Fair Play: How Sports Shape the Gender Debates

by Katie Barnes

“[An] electrifying debut…Through in-depth and compassionate reporting, Barnes breaks down the misunderstood science surrounding sex and gender that has been used to keep cisgender women out of sports and has fueled debate over trans athletes participation in women’s sports.”—Shannon Carlin, TIME
magazine, “100 Must-Read Books of 2023”

For decades women have been playing competitive sports, thanks in large part to the protective cover of Title IX. Since the passage of that law, the number of women participating in sports and the level of competition in high school and college and professionally, has risen dramatically. In Fair Play, award-winning journalist Katie Barnes traces the evolution of women’s sports as a pastime and a political arena where equality and fairness have been fought over for generations.

As attitudes toward gender have shifted to embrace more fluidity in recent decades, sex continues to be viewed as a static binary that is easily male or female. It is on the very idea of static sex that we have built an entire sporting apparatus. Now that foundation is being hotly debated as a result of intense culture wars. Many transgender and intersex athletes, including a South African runner, a wrestler in Texas, a Connecticut track star, and a swimmer at the University of Pennsylvania, have captured the attention of law and policymakers who want to decide how and when they compete. Women’s sports, since their inception, have been seen as a separate class of competition that requires protection and rules for entry. But what are those rules and who gets to make them? Fair Play looks at all sides of the issue and presents a reasoned and much-needed solution that seeks to preserve opportunities for all going forward.

Genres: Nonfiction, Sports, LGBT, Politics, Feminism, Queer, Sociology

293 pages, Kindle Edition

Published September 19, 2023

About the author

Katie Barnes (they/them) is an award winning journalist covering the intersection of sports and gender, and the author of Fair Play: How Sports Shape the Gender Debates.

They have profiled women’s sports superstars and rising stars alike, from Maya Moore to Paige Bueckers to Azzi Fudd to Amanda Nunes. In addition to athlete profiles, Katie has extensively covered legislation and policy affecting transgender athletes. In 2019, they were an executive producer on the 30 for 30 short Mack Wrestles, which told the story of transgender wrestler Mack Beggs as he graduated high school and left home for college.

Katie is a 3-time GLAAD nominee and their work has been recognized by Folio, the Society of Professional Journalists, and the Curve Foundation. In 2017, they were named Journalist of the Year by NLGJA – The Association of LGBTQ Journalists.

Reviews

[Susanne Latour · Rating 4 out of 5]

I grew up playing sports and while I strongly believe participation in sports should be accessible to and accepting of everyone because of the many great lessons and values that participating in sports can teach people the policies around transgender athletes is a difficult one to navigate.

I thought the author Katie Barnes did a good job at breaking down and looking at the many aspects of this issue and interviewed people with varying opinions. I particularly thought Chapter 12: The Answers to the Questions I Get Asked, did a great job of breaking down their own specific thoughts on these issues from their experience of being involved in sports as a non-binary athlete growing up and now being very knowledgeable from reporting on the intersection of sports and gender since 2016.

While there were many things I agreed with throughout this book there are still some questions that I feel need to be answered and probably will take a number of years to do so. My background is science more specifically Kinesiology so I’m personally looking to science. With so little scientific research on the effects of hormone suppression (both short term and long term) and even a smaller amount specifically on athletes at the elite level in sports on such things as strength, speed and power (as well as looking at things such as general anatomical structure, bone density etc between the two sexes that effects these variables that do not change with transitioning) combined with the fact that transitioning is not a uniform process for every transgender person makes policy making difficult. I don’t know if we are ever going to get an answer that will please everyone but I think that we do need to do our best to protect women’s sports in terms of both competition fairness and physical safety. I think in the elite levels of sport, policies that allow transgender to compete in the category that is consistent with their gender identity without requiring any medical intervention (no hormone suppression required) undercuts the purpose and need for sex separation in sport. My thoughts on this topic are not exclusionary by any means, everyone should be allowed to participate, I just think we need to find the most suitable category for athletes to compete in based on what the research shows.

[Jordyn Roesler | Sorry, Booked Solid · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is one of the best nonfiction books I've read in a long time. You have to be interested in the subject matter, but if you are, no matter what side of the issue you're on, this book provides SO many examples and so much context to the topic of gender in sports and the history of inclusion/exclusion of transgender and nonbinary athletes. It could have easily come off as textbook-y with how much history is included, but the author's passion helped keep it personal and relevant to the actual individuals involved in the situations discussed and I really enjoyed it. I'm hopeful this book will help to inform and shape inclusion within sports and the ongoing gender debate in the future. Thanks to NetGalley for the eARC!

