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: "Priscilla: Ik was een man" (Priscilla. I was a man) by Liesbeth Cooymans.
As a child, Ronny Van Sandt loves nothing more than to put on his mother's clothes. Because Ronny wants to be a girl. As an adolescent, Ronny falls in love with girls, but secretly he continues to dress as a woman: it is an irresistible urge.
The day he finally confesses his secret to his wife, their marriage goes into crisis. However, their love turns out to be greater than the shock. Jeannine even chooses a new name for her partner: Priscilla.
A taboo-breaking testimony about transgender, but also an unlikely story about true love.
2003,
Dutch,
Liesbeth Cooymans,
Original title: "Eindelijk vrouw: Dagboek van Gerda Gabrielle Gros" (Finally a woman: Diary of Gerda Gabrielle Gros).
'In this diary, Gerda, now a woman, describes the long road she had to go until she became what she had long been in her heart. The examinations, the hormone treatments, the operations, the struggle for the children, the adjustment problems of her environment, and the joy that she could get when she could actually be herself.'
2005,
Dutch,
Gerda Gabrielle Gros,
Original title: "Kijk mama, ik dans: 's lands bekendste transseksueel vertelt" (Look mom, I dance: The country's best-known transsexual tells).
"Vanessa van Durme has made choices in her life. Hard choices, painful choices. Choices that caused her parents a lot of grief.
Now she is a celebrated actress who feels her sixtieth birthday approaching. She has fond memories of her work for public and commercial broadcasting, of the comedy see the wrote, and of the wonderful role she played in All India by Alain Platel and Arne Sierens.
Her autobiography regularly brings tears to the eyes of the reader. Sometimes out of sympathy, more often out of laughter."
According to Wikipedia, Vanessa Van Durme (born in 1948) is a Belgian actress and screenwriter. She studied at the Conservatory of Ghent in the drama section and made her stage debut – as a young actor – at Nederlands Toneel Gent (NTG).
2006,
Belgium,
Dutch,
Georges Burou,
Vanessa Van Durme,
"Zoetwater" is the Dutch language edition of "Freshwater" by Akwaeke Emezi.
I liked Gina Maya's review a lot, so let me quote her: "Transgender narrative this may be, but it's far removed from Western, U.S.-based definitions in spite of its primary location in the U.S. The story follows the young life of Ada, a Nigerian child who travels to America to study, but her whole life involves psychical interaction with the indigenous spirits who vie for control of her. Is Ada Ogbanje too?
By the end, she appears to embrace this self-conception as an offspring of the Universal Creator Ala, visualized as cosmic python – the source of the spring from which all freshwater comes from its mouth. Yet Ada for almost the novel's entirety is also the human, engaged in an uneasy relationship with otherworldly spirits who inhabit her mind, visualized in turn as a room of marble, perhaps not unlike the Kaaba of Mecca. The most powerful, possessive, and controlling of the spirits is Asughara, occasionally presented as Ada's pernicious alpha. At times, Asughara blocks out Ada from consciousness, either to protect or punish Ada."
2023,
Akwaeke Emezi,
Dutch,
Nigeria,
Original title: "De vrouw van mijn leven: Ulrich werd Ulrike" (The woman of my life: Ulrich became Ulrike)
The book was written by Nico Blontrock, a Belgian journalist, radio figure, and author from West Flanders. I was not able to find any review of this book.
Have you ever read this book? If yes, please let me know.
2008,
Belgium,
Dutch,
Nico Blontrock,
Full title: "Alles mag er zijn" (Everything is allowed to be there!)
In this publication, Angela van Bebber presents her life lessons, experiences, and encounters after her gender change.
It is a sequel to "Eindelijk, ik lééf!" (Finally, I'm alive!) from 2009, in which she wrote about her transsexuality.
In the book, Angela covers a new phase. She experienced a lot and got to know herself better. She noticed that after what she went through, her feelings, everything in her life, are right, that everything happens for a reason.
In 2014, I interviewed Angela and I asked her about how she found the courage and energy to cope with all the transition challenges: "I have a lot of strength. All my life I solved all my problems myself. Never had any burnout. Never needed someone to help me out. I was always on my own.
2020,
Angela van Bebber,
Dutch,
Netherlands,
Original title: "Leven Tussenin: Over leven als transseksueel" (Life In Between: About living as a transsexual)
'What really lives in the mind of a transsexual? How does that feel to have a body that doesn't belong to you? What happens when two transgender people are attracted to each other? How does society react, how do they hold their own and how do they overcome their problems and frustrations?
The writer does not pretend to have all the answers to this. However, she has expressed her own experiences in a story that shows that many people do not understand that transsexuality stems from a deep, almost unconscious experience of one's own personality.
2009,
Dutch,
Loes Vlaming,
Original title: "Eindelijk Ellen: Mijn transitie naar de gelukkigste vrouw op aarde" (Finally Ellen: My transition to the happiest woman on earth)
'With this book I want to tell an honest and inspiring story for everyone who has to deal with a transition and show what this can mean.'
