023,
Canada,
French,
Gabrielle Boulianne-Tremblay,
Gabrielle Tremblay,
Full title: "Gender Queer: As the Carousel Turns "Gender War"" by Robyn Casias (Skyler Lott).
This is the first part of a 4-episode series that tells the stories about "how my expression of Meili slowly diminished trying to dress in girls’ clothes. No one could understand the gender expressions coming from Meili’s flower power version of her Rainbow. The best that I could do is take the psychedelic express train to Alice in Genderland where I could sing, but not be heard."
"As the Carousel Turns “GENDER WAR” is a novella series that progresses my journey through a spiritual, social, legal, and physical transformation from being born biologically male to my identified gender as female. “I AM MEILI” is the first of two Episodes in “GENDER QUEER. Meili characterizes a female persona from my earliest childhood memories. As my journey unfolds “Manly” is introduced. Manly is my made-up male persona, the persona I predominantly portrayed throughout my adolescence and adulthood."
2019,
English,
Robyn Casias,
Skyler Lott,
Original title: "Liberdade Ainda Que Profana" (Freedom Even If Profane) by Ruddy Pinho.
When we turn to the literature of trans authorship in Brazil, we inevitably arrive at Ruddy Pinho, who in 1980 debuted on the literary scene with the poetic biographical work Eu, Ruddy. In that period Ruddy did not yet recognize herself as a woman, nor did she bring this issue explicitly to her writing, which only occurred after the publication of her second autobiography, Liberdade ainda que profana (1998), in which she celebrates her 35-year career as a hairdresser, and she identifies as a woman.
Ruddy Pinho, also known as “A Maravilhosa”, was a celebrated transgender hairdresser from Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. She was known for her work with famous clients, including Susana Vieira and Marilia Pêra. Ruddy Pinho made a significant contribution to the hairdressing industry, including creating the “lioness cut” that marked the career of singer Simone Bittencourt and was widely copied in the 1980s.
1998,
Brazil,
Portuguese,
Ruddy Pinho,
Full title: "We Are Mermaids: Poems" by Stephanie Burt.
"Stephanie Burt’s poems in We Are Mermaids are never just one thing. Instead, they revel in their multiplicity, their interconnectedness, their secret powers to become much more than they at first seem. In these poems, punctuation marks make arguments for their utility and their rights to exist. Frozen isn’t simply another Disney animated musical but “the Most Trans Movie Ever.” Mermaids, werewolves, and superheroes don’t just fret over divided natures and secret identities, but celebrate their wholeness, their unique abilities, and their erotic potential. Flowers in this collection bloom into exactly what they are meant to be―revealing themselves, like bleeding hearts, beyond their given names.
With humor and insight, Burt’s poems have always cherished and examined the things of this world, both real and imagined objects of fascination and desire. In this resplendent new collection, her observation and care flourish into her most fulfilled book yet. These poems shake off indecisiveness and doubt to reach joys through romance and family, through nature (urban and otherwise), and through imaginative community. We Are Mermaids is a trans book, a fangirl book, a book about coming together. It’s also Burt’s best book."
2022,
English,
Stephanie Burt,
Original title: "Kønsskifte: juridisk set" (Gender reassignment: legally speaking) by Marianne Holdgaard and Bettina Lemann Kristiansen.
"Gender reassignment poses particular legal problems. Based on extensive case material, the book deals in particular with administrative law and human rights issues related to legal regulation and practice in connection with gender reassignment. A distinction is made between the physical and the legal gender change (permission to change the first name and social security number).
The legal basis for gender reassignment and its use is related to general societal developments, including the increased acceptance of and knowledge about transsexuality and its treatment – both in the healthcare system and in the population. The area of justice is at a crossroads between overriding social considerations and fundamental considerations of the integrity, freedom, and autonomy of the individual. On the basis of legal policy considerations, it is argued for a change in the legal situation."
2004,
Bettina Lemann Kristiansen,
Danish,
Marianne Holdgaard,
Full title: "Eva's World: A Real Woman’s Life" by Ella Marques.
