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.
Full title: "Inside Out: The Extraordinary Legacy of April Ashley: The boy who became the most famous woman in the world" by Douglas Thompson.
It was the first biography of April Ashley, written by Duncan Fallowell and April Ashley herself.
"April Ashley was a trailblazing figure in the history of transgender rights and advocacy. Born in 1935 in Liverpool, Ashley was assigned male at birth, but knew from a young age that she identified as a woman. At the age of sixteen, April left home and began her journey of self-discovery, eventually transitioning and undergoing gender-reassignment surgery in 1960.
She became one of the first British people to undergo the procedure, which was illegal at the time in the UK. April's transition was met with both admiration and hostility from the media and the public. Despite facing discrimination and transphobia, she remained dedicated to promoting trans visibility and acceptance. In the 1960s, she moved to Paris and became a successful model and cabaret performer, rubbing shoulders with the likes of Salvador Dalí and Jean Cocteau.
2024,
April Ashley,
Douglas Thompson,
English,
Full title: "The Times Lives Less Ordinary: Obituaries Of The Eccentric, Unique And Undefinable" by The Times and Nigel Farndale.
"Discover the lives of some of the most fascinating and unconventional characters of recent times, with 85 obituaries carefully curated from The Times archive. Be they dons, pop stars, vicars, MPs, rugby players or aristocrats, each has marched to the beat of their own drum and led a life far from ordinary.
The Times obituaries have given readers throughout the world an instant picture of a life for more than 150 years. Meet the mavericks, rogues and eccentrics from recent history, including April Ashley, model, socialite and transgender rights campaigner whose reassignment surgery was part of a rollercoaster life of lovers and high drama."
2024,
April Ashley,
English,
Nigel Farndale,
The Times,
Original title: "The Girl from Casablanca: The True Story of the First Sex Change" is the English language edition of "La fille de Casablanca" by Juliette Jourdan.
"In 1956, in Casablanca, while Morocco struggles for its independence, Jenny, a young trans woman, solicits Dr. Georges Burou, a renowned, if somewhat enigmatic gynecologist, for a 'sex change'...
The Girl from Casablanca tells the true story of the first entirely successful sex reassignment surgery, at a time when the word 'trans' didn't even exist. It also tells a tale of daring and courage against all odds. True to himself, Dr. Burou went ahead with the first gender surgery to help a desperate and endearing young trans woman while risking ruining his career. Without knowing it, he would set the standard, to this day, for MtF surgery."
2021,
April Ashley,
Coccinelle,
English,
Jan Morris,
Juliette Jourdan,
Original title: "I am a woman now" by Daniëlle Serdijn and Michiel van Erp.
When gynecologist Georges Burou opens a practice in Casablanca in 1956 where men can undergo a sex change, his name quickly spreads around the world. The famous French Marie-Pierre Pruvot "Bambi", the Flemish Corinne Van Tongerloo, the flamboyant British April Ashley, the German Jean Lessenich, and the Dutch Colette Berends: they all undertook the journey to Casablanca and the illegal practice of Burou.
In the autumn of their lives, they look back. Do these pioneers feel completely female? Did their choice bring the expected satisfaction? After the sensational film by Michiel van Erp, this fantastic book is published.
2012,
April Ashley,
Bambi,
Corinne Van Tongerloo,
Daniëlle Serdijn,
Dutch,
Georges Burou,
Jean Lessenich,
Marie-Pier Ysser,
Marie-Pierre Pruvot,
Michiel van Erp,
"La persistencia de la memoria: Una biografía personal de Salvador Dalí" is the Spanish language edition of "Persistence of Memory: A Personal Biography of Salvador Dali", an American re-edition of "Le Dalí d'Amanda" (Amanda's Dalí).
Amanda Lear (born 1939) is a French singer, television celebrity, actress, and model, known for her professional career as a fashion model in the mid-1960s and being a muse of Spanish surrealist painter Salvador Dalí. The book tells about her relationship with Salvador Dalí and presents detailed insights into the 15 years of their relationship.
According to Wikipedia, Amanda's transgender background was confirmed by Salvador Dalí himself, and other well-known artists that used to know Lear earlier in her life. For example, April Ashley, a transgender icon and model, claimed that in the 1950s and early 1960s, Lear, whose birth name she stated was "Alain Tap", had worked with her in the Parisian transgender revues Madame Arthur and Le Carrousel. In her book April Ashley's Odyssey, Ashley recalls Lear performing drag acts under the stage name "Peki d'Oslo".
1994,
Amanda Lear,
April Ashley,
Georges Burou,
Mexico,
Romy Haag,
Spanish,
Original title: "Mon Dalí" (My Dalí) is another edition of "Le Dalí d'Amanda" (Amanda's Dalí) published in 1984.