[ReadingTilTheBreakOfDawn · Rating 5 out of 5]

I think when reading and reviewing a non fiction book, you have to look at the thought and research put into the subject matter to "rate" it. Fair Play written by Katie Barnes was a true testimony to a well researched book that included arguments and articles taken from many sources to help push the author's intent forward.

I'm a sports gal and I've loved sports my whole life. My mom instilled that in me when "forcing" us kids to watch football every Sunday. But then that trickled over to so many other sports. But where were the women? Where were the professional sports for them besides the Olympics every 4 years (that was the schedule for the Olympics back when I was growing up).

Katie Barnes starts out their book focusing on women, title IX and how far we've come and have yet to go when we are talking about women and sports. I think to truly appreciate this book, you have to be a lover of sports. From there, they take the book that they've written about gender and sports and unraveled the debate of LGBTQ+ and their inclusion from when they are children, to college, to the professional level. I honestly wasn't sure where I stood on the debate, but that also was because I wasn't educated enough to make an informed decision. Barnes includes a plethora of articles, interviews and a deep research into this subject matter that will continuously evolve from when they started the book to many years down the road. There is science to back this book and there is personal opinion. No matter what side you stand on, I think Katie Barnes gave us a good look and arguments for the reader to not only inform us, but also to show their passion on the subject that has become a heated debate countrywide.

This book challenges its readers to look at all the sides when considering the complex study of gender, sports and the inclusion of trans and nonbinary athletes on all levels. I feel like I have a deeper understanding because of this book and how they broke down the content that made it easy to understand and grasp. Along with Barnes personal experience, I believe this is a book that should be required reading for the sports world. Thank you to St Martin's Press for my early copy.

[Kara Babcock · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was a tougher read than I expected. I was about to write “not being a sports girlie myself” but stopped because I do play sports now—but I only got into that last summer, and it’s recreational, co-ed, and very inclusive. Anyway, I wasn’t expecting Fair Play to hit me as hard as it did considering it’s about transgender issues. Katie Barnes covers the debates around the inclusion of trans people in sports with sensitivity and dedication. What I most value about this book is something many other reviewers seem to have disliked: an emphasis on feelings over facts.

Barnes is a sports journalist by trade and a former participant in women’s sports. They are also nonbinary. They use all these experiences to shape Fair Play, which ultimately revolves around the question of how to include gender-nonconforming and -expansive athletes in sports segregated by sex/gender. The book starts with a brief history of sex segregation in sports and some of the controversies over inclusion of women in men’s sports, etc., before quickly focusing on the last twenty years and how the question of trans people’s participation has been politicized as trans people ourselves have become more visible. The book is organized like a series of case studies; each chapter covers either a specific athlete who became a flashpoint for controversy or a related topic. At the end, Barnes offers up their own views, as well as an epilogue that gives the most up-to-date status of gender policies at the time the book went to press.

Fair Play focuses almost exclusively on American sports and politics, venturing into international territory only insofar as it starts mentioning the Olympics or international sports bodies. Barnes covers South African runner Caster Semenya, for example, as a notable controversy over differences in sex development in athletes. This is an exception in a book that otherwise focuses on high school and college sports. As a Canadian, it mostly got me wondering about trans inclusion policies in my country (I know some premiers have taken up the transphobia from our neighbour to the south and started talking about restrictive policies). Nevertheless, this information is useful given how much influence domestic American policies still have on the global athletic scene.

Similarly, it’s important to note that even though this book is less than two years old, parts of it are already out of date. The second Trump administration has, in its first month at the date I am writing this review, already taken a hard aim at transgender participation in society, including sports. Barnes anticipates this in their epilogue, which is literally subtitled, “The March Toward Restriction.” They and trans advocacy organizations knew what was coming even though it wasn’t a forgone conclusion at the time that Trump would be reelected. As it is, most of Fair Play is relevant as an informative chronology and analysis of “how we got to here.”

