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.
"Poco Raccomandabile" (Not very recommendable) is the Italian language version of "Mauvais genre" (Wrong Gender) by Chloé Cruchaudet.
"Paul and Louise love each other, Paul and Louise get married, but World War I escalates and separates them. Paul, who wants at all costs to escape the hell of the trenches, becomes a deserter and finds Louise in Paris. He is safe but condemned to remain hidden in a hotel room. To put an end to his clandestine existence, Paul imagines a solution: to change his identity. Now he'll be known as... ...Suzanne. Between gender confusion and the trauma of war, the couple will arrive at a very unusual destiny."
To escape the horrors of the trenches, Paul becomes a deserter. He manages to make his way to Paris, where he hides with the help of his wife Louise. As a deserter threatened with death, he is doomed to stay forever in the same four walls — or to be transformed. Disguised as "Suzanne", Louise's best friend, she dares to flourish as a woman.
2014,
Chloé Cruchaudet,
Italian,
Full title: "Poetic Memoir Chapbook Challenge" by Barbara Marie Minney.
This is the second poetry book by Barbara Marie Minney. She is a transgender woman, award winning poet, writer, speaker, teaching artist, and quiet activist. Her poetry and essays have appeared in numerous publications, including Politico, The Buckeye Flame, The Gasconade Review, Gargoyle Magazine, The Pine Cone Review, Women Speak: Women of Appalachia Project, Woman Scream: The International Poetry Anthology of Female Voices, The New Wasteland, new words (issue one): a trans and gender-expansive journal, and I Thought I Heard A Cardinal Sing, Ohio’s Appalachian Voices.
Barbara’s poetry has also been translated into Spanish. She is the author of If There’s No Heaven, the winner of the 2020 Poetry Is Life Book Award and an Akron Beacon Journal Best Northeast Ohio Book in 2020; the Poetic Memoir Chapbook Challenge; and Dance Naked With God. Barbara is a retired attorney and a seventh-generation Appalachian and lives in Tallmadge, Ohio, with her wife of over 42 years and a menagerie of stuffed animals.
2021,
Barbara Marie Minney,
English,
Interview,
Original title: "Ella era yo: Memorias de mi transición" (She was me: Memories of my transition) is the Spanish language edition of "I Heard Her Call My Name: A Memoir of Transition" by Lucy Sante.
"An iconic writer's lapidary memoir of a life spent pursuing a dream of artistic truth while evading the truth of her own gender identity, until, finally, she turned to face who she really was For a long time, Lucy Sante felt unsure of her place.
Born in Belgium, the only child of conservative working-class Catholic parents who transplanted their little family to the United States, she felt at home only when she moved to New York City in the early 1970s and found her people among a band of fellow bohemians. Some would die young, to drugs and AIDS, and some would become jarringly famous. Sante flirted with both fates, on her way to building an estimable career as a writer. But she still felt like her life a performance. She was presenting a façade, even to herself."
2024,
Interview,
Lucy Sante,
Spanish,
Full title: "Safe and Sound: A Renter-Friendly Guide to Home Repair" by Mercury Stardust.
"As a transwoman, I've discovered (the hard way) that we live in a world with much to fear. But imagine fearing something as simple as asking for help. Imagine relying on others-landlords-to provide a basic human right, like housing, but knowing those same people believe you're an abomination because of your sexuality or gender identity. Imagine a world where reaching out for help is more than just a mundane task-it's a game of chance. Sadly, for too many renters, this isn't just a one-time moment of fear. For single moms, college students in a foreign town, and many others, a knock on the door can feel just as terrifying, even when you need the help.
All renters deserve to feel empowered enough to take matters into their own hands. The skills I'll show you how to develop will allow you to help friends, teach family members, and even assist a panicking neighbor-further empowering more people to take on tasks on their own. We all have a home-whether it's made up of brick walls or plaster-filled with memories and dreams. Knowledge should pass through any barriers put up around it because a little bit of knowledge can go a long way toward making someone feel more in control of their own life."