Amanda Lear (born 1939) is a French singer, television celebrity, actress, and model, known for her professional career as a fashion model in the mid-1960s and being a muse of Spanish surrealist painter Salvador Dalí. The book tells about her relationship with Salvador Dalí and presents detailed insights into the 15 years of their relationship.
According to Wikipedia, Amanda's transgender background was confirmed by Salvador Dalí himself, and other well-known artists that used to know Lear earlier in her life. For example, April Ashley, a transgender icon and model, claimed that in the 1950s and early 1960s, Lear, whose birth name she stated was "Alain Tap", had worked with her in the Parisian transgender revues Madame Arthur and Le Carrousel. In her book April Ashley's Odyssey, Ashley recalls Lear performing drag acts under the stage name "Peki d'Oslo".
2004,
Amanda Lear,
April Ashley,
French,
Georges Burou,
Romy Haag,
Full title: "Transvestism Today: The Phenomena of Men Who Dress as Women" by Edward Podolsky and Carlson Wade.
The book was published in 1960, so it reflects how scientists perceived transgender people at that time, and it illustrates the challenges that our transgender sisters had to face.
Look at this: "Physician Kenneth Walker, M.D. says, "The obstacles standing in the way of surgical treatment are formidable. In the first place, there are few surgeons capable of carrying out the series of plastic operations required to bring about an external change of sex. In the second place, many of those who now clamour for surgical treatment would hastily withdraw their candidature if they were to be told precisely what it entailed. In the third place the legality of the conversation operation is debatable."
1960,
April Ashley,
Carlson Wade,
Coccinelle,
Edward Podolsky,
English,
"La mia vita con Dalí" (My life with Dalí) is the Italian language edition of "Le Dalí d'Amanda" (Amanda's Dalí) published in 1984.
Amanda Lear (born 1939) is a French singer, television celebrity, actress, and model, known for her professional career as a fashion model in the mid-1960s and being a muse of Spanish surrealist painter Salvador Dalí. The book tells about her relationship with Salvador Dalí and presents detailed insights into the 15 years of their relationship.
According to Wikipedia, Amanda's transgender background was confirmed by Salvador Dalí himself, and other well-known artists that used to know Lear earlier in her life. For example, April Ashley, a transgender icon and model, claimed that in the 1950s and early 1960s, Lear, whose birth name she stated was "Alain Tap", had worked with her in the Parisian transgender revues Madame Arthur and Le Carrousel. In her book April Ashley's Odyssey, Ashley recalls Lear performing drag acts under the stage name "Peki d'Oslo".
1987,
Amanda Lear,
April Ashley,
Georges Burou,
Italian,
Romy Haag,
Original title: "Délires" (Delusions) by Amanda Lear.
'An eclectic artist, Amanda Lear readily accepts the term jack-of-all-trades, but when asked to define herself in one word, she answers "star". A virtuoso of repartee and self-mockery, she was in turn the muse of Salvador Dalí, David Bowie's lover, disco diva, and queen of boulevard theatre.
Despite a shy and self-conscious childhood, her enthusiasm and curiosity allowed her to shape the funny, elegant and mysterious character that everyone knows. This is a sparkling anthology that brings together reflections and memories, under the sharp pen of a fine observer.'
Amanda Lear (born 1939) is a French singer, television celebrity, actress, and model, known for her professional career as a fashion model in the mid-1960s and being a muse of Spanish surrealist painter Salvador Dalí.
2018,
Amanda Lear,
April Ashley,
French,
Georges Burou,
Romy Haag,
"El Dalí de Amanda" (Amanda's Dalí) is the Spanish language edition of "Le Dalí d'Amanda" (Amanda's Dalí).
Amanda Lear (born 1939) is a French singer, television celebrity, actress, and model, known for her professional career as a fashion model in the mid-1960s and being a muse of Spanish surrealist painter Salvador Dalí. The book tells about her relationship with Salvador Dalí and presents detailed insights into the 15 years of their relationship.
According to Wikipedia, Amanda's transgender background was confirmed by Salvador Dalí himself, and other well-known artists that used to know Lear earlier in her life. For example, April Ashley, a transgender icon and model, claimed that in the 1950s and early 1960s, Lear, whose birth name she stated was "Alain Tap", had worked with her in the Parisian transgender revues Madame Arthur and Le Carrousel. In her book April Ashley's Odyssey, Ashley recalls Lear performing drag acts under the stage name "Peki d'Oslo".