This is the third book by Ella Marques. "I was born a boy, from Venus: It's time to be yourself" (2017) was the first autobiography of Ella Marques. In 2020, she published her second book: "Coming Home to Venus: The story of a woman transitioning to her real self".
"Eva’s World is the story of a transgender pansexual hard-working woman that travels the world for business and pleasure. She and her three friends Linda, Olympia and Victoria come together regularly, talk about their lives, their loves and their expectations. Two of these girls are transgender, the other two are cisgender - their lives and expectations are similar, just some small differences. This is a positive book about life as a very privileged transgender person, about traveling, about fun, expectations but above all about love. Yes, transgender women are women. They live, they love, and they can be quite normal. All I ask is that you open your eyes."
2020,
Ella Marques,
English,
Interview,
Original title: "Lo que cuentan de las personas trans" (What they say about trans people) by Zulema Wild.
"This book is for those people who want to learn about trans people.
There will be people who say that we are not normal, but normal is too basic to call us that.
This book tells stories of trans people as well as a lot of information about everything that trans people experience.
A constant fight to be who we want to be, a fight to want to be accepted in a world of people who are still in the Franco era. Zulema is a trans girl and this book is dedicated to all those people who want to expand their knowledge and want to know more about trans people."
2023,
Spanish,
Zulema Wild,
Full title: "Faltas: Letters to Everyone in My Hometown Who Isn’t My Rapist" by Cecilia Gentili.
"In these hilarious and heartbreaking letters, Cecilia Gentili reinvents the trans memoir, putting the confession squarely between the writer and her enemies, paramours and friends. Writing to childhood figures such as her rapist's daughter, her father's mistress, her best friend, and her mother, Gentili probes deeply into the bitter cruelty, buried secrets, and delicious gossip of a small town. Is she here for revenge, or forgiveness? Both! And more! A story of sex, theft, murder, motherhood, and outrageous fashion choices, Faltas is a beautiful, messy meditation on what it takes to heal, and even grow."
2023,
Argentina,
Cecilia Gentili,
English,
"Poco Raccomandabile" (Not very recommendable) is the Italian language version of "Mauvais genre" (Wrong Gender) by Chloé Cruchaudet.
"Paul and Louise love each other, Paul and Louise get married, but World War I escalates and separates them. Paul, who wants at all costs to escape the hell of the trenches, becomes a deserter and finds Louise in Paris. He is safe but condemned to remain hidden in a hotel room. To put an end to his clandestine existence, Paul imagines a solution: to change his identity. Now he'll be known as... ...Suzanne. Between gender confusion and the trauma of war, the couple will arrive at a very unusual destiny."
To escape the horrors of the trenches, Paul becomes a deserter. He manages to make his way to Paris, where he hides with the help of his wife Louise. As a deserter threatened with death, he is doomed to stay forever in the same four walls — or to be transformed. Disguised as "Suzanne", Louise's best friend, she dares to flourish as a woman.
2014,
Chloé Cruchaudet,
Italian,
Full title: "Poetic Memoir Chapbook Challenge" by Barbara Marie Minney.
This is the second poetry book by Barbara Marie Minney. She is a transgender woman, award winning poet, writer, speaker, teaching artist, and quiet activist. Her poetry and essays have appeared in numerous publications, including Politico, The Buckeye Flame, The Gasconade Review, Gargoyle Magazine, The Pine Cone Review, Women Speak: Women of Appalachia Project, Woman Scream: The International Poetry Anthology of Female Voices, The New Wasteland, new words (issue one): a trans and gender-expansive journal, and I Thought I Heard A Cardinal Sing, Ohio’s Appalachian Voices.
Barbara’s poetry has also been translated into Spanish. She is the author of If There’s No Heaven, the winner of the 2020 Poetry Is Life Book Award and an Akron Beacon Journal Best Northeast Ohio Book in 2020; the Poetic Memoir Chapbook Challenge; and Dance Naked With God. Barbara is a retired attorney and a seventh-generation Appalachian and lives in Tallmadge, Ohio, with her wife of over 42 years and a menagerie of stuffed animals.