'In Finally Ellen, the successful Limburg entrepreneur Ellen Jansen talks candidly and in an accessible way about her life and the life-determining transition she has undergone.
Ellen is born in the wrong body. Even as a small child she feels like a girl while she is locked up in the body of a boy. Yet she stubbornly suppresses her gender dysphoria for years.
At thirty-five she finds herself as director of an energy company in a real man's world and is even about to marry a woman. But then she is – when the wedding suit has to be selected – in the Bijenkorf
Maastricht on the escalator towards the men's department attacked by a violent panic attack. Because to the outside world things may seem to be going well for her, she suffers from inexplicable physical complaints and goes through deep valleys mentally.
2023,
Dutch,
Ellen Jansen,
Full title: "Eindelijk, ik lééf!" (Finally, I'm alive!)
In 2014, I interviewed Angela and this is what she shared with me: "I wanted to share the story of my life to give a brief view of what people like me go through once we find out that we are transgender.
Which aspects of my biography could be used by other transgender women planning their transitions? Of course, you can follow my steps and make use of my expertise. But as I mentioned in my preface: make use of the tools but use them in your own way. Be authentic. What really can be an eye-opener is how I brought it out in the open.
Another piece of advice will be: to try to be open to everyone. Do not be afraid of negative reactions. That’s part of your process. No one does anything wrong, because they will respond to you the way they feel about it. No one can understand what you are going through."
2009,
Angela van Bebber,
Dutch,
Original title: "Meer dan een jurk: Het levensverhaal van een transgender" (More than a dress: The life story of a transgender person)
"After being married for a number of years, Christiaan notices that he is not comfortable in his own skin. He has a short fuse, but does not know why. He notices that washing women's clothes makes him happy and that he likes many things that are mainly liked by women.
Christiaan begins to doubt whether he is actually a man or whether he is a woman after all. From that moment on, she started wearing women's clothing more and more often. She visits a psychologist and tells her wife what's going on. Christiaan discovers that she is transgender. An operation follows, after which Christiaan goes through life as Yessica in the future. As a woman, she can enjoy life again."
2015,
Dutch,
Yessica Vermeer,
Original title: "Terug naar Avebury: Dagboek van een transgender" (Back to Avebury: Diary of a transgender person). This is the revised edition of "In transitie" (2012) by Hanneke Dragtsma.
'Martin de Jong travels to England, where he symbolically buries his man's life. Upon his return, a new life begins as the woman he has always felt. In order to follow her own path, Marieke will no longer have to make herself dependent on the judgment of her environment.
She ends up on an emotional rollercoaster, looking for herself. In seven chapters her thoughts, doubts, fears, and desires pass by. Eventually, Marieke travels back to the place where everything started.'
2017,
Dutch,
Hanneke Dragtsma,
Original title: "Nieuwe namen: Levensverhalen van transgender ouderen" (New names: Life stories of transgender elderly people)
'Arthur Japin: 'Once again Eveline van de Putte knows how to tell the stories of an exceptional group of people from the inside out. Penetrating and essential, personal stories about life and survival!' Boris Dittrich: 'Poignant stories, which show how much it is necessary to focus the spotlight on older transgender people. A beautiful book that reverberates for a long time to come.'
Transgender people nowadays are increasingly getting the attention they deserve. However, one group remains underexposed: transgender elderly people, a fascinating group of pioneers who sought answers to their questions in a time without examples. Today's transgender elderly are the first to have the opportunity to undergo gender reassignment surgery: all the more reason to let these seniors speak in books and films.
2018,
Dutch,
Eveline van de Putte,
Original title: "Eén ziel, twee levens: Mijn zoektocht als transgender" (One soul, two lives - My quest as transgender)
'One soul, two lives is a true story, a search for inner strength. Being born into poverty, as a boy. Discovering my true identity: a female soul. Boy or girl, man or woman?
No easy questions. Experience the transformation from M to V, with the necessary ups and downs. Developing gender identity is a long-term and complex learning process. Being a trans woman is not a hype. One is a woman for life!'
2015,
Dutch,
Marlene Mulkens,
Original title: "In transitie" (In transition)
'Martin de Jong decides to travel to England, where he symbolically wants to bury his man's life. Upon his return, he begins a new life as a woman.
As Marieke, she can only follow her own path, by no longer making herself dependent on the judgment of others. She ends up on an emotional rollercoaster, looking for herself.
In a series of short dialogues, her thoughts, doubts, fears, and desires pass by.'
'Hanneke Dragtsma (1965) was born and raised in Heerenveen. She grew up as a boy in a family with three sisters. A seventies family, where her mother traditionally took care of the children, and her father with great dedication to protecting his family. She grew up as an insecure boy who could not connect herself well with the body in which she lived.
2012,
Dutch,
Hanneke Dragtsma,
Original title: "Als asters bloeien" (When asters bloom) by Elisa Bogaerts.