1985,
Amanda Lear,
April Ashley,
Georges Burou,
Romy Haag,
Spanish,
"Dali: 15 Jahre mit Salvador Dali" (Dali: 15 years with Salvador Dali) is the German language edition of "Le Dalí d'Amanda" (Amanda's Dalí), published in 1984.
Amanda Lear (born 1939) is a French singer, television celebrity, actress, and model, known for her professional career as a fashion model in the mid-1960s and being a muse of Spanish surrealist painter Salvador Dalí. The book tells about her relationship with Salvador Dalí and presents detailed insights into the 15 years of their relationship.
According to Wikipedia, Amanda's transgender background was confirmed by Salvador Dalí himself, and other well-known artists that used to know Lear earlier in her life. For example, April Ashley, a transgender icon and model, claimed that in the 1950s and early 1960s, Lear, whose birth name she stated was "Alain Tap", had worked with her in the Parisian transgender revues Madame Arthur and Le Carrousel. In her book April Ashley's Odyssey, Ashley recalls Lear performing drag acts under the stage name "Peki d'Oslo".
1984,
Amanda Lear,
April Ashley,
Georges Burou,
German,
Romy Haag,
"Persistence of Memory: A Personal Biography of Salvador Dali" is the American re-edition of "Le Dalí d'Amanda" (Amanda's Dalí).
Amanda Lear (born 1939) is a French singer, television celebrity, actress, and model, known for her professional career as a fashion model in the mid-1960s and being a muse of Spanish surrealist painter Salvador Dalí. The book tells about her relationship with Salvador Dalí and presents detailed insights into the 15 years of their relationship.
According to Wikipedia, Amanda's transgender background was confirmed by Salvador Dalí himself, and other well-known artists that used to know Lear earlier in her life. For example, April Ashley, a transgender icon and model, claimed that in the 1950s and early 1960s, Lear, whose birth name she stated was "Alain Tap", had worked with her in the Parisian transgender revues Madame Arthur and Le Carrousel. In her book April Ashley's Odyssey, Ashley recalls Lear performing drag acts under the stage name "Peki d'Oslo".
1987,
Amanda Lear,
April Ashley,
English,
Georges Burou,
Romy Haag,
Full title: "The First Lady: I Was a Vogue Model and a National Celebrity but I Was Living With a Secret That Was to Shake the World..."
It was the second biography of April Ashley, for the first time written only by herself. However, the book was pulled from the market, after it was discovered that it plagiarized the 1982 book written by Duncan Fallowell and April Ashley titled "April Ashley's Odyssey".
April Ashley (1935–2021) was an English model, actress, cabaret artist, and celebrity. Outed as a transgender woman by The Sunday People newspaper in 1961, she was one of the earliest British people known to have undergone gender reassignment surgery.
2006,
April Ashley,
English,
Georges Burou,
Original title: "Je ne suis pas tout celle que vous croyez..." (I'm not all you think...)
'Be careful, this is not a trivial biography. I'm blonde. But unlike blondes, reputed assholes, I am an insolent, provocative, disturbing girl. I don't have my tongue in my pocket, I have a sense of repartee and outspokenness.
I am also a glamorous woman, the muse of some, the muse of others, the muse of rock stars, and a great painter. Antimemoirs (not that I take myself for Malraux!) rather than a story of my trajectory, these pages have no other ambition than to entertain you. For the rest, you will read between the lines.'
Amanda Lear (born 1939) is a French singer, television celebrity, actress, and model, known for her professional career as a fashion model in the mid-1960s and being a muse of Spanish surrealist painter Salvador Dalí.
2009,
Amanda Lear,
April Ashley,
French,
Romy Haag,
"My Life with Dali" is the English language edition of "Le Dalí d'Amanda" (Amanda's Dalí).
Amanda Lear (born 1939) is a French singer, television celebrity, actress, and model, known for her professional career as a fashion model in the mid-1960s and being a muse of Spanish surrealist painter Salvador Dalí. The book tells about her relationship with Salvador Dalí and presents detailed insights into the 15 years of their relationship.
According to Wikipedia, Amanda's transgender background was confirmed by Salvador Dalí himself, and other well-known artists that used to know Lear earlier in her life. For example, April Ashley, a transgender icon and model, claimed that in the 1950s and early 1960s, Lear, whose birth name she stated was "Alain Tap", had worked with her in the Parisian transgender revues Madame Arthur and Le Carrousel. In her book April Ashley's Odyssey, Ashley recalls Lear performing drag acts under the stage name "Peki d'Oslo".
1985,
Amanda Lear,
April Ashley,
English,
Georges Burou,
Romy Haag,
"L'Amant Dalí: Ma vie avec Salvador Dalí" (The Lover Dalí: My life with Salvador Dalí) is another book by Amandra Lear, following her first book "Le Dalí d'Amanda" (Amanda's Dalí).