2021,
Barbara Marie Minney,
English,
Interview,
Original title: "Ella era yo: Memorias de mi transición" (She was me: Memories of my transition) is the Spanish language edition of "I Heard Her Call My Name: A Memoir of Transition" by Lucy Sante.
"An iconic writer's lapidary memoir of a life spent pursuing a dream of artistic truth while evading the truth of her own gender identity, until, finally, she turned to face who she really was For a long time, Lucy Sante felt unsure of her place.
Born in Belgium, the only child of conservative working-class Catholic parents who transplanted their little family to the United States, she felt at home only when she moved to New York City in the early 1970s and found her people among a band of fellow bohemians. Some would die young, to drugs and AIDS, and some would become jarringly famous. Sante flirted with both fates, on her way to building an estimable career as a writer. But she still felt like her life a performance. She was presenting a façade, even to herself."
2024,
Interview,
Lucy Sante,
Spanish,
Full title: "Safe and Sound: A Renter-Friendly Guide to Home Repair" by Mercury Stardust.
"As a transwoman, I've discovered (the hard way) that we live in a world with much to fear. But imagine fearing something as simple as asking for help. Imagine relying on others-landlords-to provide a basic human right, like housing, but knowing those same people believe you're an abomination because of your sexuality or gender identity. Imagine a world where reaching out for help is more than just a mundane task-it's a game of chance. Sadly, for too many renters, this isn't just a one-time moment of fear. For single moms, college students in a foreign town, and many others, a knock on the door can feel just as terrifying, even when you need the help.
All renters deserve to feel empowered enough to take matters into their own hands. The skills I'll show you how to develop will allow you to help friends, teach family members, and even assist a panicking neighbor-further empowering more people to take on tasks on their own. We all have a home-whether it's made up of brick walls or plaster-filled with memories and dreams. Knowledge should pass through any barriers put up around it because a little bit of knowledge can go a long way toward making someone feel more in control of their own life."
2023,
English,
Mercury Stardust,
Original title: "Paradiset er ikke til salg: Trangen til at være begge køn" (Paradise is not for sale: The urge to be both sexes) by Preben Hertoft and Teit Ritzau.
"The book sheds light on the concept of gender identity as reflected by transvestites and transsexuals, and attempts to demystify these concepts by means of a series of 'case stories' about how it has really happened to people who have had sex reassignment surgery – among them the famous Christine Jørgensen and Lili Elbe. Preben Hertoft was for many years the head of the Department of Sexology. Teit Ritzau is a doctor and film director."
1984,
Christine Jorgensen,
Danish,
Lili Elbe,
Preben Hertoft,
Teit Ritzau,
Full title: "Veni Vidi Vici - What Actually Happened?: The inner journey doesn't always mirror the outer" by Mina Rudin.
The book is the follow-up of two books published previously in Swedish: "Mina Rudin - Veni Vidi Vici - Min resa från pojke till flicka: En självbiografi av Wilhelmina Rudin" (2019) (Veni Vidi Vici - My Journey from Boy to Girl: An Autobiography by Wilhelmina Rudin) and "Veni Vidi Vici - Resan Efter: Del 2 - En Självbiografi Av Wilhelmina Rudin" (2020) (Veni Vidi Vici - The Journey After: Part 2 - An Autobiography By Wilhelmina Rudin).
"Imagine that you wake up and realize that you are in the wrong body. You were a boy yesterday, and woke up as a girl. Or you fell asleep as a girl and woke up as a boy. Wondering how it would feel. Every morning of my life, I have woken up and had a masculine attribute. We all know that boys have a snot, while girls do not. But in my case, and many other transgender people out there in society, it happens every day."
2023,
English,
Mina Rudin,
Wilhelmina Rudin,
Original title: "Wiebkes Tagebuch X: Teil X des Tagebuchs einer trans Frau, der vierte “angekommene” Teil (Aug.-Okt. 2023) (Wiebke werden)" (Wiebke's Life X: Part X of the diary of a trans woman, the fourth “I finally am myself”- part (Aug.-Oct. 2023) (Becoming Wiebke Book 10)) by Wiebke ter Lichten.
