A random collection of over 1994 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: "ULTRAVIOLET: A little outside the visible range" by Ariane Keudel.
Ariane Keudel’s book Ultraviolet: A Little Outside the Visible Range is not just an autobiography, it is a confession, a meditation, and a shimmering portrait of a woman who dared to live beyond the boundaries of what most people would call ordinary light. Translated from the original German edition Ultraviolett: Ein wenig außerhalb des sichtbaren Bereichs, this work takes the reader on a journey through the spectrum of existence, where love and loss, order and chaos, and spirituality and self-destruction blend into one luminous story. It is a book written from the edge of visibility, where reality fades into something mystical and deeply human.
Ariane begins her story with Andi, her brother, companion, and soulmate in spirit, the person whose life embodied the idea of living “a little outside the visible range.” He had a saying, “Lilac is the color of the season,” a phrase that became both a joke and a philosophy. Lilac, teetering on the border of ultraviolet, became his identity, a color just barely perceptible, one that suggests beauty, mystery, and transience all at once. Through him, Ariane introduces the central metaphor of the book: that some lives, like certain colors, are not easily seen but are nonetheless powerfully felt. Andi’s life, full of flamboyance and longing for recognition, becomes the first prism through which Ariane examines her own existence, her search for meaning, and her belief in the invisible patterns that connect us all.
2023,
Ariane Keudel,
English,
Original title: "ULTRAVIOLETT: Ein wenig außerhalb des sichtbaren Bereichs" (ULTRAVIOLET: A little outside the visible range) by Ariane Keudel. The book was published in English too.
"ULTRAVIOLETT: Ein wenig außerhalb des sichtbaren Bereichs" by Ariane Keudel, published also in English as "ULTRAVIOLET: A little outside the visible range," is a profoundly moving and extraordinary biography that immerses readers in the turbulent life of Andreas Keudel.
The narrative is a vivid exploration of family, loss, and the relentless quest for identity, chronicling a journey that moves from a toxic childhood to the surprising revelation of gender dysphoria, a discovery that reshapes the course of his life. From the very beginning, Andreas faces immense challenges, growing up with an alcoholic mother and a violent father, before being placed into the care of a nurturing foster family where he experiences a more stable and loving childhood. Yet, despite this refuge, the young Andreas is marked by a sense of being different, feeling like an invisible third within the family dynamic, constantly navigating rivalry, seeking love and recognition, and wrestling with a persistent inner question of who he truly is. Ariane Keudel’s writing captures the essence of this complex journey with remarkable clarity and vividness.
2023,
Ariane Keudel,
German,