The rawness of connecting this book’s coverage to what is currently in the news is one reason why I found this to be a tougher read than I expected. I mistakenly assumed my privilege as a white, well-educated trans woman living in a tiny corner of northern Ontario would insulate me from feeling some kind of way about the trans kids whose athletic aspirations are being crushed, or the trans athletes who are having to choose between being their authentic selves or staying in the closet to participate in the sport they love. Oops. Guess I am not so hard-hearted after all.

And this is why, unlike some reviewers, I am so pleased Barnes chooses to focus on storytelling over statistics. That is to say, we know from extensive research that facts are not as effective at changing people’s minds. You say you want data—you really don’t. As Barnes notes, there is a dearth of data on trans people in sports and how sex-linked hormones like testosterone affect the performance of trans people who are taking hormone therapy. Few people have chosen to do the research; fewer still have received funding; for some reason, there aren’t enough trans athletes to study sometimes (funny how that works, huh?). I saw one reviewer insist transphobes would somehow drop their objections to the inclusion of trans people in women’s sports if only there were more data to back up the idea we aren’t a threat … and I am here to tell you, definitively, that won’t happen. Transphobic people are not transphobic because they lack data. They are transphobic because they don’t see trans people as authentic, and no amount of facts will change that.

For the record, I think it’s great that Barnes parlays with the facts as much as possible, if only to belie the moral panic. It is very important to repeat how few openly trans athletes are playing sports in high school and college right now, let alone at a professional level, and how none is dominating their sport in the way transphobes claim. The idea that any sports, including women’s sports, is under threat by the inclusion of trans people is categorically false by any metric.

That being said, I deeply believe this is a situation where feelings matter over facts, and to that end I appreciate the tack Fair Play takes. Over and over, Barnes says, “I am going to give you all the details from the beginning.” They cut through the sound bites most of us probably heard about Semenya or Thomas or Yearwood. They relate everything, chronologically, and illuminate their audience about the more obscure collegiate or international rules we might not be aware of if we don’t follow sports. To say this humanizes these athletes is, um, depressing but also very accurate. And that is what we need.

The chapter that stuck most with me is Chapter 8: “The Breakup in Women’s Sports,” wherein Barnes discusses women’s sports activists Pat Griffin, Donna Lopiano, Felice Duffy, Doriane Coleman, and Nancy Hogshead-Makar. All these cis women (some queer) meeting to talk about trans participation in sports without trans people in the room, a fact Barnes notes, even as they laud some of these women for their role in blazing a trail for women’s and girls’ sports in the latter half of the twentieth century. This is the fundamental tension at the heart of the debate over trans people in sports: sex segregation in sports is rooted in misogyny, yet simply eliminating it would eliminate opportunities for women and girls, and no one wants that. So these activists are, in some dimensions, doing important work. Yet some of them are also incredibly transphobic. (Two things can be true!) Barnes quotes Griffin, who says, “I think, fundamenally, [Lopiano, Coleman, and Hogshead-Makar] don’t see transgender women as women…. I think they see them as men.”

Indeed, not a day after reading that chapter, I saw someone sharing a screenshot from a recent New York Times article wherein Coleman says, of Trump’s newest executive orders, that they are “both wrong on the substance and understandably scary for trans people.” In other words, while Coleman is literally getting what she wants (trans women banned from women’s sports), she worries it’s coming across as mean. Because she wants her bigotry to feel more palatable.

I don’t know. Barnes is so much more professional in this book than I think I could be in their shoes. They are trying really hard to extend grace to the Colemans of the world to whom they feel a debt of gratitude for carving out women’s sports. I get it. I want to agree with Barnes that this is a nuanced issue, one where policies need to be flexible yet realistic. I definitely agree with them that neither they nor I have enough expertise to opine on what kinds of hormonal level restrictions (if any) should exist at elite levels. However, over and over, as I read this book, I couldn’t shake the one unmistakable feeling rising within me, which is simply that the majority of people who oppose the inclusion of trans women in women’s sports do so because they see us as men. Full stop. No amount of hormone therapy, of testosterone reduction, of living as our authentic gender for any period of time, will ever change that for them.

That is why Fair Play rightly focuses on the personal stories of trans athletes. Because the majority of Americans reading this book are doing so in a climate where they have been misled about the dangers trans people pose to society. They have been conditioned not to see us as human. So as much as I hate it, the stories humanizing us are the way to go right now.