Elisa was born as a boy in 1949 and grew up in a very conservative post-war environment, in an era that would have a huge impact on Western social thinking in the future; unfortunately then without social support for people with gender dysphoria.
At the age of sixty-one, after almost half a century of secret transvestism, frustrations, emotional and relationship tensions, fears, and ever-dormant plans to leave everything behind, she discovers the true cause of her obsession via the internet. Never before could she find out the real reason and thought she was alone with her secret fantasy.
In three years' time (2010 - 2013) she waltzes through a period of "outing", psychological guidance with trial and error until the verdict hits her with a sledgehammer: she turns out to be transgender. With this realization she finally decides to spend the rest of her life as a woman, there is no choice left for her.
"When Asters Bloom" highlights her past, outing, and transition and is largely written as a chronicle.
2014,
Dutch,
Elisa Bogaerts,
Original title: "Nathalie: Hoe ik werd wie ik altijd al was" (Nathalie: How I became who I always was) by Nathalie van Vugt and Margot den Ouden.
Born in the wrong body, I've always hidden my true self. It was only after more than forty years that I was able to reveal my big secret and become who I always was.
This is the story of my transition. My way from man to woman. The difficult and the beautiful sides. The sadness and the happiness. Travel with me through the stations on my route and meet my fellow travelers.
2014,
Dutch,
Margot den Ouden,
Nathalie van Vugt,
Original title: "Monica, mijn vader" (Monica, my father) by Maaike Sips.
In "Papa Monica", Maaike Sips tells the story of her father, who decided at the age of 60 that he no longer wanted to be a man. After Maaike Sips' father retires, he announces that he wants to undergo a gender reassignment surgery and henceforth wants to go through life as a woman. All of a sudden, Maaike lacks the father she always had – even if he was an incorrigible macho.
But now there is Monica, who shows a hitherto unknown sense of family and would like to talk to her daughter about shoes. Maaike Sips tries to stay cool – and embarks on an adventurous journey into her father's past to find out how much of this unexpected side has always been secretly dormant in the father.
2015,
Dutch,
Maaike Sips,
Original title: "Ik Moniek... een vrouw: Het openhartige verslag van een transseksueel : hoe een "man" een "vrouw" werd" (Me Moniek... a woman: A transsexual's candid account of how a "man" became a "woman")
Here is the biography of Moniek, a transgender woman who made the transition from man to woman in the 70s in the Netherlands. It is the experience of someone who has to go through a difficult and emotional path to become a woman.
This remarkable book chronicles in a moving and sometimes disconcerting way the "transsexualization" of a man who has felt himself to be a woman all his life. He felt like a "stranger in his own body" and nothing could be firm conviction, namely, to have been born in a strange shell.
More than four years ago he began a difficult and painful journey that included exhaustive conversations with psychologists and hormonal treatments; a radical operation finally brought about the final transformation into a woman.
1980,
Dutch,
Moniek van Dommelen,
Original title: "Het mooiste meisje was een jongen" (The most beautiful girl was a boy) by Darren Beau and Diana Stribos.
Darren is born in the body of a boy, but from his earliest childhood, he wants nothing more than to be a girl. At first he 'hides' in a fantasy world, but more and more it becomes clear that he also wants to be seen and accepted in real life as he feels and as he really is.
Despite opposition from the environment, Darren starts a transition process with the support of his mother. Step by step they make progress together. It is a huge victory when she is allowed to wear girls' clothes at school. She is also allowed to go to the girls' toilets as a boy.
Immediately after the start of the puberty inhibitors, Darren develops at a breakneck pace. The rather withdrawn and shy Darren turns out to be capable of things that no one thought possible. In high school, Darren becomes extremely popular. The boys fight for Darren's attention. But how do the same boys who are in love with her react when they discover that the most beautiful girl in the class is actually a boy?
2021,
Darren Beau,
Diana Stribos,
Dutch,
"Eigenlijk Eva: Mijn transitie van ultraorthodoxe rabbi tot trans vrouw" (Actually Eva
My transition from ultra-Orthodox rabbi to trans woman) is the Dutch language edition of "Becoming Eve: My Journey from Ultra-Orthodox Rabbi to Transgender Woman" by Abby Chava Stein.
"Abby Stein was raised in a Hasidic Jewish community in Brooklyn, isolated in a culture that lives according to the laws and practices of eighteenth-century Eastern Europe, speaking only Yiddish and Hebrew and shunning modern life.
Stein was born as the first son in a dynastic rabbinical family, poised to become a leader of the next generation of Hasidic Jews. But Abby felt certain at a young age that she was a girl. She suppressed her desire for a new body while looking for answers wherever she could find them, from forbidden religious texts to smuggled secular examinations of faith. Finally, she orchestrated a personal exodus from ultra-Orthodox manhood to mainstream femininity-a radical choice that forced her to leave her home, her family, her way of life."
2022,
Abby Chava Stein,
Dutch,