2023,
English,
Mercury Stardust,
Original title: "Paradiset er ikke til salg: Trangen til at være begge køn" (Paradise is not for sale: The urge to be both sexes) by Preben Hertoft and Teit Ritzau.
"The book sheds light on the concept of gender identity as reflected by transvestites and transsexuals, and attempts to demystify these concepts by means of a series of 'case stories' about how it has really happened to people who have had sex reassignment surgery – among them the famous Christine Jørgensen and Lili Elbe. Preben Hertoft was for many years the head of the Department of Sexology. Teit Ritzau is a doctor and film director."
1984,
Christine Jorgensen,
Danish,
Lili Elbe,
Preben Hertoft,
Teit Ritzau,
Full title: "Veni Vidi Vici - What Actually Happened?: The inner journey doesn't always mirror the outer" by Mina Rudin.
The book is the follow-up of two books published previously in Swedish: "Mina Rudin - Veni Vidi Vici - Min resa från pojke till flicka: En självbiografi av Wilhelmina Rudin" (2019) (Veni Vidi Vici - My Journey from Boy to Girl: An Autobiography by Wilhelmina Rudin) and "Veni Vidi Vici - Resan Efter: Del 2 - En Självbiografi Av Wilhelmina Rudin" (2020) (Veni Vidi Vici - The Journey After: Part 2 - An Autobiography By Wilhelmina Rudin).
"Imagine that you wake up and realize that you are in the wrong body. You were a boy yesterday, and woke up as a girl. Or you fell asleep as a girl and woke up as a boy. Wondering how it would feel. Every morning of my life, I have woken up and had a masculine attribute. We all know that boys have a snot, while girls do not. But in my case, and many other transgender people out there in society, it happens every day."
2023,
English,
Mina Rudin,
Wilhelmina Rudin,
Original title: "Wiebkes Tagebuch X: Teil X des Tagebuchs einer trans Frau, der vierte “angekommene” Teil (Aug.-Okt. 2023) (Wiebke werden)" (Wiebke's Life X: Part X of the diary of a trans woman, the fourth “I finally am myself”- part (Aug.-Oct. 2023) (Becoming Wiebke Book 10)) by Wiebke ter Lichten.
"In the summer of 2018, my girlfriend asked me out of the blue if I’d ever considered being completely transformed into a woman. She suggested that it might be interesting. I pushed around quite a bit, and to be honest, the thought may have crossed my mind for a split second, but I dismissed it because I was absolutely certain the result wouldn't be good. Then Christmas 2018 came and her gift was just that: a makeover. She’d spoken to the manager of a service and made all the preparations. No chance for me to back out! The styling took place on Valentine's Day 2019 and Wiebke was born."
2023,
German,
Wiebke ter Lichten,
Full title: "The Yellow Sparrow: Memoir of a Transgender" by Santa Khurai.
"Santa Khurai was seventeen when she decided to start dressing like a woman. Born male, she had always believed herself to be female, and she claimed her feminine identity fiercely and openly. Her bold act of wearing dresses and make-up in public brought down upon her the wrath of her father, insults and ridicule wherever she went, and, frequently, beatings at the hands of the armed forces who are a constant presence in her native Manipur. The humiliation and physical attacks did not deter her. In her words, ‘My desire to be a woman, a beautiful, fashionable woman, was so strong that I was not afraid of challenging anything that came in the way... I felt that I could bear anything but I could not live like a man.’
2023,
English,
India,
Santa Khurai,
Original title: "Crianças Trans: Infâncias possíveis" (Trans Children: Possible Childhoods) by Sofia Favero.
"Trans kids, do you exist? The question is, in my view, rhetorical. Sofia pursues her childhood with unparalleled refinement and wit in this publication. Language, as always, is placed in a captious way when we refer to what was not posited, at first, as "natural" from the cisgender gaze.
The author undertakes a fantastic work, using a self-history that is intertwined with contemporary virtual culture and scientific literature, to tell us about something central to studies on childhood, or to be more direct, about how the social devices of affirmation of certain identities work, to the detriment of others, hierarchical as "normal", "good", "beautiful"."