Trans people belong in sport. Trans women deserve to participate in women’s sports. The idea of sex-segregated sports deserves reexamination and perhaps revision in a way that still acknowledges the effects of patriarchy on sports participation. At the same time, none of this can happen as long as trans people are forced to fight merely for survival. Fair Play is a comprehensive and careful look at gender policies in sports in the US. Beyond that, however, it touches a nerve—it did for me as a trans woman, but I hope it does so for cis readers too. Barnes reminds us that participation in sport, especially for children, should not be about winning or losing. Sport is a fundamental human experience, and we need to keep it that way.

Originally posted on Kara.Reviews.

[Dona's Books]

Review coming on PUB WEEK 🥳 September 20 2023!

[Janalyn, the blind reviewer · Rating 3 out of 5]

Although this book is prefaced as a look at women sports that is only because it is really a book about transgendered people and their plight to play in or compete in the sport they love. As a mother of an LGBT person I read a lot about their struggles and although I look so forward to reading this book I have no tolerance for those who have no tolerance for others and that includes the author of this book who thinks gender identity is ridiculous and that is her words not mine. I really enjoyed the few chapters on the history of women sports. I I really wanted to know more about the controversy about those transitioning from male to female and then competing on women’s teams and how they can potentially and do in some cases get scholarships that others believe were meant for cis females. Because of that opinion I wanted to learn why it was OK for someone born male to compete with naturally born females if someone takes asterton does that change their DNA identifier and or does it medically make them more female and male but unfortunately none of these questions were answered this is another nonfiction book where the author had her opinion set in stone and wanted to convey that to the reader and nothing else. She says in the first chapter that males are physically different from females but then goes on chapter after chapter talking about how people are against transgender athletes playing on teams with naturally born females and I am not saying this is wrong or right I just wish The author would have given more evidence to explain why this shouldn’t be a discussion at all. Instead she just wrote to reinforce her own opinion unfortunately the only thing I learned from reading Fair Play by Katie Barnes it’s more sports history. I wish when people in the community write books like this they would give us more facts and less rehashing of the old controversies. For the most part I enjoyed the book I found some things the author said problematic because even though I am sure she is against generalizing she is not against doing it herself. I am really against people expecting a level of respect that they’re not willing to give but having said that we live and we learn and as far as sports history goes I would definitely recommend this book that talks about title IX the fight for women to be able to play sports at all and so there are many positives I just wanted to point out a few negatives. I want to thank Saint martins gross and net galley for my free arc copy please forgive any mistakes as I am blind and dictate my review.

[HB. · Rating 4 out of 5]

In Fair Play, Katie Barnes provides a nuanced exploration of gender and trans identities within the realm of sports, spanning from the Olympics to youth leagues and everything in between. Drawing on their extensive experience and reporting on debates surrounding trans athletes, Barnes presents a well-researched and thorough examination of this complex issue. The book not only delves into the specific challenges faced by trans athletes, particularly trans women but also offers a broader understanding of the topic's historical context and its potential future trajectories. As someone who shares an interest in equality, I found this book to be a helpful resource for gaining a more detailed perspective on the subject. Barnes engages with a diverse range of voices, interviewing individuals from various sports and different levels of competition. This approach provides a multifaceted view of how these issues impact different people and offers insights into the complexities of the matter. The book challenges oversimplifications often presented by opposing sides and encourages readers to consider the complexities at hand. As we anticipate the next Olympics, "Fair Play" serves as an enlightening guide for those seeking a deeper understanding of the evolving intersection between gender and sports.

[Myles Baldwin · Rating 5 out of 5]

As someone about to step into the world of sports on the administration side, I wanted to read this book to be better educated on this particular issue. I love the way Katie writes about the issue from all sides while still recognizing their own biases as a person and author. I learned a lot from this book, but what I enjoyed the most was the way each athlete mentioned in the book was humanized. As the gender conversation gets more polarized, I feel that we lose athletes as fleshed or people and instead treat them as pieces of evidence. I love that this book let us in the lives of the athletes mentioned beyond just the sport they play.

