Livia Prüll’s book Trans im Glück – Geschlechtsangleichung als Chance: Autobiographie, Medizingeschichte, Medizinethik is both a deeply personal narrative and a scholarly exploration of medicine, ethics, and identity. The title itself, which translates as Trans in Luck – Gender Reassignment as an Opportunity, reflects the author’s optimistic and empowering approach to trans identity. Rather than treating transness as a medical problem or psychological condition, Prüll sees it as a chance for growth, self-knowledge, and fulfillment.
The book blends autobiography with the history and ethics of medicine, offering readers a rare and honest insight into what it means to live and think as both a scientist and a trans woman.
Prüll, a historian of medicine and science, uses her own life as a framework to explore broader questions about identity, authenticity, and human diversity. She describes trans identity as the lack of congruence between one’s physical body and inner sense of self, but she refuses to see this as a deficit. Instead, she frames it as a complex and meaningful part of human variation. In keeping with the so-called “practical turn” in the history of science, Prüll argues that personal experience can and should inform scholarly inquiry. For her, understanding and empathy are inseparable from knowledge. By connecting her personal transformation to her professional expertise, she shows that the two are not opposites but complementary dimensions of a thoughtful and engaged life.
The book unfolds as both a personal journey and a work of reflection.