2021,
Brazil,
Portuguese,
Sofia Favero,
Full title: "A Couple's Journey to Transgenderism" by Noreen Antao.
"Noreen Antao went into her second marriage with high hopes that the man she loved, and who loved her and her children, would be the light of her life, for the rest of her life. Just before the marriage he revealed to her his deepest secret, something he had revealed to no one he liked to wear women's clothes. "His coming out of the closet to me, put me in the closet with him."
This led them on a 15-year journey of discovery, deeper and deeper into a world of crossdressing, transgenderism, homosexuality, and even B&D. "It was very sad to watch Jason becoming more female than male I was gradually losing my husband to 'the other woman'." Noreen's experiences offer a rare look into the struggle of finding one's true sexuality, and the effect that can have on one's spouse, career and family."
2023,
English,
Noreen Antao,
Original title: "Elas me contaram: Histórias de Travestis e Transexuais" (They told me: Stories of Transvestites and Transsexuals) by Melquiades Galindo.
"A photographer and writer, and his saga to get to know the stories of transvestites and transsexual women with the intention of gathering material to make a novel that tells their lives. What he didn't imagine is that he would be faced with dramatic situations to the point of making his mission almost impossible."
2018,
Melquiades Galindo,
Portuguese,
Full title: "Enthusiastically Me" by Hazel Krebs.
"A journey of self discovery, covering only a few years, though a lifetime of emotions starting with despair and anguish created through expectations from family, society, and religion; eventually leading to discovering the beautiful life that was always held within. The journey uncovers the darkest paths of one existence, seemingly necessary to find the correct route for joyful happiness.
The story begins in March 2018, when the narrator, who is in the throws of a depressive episode, considers if this day will be the end. Along the path is the first stop at a familiar park, finding a bench that held the whole life for an afternoon. Eventually moving on from the bench and parts of the life, there is a meeting at that very bench, which is frustrating at first; however, later becomes the start of a new path. This time perhaps with a helpful trailblazer to join.
2024,
English,
Hazel Krebs,
Interview,
Original title: "Travesti. Una teoría lo suficientemente buena" (Transvestite. A good enough theory) by Marlene Wayar.
"This book proposes a living, communitarian theory. Because when Marlene Wayar says that she has a cemetery in her head, she speaks from the strength that the experience of her entire collective gives her. And that force is oral. With dialogues, she weaves bridges between the oral and the written, and she does so with a power that the written could never capture.
Between conversations, the book invites us to feel without anesthesia from the trans-South American perspective and to think critically about the failure of the world as we know it. It is a cry that envelops the life of the body while inviting us to consider the death of the marks on our bodies promoted by hetero-winca-patriarchy. Actually, Marlene proposes that we kill those pains with daily oblivion and go and build other movable languages that fill us with energy, an energy that ethics imposes that we use in children and adolescents."
2019,
Marlene Wayar,
Spanish,
Full title: "Reflections in the Mirror: True Life Story of a Transgender Woman" by Delissa Dawn.
"Delissa Dawn was born 1971 in Tulsa, Ok as a boy. From the early age of three, she experienced the beginning of a lifetime of traumatic experiences and trials that would nearly destroy her. Knowing she was different from a very young age, she began to explore her curiosity and would become the center of discrimination within her own family.
Delissa spent years trying to prove to her family that she was a man which in turn, only created a world of self-hate, depression, alcoholism, and suicidal thoughts and attempts.
Delissa would live a life for 47 years as a male while suffering inside and deceiving those around her by not living as her authentic self.
Wile in the military, she experienced sexual assault while serving on Iraq Freedom orders in the Middle-East to be punished for holding others accountable and serving with integrity.
This story is full of traumatic experiences, hurt, pain, and hate which would eventually turn to hope, love, happiness, and authenticity."