Amanda Lear (born 1939) is a French singer, television celebrity, actress, and model, known for her professional career as a fashion model in the mid-1960s and being a muse of Spanish surrealist painter Salvador Dalí. The book tells about her relationship with Salvador Dalí and presents detailed insights into the 15 years of their relationship.
According to Wikipedia, Amanda's transgender background was confirmed by Salvador Dalí himself, and other well-known artists that used to know Lear earlier in her life. For example, April Ashley, a transgender icon and model, claimed that in the 1950s and early 1960s, Lear, whose birth name she stated was "Alain Tap", had worked with her in the Parisian transgender revues Madame Arthur and Le Carrousel. In her book April Ashley's Odyssey, Ashley recalls Lear performing drag acts under the stage name "Peki d'Oslo".
1994,
Amanda Lear,
April Ashley,
French,
Georges Burou,
Romy Haag,
"Dalí глазами Аманды" (Dalí through the eyes of Amanda) is the Russian language edition of "Le Dalí d'Amanda" (Amanda's Dalí), published in 1984.
Amanda Lear (born 1939) is a French singer, television celebrity, actress, and model, known for her professional career as a fashion model in the mid-1960s and being a muse of Spanish surrealist painter Salvador Dalí. The book tells about her relationship with Salvador Dalí and presents detailed insights into the 15 years of their relationship.
According to Wikipedia, Amanda's transgender background was confirmed by Salvador Dalí himself, and other well-known artists that used to know Lear earlier in her life. For example, April Ashley, a transgender icon and model, claimed that in the 1950s and early 1960s, Lear, whose birth name she stated was "Alain Tap", had worked with her in the Parisian transgender revues Madame Arthur and Le Carrousel. In her book April Ashley's Odyssey, Ashley recalls Lear performing drag acts under the stage name "Peki d'Oslo".
2005,
Amanda Lear,
April Ashley,
Georges Burou,
Romy Haag,
Russian,
Original title: "Le Dalí d'Amanda" (Amanda's Dalí) .
Amanda Lear (born 1939) is a French singer, television celebrity, actress, and model, known for her professional career as a fashion model in the mid-1960s and being a muse of Spanish surrealist painter Salvador Dalí. The book tells about her relationship with Salvador Dalí and presents detailed insights into the 15 years of their relationship.
According to Wikipedia, Amanda's transgender background was confirmed by Salvador Dalí himself, and other well-known artists that used to know Lear earlier in her life. For example, April Ashley, a transgender icon and model, claimed that in the 1950s and early 1960s, Lear, whose birth name she stated was "Alain Tap", had worked with her in the Parisian transgender revues Madame Arthur and Le Carrousel. In her book April Ashley's Odyssey, Ashley recalls Lear performing drag acts under the stage name "Peki d'Oslo".
1984,
Amanda Lear,
April Ashley,
French,
Georges Burou,
Romy Haag,
Full title: "April Ashley's Odyssey" by Duncan Fallowell and April Ashley.
It was the first biography of April Ashley, written by Duncan Fallowell and April Ashley herself. April Ashley (1935–2021) was an English model, actress, cabaret artist, and celebrity. Outed as a transgender woman by The Sunday People newspaper in 1961, she was one of the earliest British people known to have undergone gender reassignment surgery.
After a short episode in the Merchant Navy, she started cross-dressing and she moved to Paris in the late 1950s, using the name Toni April. She joined the entertainer Coccinelle in the cast of the famous drag cabaret at the Caroussel Theatre.
At the age of 25, she underwent gender reassignment surgery in 1960, performed in Casablanca, Morocco, by Georges Burou. After returning to Britain, she started using the name April Ashley and became a successful fashion model, appearing in many fashion magazines.
1982,
April Ashley,
Coccinelle,
Duncan Fallowell,
English,
Original title: "Llina un camino de identidad " (Llina: a Path to Identity) by Ana E. Venegas.
The story of LLina Pelosi is more than the search for identity, it is also a documentary of the Europe of the fifties, sixties, and even the seventies. The intransigence fades in the fashion of Milan, the Parisian cabarets, the most rogue Barcelona, the free and aristocratic Marbella, and the transformative Casablanca.
Many of my favorite writers and artists leave their messages through the paragraphs, merging with the epic of Pelosi and if they stop, they will discover that places, people, and events that I tell, are real facts, reality always surpasses fiction. Upon completing the correction of this novel, April Ashley was appointed a Member of the Order of the British Empire by the Queen of England for her involvement in services for the equal rights of transsexuals.
2018,
Ana E. Venegas,
April Ashley,
Spanish,
