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.
2012,
English,
Ryka Aoki,
USA,
"Seasonal Velocities invites the reader on a fragile and furious journey along the highways and skyways of discovery, retribution, and resolve. Through her poetry, essays, stories, and performances, award-winning writer Ryka Aoki has challenged, informed, and shared with queer audiences across the United States. Seasonal Velocities was honored as a 2013 Lambda Award Finalist."
In 2017, I interviewed Ryka and asked her whether she often goes back to Seasonal Velocities and what she would describe differently: "Not at all. :) At a knee-jerk level, if I were to revisit the book, I would definitely want to change things—but that is what the next blank sheet of paper is for. I think part of the journey of self-love is loving and trusting who you were yesterday.
Especially for me as a trans person, and an abuse survivor - there’s a lot of my past self that I could choose to hate. But enough people in my past have hated and rejected me without my help—there’s no reason to join those voices. Instead, I choose to love her. I think I am wiser now, but I love - and celebrate her - for who she was."
Ryka Aoki is a Japanese American award-winning author, performer, and professor of English at Santa Monica College, known for her book "Seasonal Velocities" (2012), novel "He Mele a Hilo" (2014), and set of poems "Why Dust Shall Never Settle Upon This Soul" (2015)
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