2021,
Delissa Dawn,
English,
Original title: "Metamorfose: Poesias sobre ser e existir" (Metamorphosis: Poems about being and existing) by Giulia Martins.
Metamorphosis is a book of authorial poetry with rhythm, depth and, sometimes, a bit of unvarnished reality. The 13 poems reflect things that the author, Giulia Martins, a Brazilian trans woman, lives, has seen and lived in her transition experience.
2024,
Brazil,
Giulia Martins,
Portuguese,
Full title: "Empowering Differences: Leveraging Your Differences to Impact Change" by Ashley T Brundage.
"Empowering Differences is the intentional action of using power and authority for yourself or others while positioning ways in which you are not the same as the people around you. Using your differences, what makes you unique, to empower yourself and others to move your career forward. Follow author, Ashley T Brundage, as she puts Empowering Differences into action. She has been on her own journey of self exploration and was forced to find out how she fits into this world. She started her careers as a means of survival and has quickly risen through each position.
She celebrated her authenticity, empowered herself, and others, to create a stronger community. Incorporating the 10 key empowering actions covered within this book, Ashley advanced her career from a part time bank teller to a vice president of the national diversity and inclusion team at a major financial services corporation in less than 5 years. Everyone’s journey will look different, but these methods can produce similar results and the takeaways of the book can be applied to anyone. Take the first step to accelerate your career by empowering your differences."
2020,
Ashley T Brundage,
English,
Original title: "Psychopathia sexualismus" by Richard von Krafft-Ebing.
Psychopathia Sexualis, written by Richard Freiherr von Krafft-Ebing in 1886, is a pioneering work in the field of sexual pathology. This clinical-forensic study delves into a wide range of paraphilias and specifically focuses on male homosexuality and bisexuality—referred to as the “antipathetic sexual instinct” in the subtitle.
Crossdressing in the modern sense appeared with Karl Heinrich Ulrich as early as 1868, and Carl Westphal used the term "contrary sexual feeling" in 1870, although not yet differentiated from so-called uranism. Richard von Krafft-Ebing then published the first edition of "Psychopathia sexualismus" in 1886, which went through 17 editions. There he uses the term “Metamorphosis sexualis paranoica” (sex change madness).
1886,
German,
Richard von Krafft-Ebing,
Full title: "Wo-Man: The Power of Non-Disclosure" by Malikah R. Harris.
"Malikah R. Harris, born and raised in Newark, New Jersey is an author, writer, producer, director, vocalist, comedian, and a motivational speaker, who started her career in magazine writing and as a blogger. She has written everything from positive quotes to historical events. Her style of writing caught the public eye due to her poetic play on words."
"Malikah R. Harris, born and raised in Newark, New Jersey is an author, writer, producer, director, vocalist, comedian, and a motivational speaker, who started her career in writing as a blogger and for magazines. She has written everything from positive quotes to historical events. Her style of writing became a hit within the public eye because of her poetic play on words."
2020,
English,
Malikah R. Harris,
Original title: "Autobiografias trans: Escritas em movimento" (Trans Autobiographies: Writing on the Move) by Leocádia Chaves and Carolina Edições.
"In this book, Leocádia Chaves presents in an unprecedented way the cartography of the autobiographical writing of transgender people in Brazil between 1982 and 2019, recognizing it as the result of organization and resistance in the contemporary literary field.
The approach of the texts opens up as a space for listening, whether for radical narrators, as they lay bare the transphobic mechanisms of oppression in our society, or for the insurgency of producers of narratives of self-identification and self-valorization, essential for the formation of a community of sharing, of affections."
2021,
Carolina Edições,
Leocádia Chaves,
Portuguese,
Full title: "Forever and Two Days More: Our 50-Year Journey" by Cadance Anderson & Catherine Anderson.
"After a lifelong battle with dysphoria, the answer was to transition…
From a young age, Cady knew she was a girl. The only problem was that no one else saw her that way.
Life moved on, but the dysphoria never left Cady. When Cady was about 50 years old, she and Cathy, her spouse and the love of her life, knew that something had to change.