[Shane · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book was what I wanted it to be - a good resource on the topic written from the perspective of a trans person who gives a shit about sports. I am a trans person who doesn’t give a shit about sports and so there were places where my eyes glazed a bit but ultimately glad to have read it. Wish I could never think about sports and gender again but lol

[Claire Em · Rating 3 out of 5]

while this book is well written and well researched, what I had read about the book seemed to indicate that it would be full of evidence etc., and I found the evidence to lack statistical backing. It was eye opening, but the amount of times the author said something like “and countless others we don’t know about” frustrated me, especially when using specific case studies to list all the things that were wrong about the other side of the argument (including that they don’t have statistical evidence backing their claims).

[Cam Griffith · Rating 5 out of 5]

I FINALLY FINISHED. This book was so f-ing good. So comprehensive, so well-written, so well-researched, so so so powerful.

You definitely have to be interested in the topic in order to really enjoy it, but all nonfiction is like that. I’d recommend this book to anyone interested in policy regarding trans people. Restrictive policies for trans athletes absolutely opened the door for more restrictive policies for trans people in general (as we are seeing literally every day now).

[Nadezhda Anna · Rating 4 out of 5]

Assumptions challenged.

All should be respected and recognized for who they are and how they want to be identified. Gender equality is a must. A deeply researched and passionate book for better understanding of gender debates in sports, from NCAA to the Olympics, across the country.

A book I unfortunately could see being banned in certain districts and states.

[Caroline Wilson · Rating 4 out of 5]

A well-researched and thought-provoking take on a super hot topic. Learned a ton and talked Mitch’s ear off throughout. I originally picked this up because the author was scheduled to come talk at Blair - it was cancelled for now, but I certainly hope they make it in the spring!

[Caitlin Desaulniers · Rating 5 out of 5]

A must read for anyone with interest in sports or LGBTQ+ policies.
Although this book dives deep into research specifically about sport, my exercise science brain is tingling; It also brings a much needed perspective on gender debates in the US.
Let athletes play sports!!!!!
The writing style was 🤌 mwah 🤌

[Alan Hill · Rating 5 out of 5]

Fair Play: How Sports Shape the Gender Debates by Katie Barnes is one of the best books I’ve read all year. Incredibly readable and accessible, enlightening accounts of the history of gender in sports, special attention to the people under the policies. Katie Barnes is a non-binary ESPN writer!?! So it also introduces a wonderful voice to look to in sports journalism! I could go on and on. Must read for everyone, but especially anyone who has any interest in this topic and is looking for a really well explained breakdown. I have often felt like the people most harmed by these policies are somehow always absent from these discussions. Barnes does a beautiful job of giving these people a voice in this book. I would even go as far to say this feels like essential reading for any discussion in the “gender question” when it pertains to sports. I can’t say enough how impressed I was with not just the quality of the work but the depth and accessibility that this book provides. This was incredibly easy to read, and I feel like it can only lead to more worthwhile discussions of the topic.

I feel like this is without a doubt in my top 5 non-fiction of the year. I’ll never run out of good things to say, but you should definitely find a way to read this book! Request it from your library as well, even if you buy it personally, that’s how important I think this is. Especially when our fight feels so dire right now. I honestly think anyone could read this and take anyway something worthwhile.

This book was provided to me free by netgally in exchange for a fair review.

[Eva Surovell · Rating 4 out of 5]

so glad my loan on this came through before the olympics. organization felt a little muddled in the first half but i really enjoyed the policy discussion and thought this was well contextualized with all of the anti-trans legislation in recent years. bonus points for UVA swimmers being mentioned!

[Gina · Rating 5 out of 5]

“Whether we realize it or not, our sports are coded, laden with allusions to gender and sexuality in ways that are fundamental to our collective understanding of both athletics and gender.”

Huge thank you to St. Martin’s Press for an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

This book is incredibly relevant and important. Katie Barnes completely breaks down gender in sports, by chronicling sex separation in sports and how different the funding is, and how different guidelines irrevocably harm transgender people in the athletic space. Sports is tied to how the public views transgender people, and no matter what they do, transgender people are treated differently in sports.

The target keeps moving, especially for transgender women, including the length of time they need to be on hormone therapy and what testosterone levels are acceptable. And the only time it’s an issue is when they’re winning. In the case of Lia Thomas, everyone is upset that she won one of her events, but forget she placed fifth and eighth in her others. The idea that the outcome of an event against a transgender woman is predetermine in not correct, but has become the accepted (and in my opinion, incorrect) argument of disgruntled cisgender women.