"In the summer of 2018, my girlfriend asked me out of the blue if I’d ever considered being completely transformed into a woman. She suggested that it might be interesting. I pushed around quite a bit, and to be honest, the thought may have crossed my mind for a split second, but I dismissed it because I was absolutely certain the result wouldn't be good. Then Christmas 2018 came and her gift was just that: a makeover. She’d spoken to the manager of a service and made all the preparations. No chance for me to back out! The styling took place on Valentine's Day 2019 and Wiebke was born."
2023,
German,
Wiebke ter Lichten,
Full title: "The Yellow Sparrow: Memoir of a Transgender" by Santa Khurai.
"Santa Khurai was seventeen when she decided to start dressing like a woman. Born male, she had always believed herself to be female, and she claimed her feminine identity fiercely and openly. Her bold act of wearing dresses and make-up in public brought down upon her the wrath of her father, insults and ridicule wherever she went, and, frequently, beatings at the hands of the armed forces who are a constant presence in her native Manipur. The humiliation and physical attacks did not deter her. In her words, ‘My desire to be a woman, a beautiful, fashionable woman, was so strong that I was not afraid of challenging anything that came in the way... I felt that I could bear anything but I could not live like a man.’
2023,
English,
India,
Santa Khurai,
Original title: "Crianças Trans: Infâncias possíveis" (Trans Children: Possible Childhoods) by Sofia Favero.
"Trans kids, do you exist? The question is, in my view, rhetorical. Sofia pursues her childhood with unparalleled refinement and wit in this publication. Language, as always, is placed in a captious way when we refer to what was not posited, at first, as "natural" from the cisgender gaze.
The author undertakes a fantastic work, using a self-history that is intertwined with contemporary virtual culture and scientific literature, to tell us about something central to studies on childhood, or to be more direct, about how the social devices of affirmation of certain identities work, to the detriment of others, hierarchical as "normal", "good", "beautiful"."
2021,
Brazil,
Portuguese,
Sofia Favero,
Full title: "A Couple's Journey to Transgenderism" by Noreen Antao.
"Noreen Antao went into her second marriage with high hopes that the man she loved, and who loved her and her children, would be the light of her life, for the rest of her life. Just before the marriage he revealed to her his deepest secret, something he had revealed to no one he liked to wear women's clothes. "His coming out of the closet to me, put me in the closet with him."
This led them on a 15-year journey of discovery, deeper and deeper into a world of crossdressing, transgenderism, homosexuality, and even B&D. "It was very sad to watch Jason becoming more female than male I was gradually losing my husband to 'the other woman'." Noreen's experiences offer a rare look into the struggle of finding one's true sexuality, and the effect that can have on one's spouse, career and family."
2023,
English,
Noreen Antao,
Original title: "Elas me contaram: Histórias de Travestis e Transexuais" (They told me: Stories of Transvestites and Transsexuals) by Melquiades Galindo.
"A photographer and writer, and his saga to get to know the stories of transvestites and transsexual women with the intention of gathering material to make a novel that tells their lives. What he didn't imagine is that he would be faced with dramatic situations to the point of making his mission almost impossible."
2018,
Melquiades Galindo,
Portuguese,
Full title: "Enthusiastically Me" by Hazel Krebs.
"A journey of self discovery, covering only a few years, though a lifetime of emotions starting with despair and anguish created through expectations from family, society, and religion; eventually leading to discovering the beautiful life that was always held within. The journey uncovers the darkest paths of one existence, seemingly necessary to find the correct route for joyful happiness.
The story begins in March 2018, when the narrator, who is in the throws of a depressive episode, considers if this day will be the end. Along the path is the first stop at a familiar park, finding a bench that held the whole life for an afternoon. Eventually moving on from the bench and parts of the life, there is a meeting at that very bench, which is frustrating at first; however, later becomes the start of a new path. This time perhaps with a helpful trailblazer to join.
2024,
English,
Hazel Krebs,
Interview,