Thus began Cady’s journey to transition into the woman she knew she was, and for Cady and Cathy to grow as a transitioning couple.
Through love letters written 50 years ago to entries from Cady’s journal, this memoir is the story of Cady and Cathy’s never-ending love, forever and two days more. Come share their lives and meet all the people they love."
2024,
Cadance Anderson,
Catherine Anderson,
English,
Original title: "Det Stof Drømme er Gjort af: En bog om transvestitter og kønsroller" (The Drug Dreams Are Made By: A Book About Transvestites and Gender Roles) by Lisbeth Holten.
"Photographic portrait collection consisting of black and white photographs of transgender women. For the most part, their maiden names are listed and for some of them, there is an accompanying text about them.
There are portraits of: Lise, Otte and Susanne, who are married and trans men and trans women, respectively. Susanne, Michelle Fridan. Hanne and wife Sonja. Anette and wife Kettyn Lisen, Lena, Vibeke, Laila, adorning the cover photo. Majorie. Monica. Cecilie. Karin. Conny. Jenny. Iben. Gitte. Marianna. Elsebeth. Alice. Gitte. Sally. Fanny.
Common to all of them is that they were members of the association FPE-NE."
1992,
Danish,
Lisbeth Holten,
"Dandelion Daughter: A Novel" is the English language version of "La fille d’elle-même" (The Daughter of Herself) by Gabrielle Boulianne-Tremblay.
"Winner 2022, Prix des Libraires Rights for TV adaptation purchased by Zone 3 A runaway bestseller in Québec, where it has captured the hearts of readers and pushed trans-identity into the mainstream conversation, Dandelion Daughter is an intimate, courageous portrait of what it’s like to grow up having been assigned the wrong sex at birth.
Set against the windswept countryside of the remote Charlevoix region some five hours north of Montreal, Gabrielle Boulianne-Tremblay’s autobiographical novel immortalizes her early years as an alienated boy trapped in a world of small-town values and her parents’ dissolving marriage, through complex adolescent years of self-discovery and first loves, to the harrowing episodes that fuel the growing realization that she must transition and give birth to her new self if she is to continue living at all. One of the first novels of its kind to appear in Québec, this inspiring story has already connected with a wide readership, and has been adopted by many schools to help expand worldviews and curriculums."
2023,
Canada,
English,
Gabrielle Boulianne-Tremblay,
Gabrielle Tremblay,
Original title: "O sabor do cio" (The taste of heat) by Ruddy Pinho.
"O sabor do cio" is the second poetry book by Ruddy (Ruddy Pinho). In that period the author did not yet recognize herself as a woman, nor did she bring this issue explicitly to her writing, which will only occur after the publication of her autobiography, Liberdade ainda que profana (1998).
Ruddy Pinho, also known as “A Maravilhosa”, was a celebrated transgender hairdresser from Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. She was known for her work with famous clients, including Susana Vieira and Marilia Pêra. Ruddy Pinho made a significant contribution to the hairdressing industry, including creating the “lioness cut” that marked the career of singer Simone Bittencourt and was widely copied in the 1980s.
1981,
Brazil,
Portuguese,
Ruddy Pinho,
Full title: "Roam: A Search for Happiness" by Juno Roche.
"Juno Roche was born into a working-class family in London in the sixties, who dabbled in minor crime. For their father, violence and love lived together; for their mother, addiction was the only way to survive. School was a respite, but shortly after beginning their university course Juno was diagnosed with HIV, then a death sentence. Juno is a survivor; they outlived their diagnosis, got a degree and became an artist. But however hard you try to take the kid out of the family, some scars go too deep; trying to run from AIDS and their childhood threw Juno into dark years of serious drug addiction, addiction often financed by sex work.
Running from home eventually took Juno across the sea to a tiny village in Spain, surrounded by mountains. Only once they found a quiet little house with an olive tree in the garden did Juno start to wonder if they had run too far, and whether they have really been searching for a family all along. In an incredibly honest and brave book, Juno takes us through the moments of their life: Mum sending Christmas cards containing Valium, drug withdrawal on a River Nile cruise, overcoming their father's violence and finding their dream house in Spain. Showing immense resilience, Juno's memoir is a book about what it means to stay alive."
2023,
English,
Juno Roche,
Original title: "La mujer volcán: Memorias" (The Volcano Woman: Memoirs) by Carla Antonelli and Marcos Dosantos.
Carla Antonelli, an unredeemed activist and protagonist of laws that changed a country forever, has broken all the glass ceilings of trans women. This book is his incandescent account of a life plagued by struggle that travels the paths of abandonment, desire, freedom, and power. In the pages of this journey, there is hunger, love, conquests, and mistreatment; sworn enemies and infinite friendships.
Carla Antonelli (Carla Delgado Gómez) was born in Güímar, Tenerife, in 1959. She is a politician, activist, and actress. Currently a Senator of the Spanish Parliament for Más Madrid, she was a regional deputy for the Socialist Party between 2011 and 2021, becoming the first trans parliamentarian in Spain. Since the 80s, she has played numerous roles and cameos in television series, films, documentaries, and plays (Lisístrata, El síndrome de Ulises, La Veneno, El comisario, Paquita Salas, Periodistas, Triángulos rosas, Hijos de papá, El viaje de Carla…).
2024,
Carla Antonelli,
Marcos Dosantos,
Spanish,
Full title: "Beyond The Binary Code" by Nicole Johnson.
"The book takes you on a deeply personal and thought-provoking journey of transcending the rigid confines of assigned labels and embracing the fluidity of self-discovery. This isn't just a story about transitioning from male to female; it's a vibrant story woven with threads of identity, vulnerability, and ultimately, self-acceptance. Stepping beyond the limitations of binary code, I delve into the intricate landscape of questioning, exploring, and ultimately defining who they are.
We witness the internal battles waged against societal expectations, the blossoming of self-awareness, and the courageous decision to break free from imposed limitations. This book is more than just a memoir; it's a conversation starter. It offers a window into the challenges and triumphs that many individuals navigating similar journeys face. Through honest and candid prose, Nicole Johnson challenges preconceived notions about gender, identity, and belonging, urging readers to reconsider the often-restrictive codes we all operate under."
2024,
English,
Nicole Johnson,
Original title: "Transpłciowość - androgynia. Studia o przekraczaniu płci" (Transgenderism - androgyny. Gender Transcendence Studies) by Jacek Bielas, Małgorzata Bieńkowska-Ptasznik and others.
Recently, the issue of crossing gender boundaries has been appearing more and more often in the Polish public discourse. Transgender and intersex people, or otherwise transgressing gender boundaries and conventions, are appearing more and more frequently in public spaces. The themes of transgenderism and transgression of gender conventions are also beginning to appear more and more often in academic publications.
This book – being an interdisciplinary publication that tries to show the phenomenon of transgenderism in a wide spectrum of many perspectives – combines articles from the field of sociology, psychology, philosophy, cultural studies and law, as well as articles written from the point of view of people active in the "T" environment.
2012,
Jacek Bielas,
Małgorzata Bieńkowska-Ptasznik,
Polish,
Full title: "Make It Count: My Fight to Become the First Transgender Olympic Runner" by Cecé Telfer.
"By turns harrowing and hopeful, MAKE IT COUNT is the inspiring story of the first openly transgender woman to win a NCAA title, following her traditional upbringing in Jamaica, her fight to become a US citizen, and her efforts to achieve her Olympic dreams. CeCé Telfer is a warrior. The first openly transgender woman to win an NCAA championship, she has contended with transphobia on and off the track since childhood.
Now, she stands at the crossroads of a national and international conversation about equity in sports, forced to advocate for her personhood and rights at every turn. After spending years training for the 2024 Olympics, Telfer has been sidelined and silenced more times than she can count. But she's never been good at taking no for an answer.
2024,
Cecé Telfer,
English,
Jamaica,