I could say so much about this book; I truly couldn’t put it down. It should be required reading. The way Barnes presents information, and provides insight into their own journey with gender identity makes this a compelling, necessary read. The issues run so deep, but they manage to really break everything down in an easily understandable way.

[Mackenzie Chance Harte · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was probably the best material that I have consumed about trans athletes and trans sports policies. The author brought a lot to the table beyond the regular talking points we have been exposed to and dove deep into numerous case studies to explore the different ways this conversation is happening and the numerous effects these policies can have. I found myself learning a lot after spending much time in this space trying, and failing, to find information I felt like I needed.
Barnes brings a substantial amount of necessary nuance to this conversation, finding ways to explain several arguments being made in clear ways-- but never surrenders to misinformation, which I appreciate and respect immensely. So often, political "debates" become solely about emotion and placating stubborn people who are arguing with falsehoods and claiming that it'd just their opinion. I appreciate that Barnes was not cautious about fact checking some of the fake information too often brought into this space by anti-trans groups. That being said, this never felt explicitly political, which made it read even better and feel much more grounded.
Thank you to NetGalley for this advanced copy. 5/5.

[Kara · Rating 5 out of 5]

If you care about sports, at all, you should read this book. Katie Barnes, an LGBTQ+ sports journalist, discusses the current and historical debate of gender identity and its place in sports. They discuss the history of women’s sports, queer and trans folks in sports, and the policies that have been built along the way. Most importantly, to me, they share interviews and real stories of queer and trans athletes who have competed on all levels. I felt that Barnes did a wonderful job providing all sides of this debate so that the reader can come to their own conclusions, or continue to ask more questions. What is most evident to me is how complicated these questions are, and how much we do not know.

As for my own feelings, after reading, I feel they can best be summed up by a quote from Brooke Forde (a competitor of Lia Thomas’):
“…I believe that treating people with respect and dignity is more important than any trophy or record will ever be…”.

Release Date: September 19, 2023

[Anne · Rating 4 out of 5]

I do not know much about the world of competitive sports, but I do have an interest in equality for all people. The author did a great job of presenting many different pieces of information for a complex issue. They talked to people of many different sports and at a variety of levels to give a picture of how different individuals are being affected.

I appreciated that the author also admitted how tricky of a situation sports and gender is. At times, I would have liked a glossary to remind myself of what all the acronyms stood for, how different organizations had been mentioned before, and who individuals were.

[Trine · Rating 5 out of 5]

Katie Barnes er en af mine favorit sportsjournalister, og de har skrevet en fantastisk bog. Den starter som en historisk gennemgang af forholdet mellem sport og køn, der så udvikler sig til kritisk undersøgelse af det loop trans personer i sport har været under de sidste par år. Den er godt researchet og fortalt, og læseren nyder virkelig godt af Barnes store kildenetværk og viden inden for kvindesport.

For mig var det til tider følelsesladet at læse om den systematiske tilbagerulning af trans personers rettigheder og adgang til sport. Bogen skyer ikke væk for noget og stiller nogle vigtige spørgsmål. Mange ville have godt af at læse den.

[Beth M · Rating 4 out of 5]

Thanks to St Martin's Press a s NetGalley for the advanced readers copy!

Fair Play is very well researched and thorough. Katie Barnes does an excellent job examining the issues in this book in a way that felt balanced and unbiased. I especially appreciated their view point as they grew up in women's sports and have built a career around women's sports while being nonbinary. I was looking forward to reading what their proposed solutions were and was not disappointed. I very much appreciated their view point and found that I agreed with their potential solutions for moving forward.

[Ali · Rating 5 out of 5]

"[S]ports, by design, are not fair... some athletes are taller in sports that preference height, and some are faster in sports that preference speed. Is that fair? The reality of sports is that we accept unfairness all the time" (pg 235).

I devoured this book. It does a phenomenal job of explaining the history of how we got to have sex-segregated sports in the first place, and presenting the sides of debate of where trans people should be included in sport (or under what restrictions, if any). Barnes wants you to make your own conclusions at the end, but does provide their own thoughts.

The book follows multiple transgender athletes' stories (mostly trans women, because trans men are often not perceived as "an athletic threat to men" [pg 69]). It quickly becomes evident people didn't care about trans women in sports until they started winning. It is emphasized throughout the book, however, that "a person's testosterone level does not determine athletic outcomes" (pg 88). Meaning one trans woman is not guaranteed to beat all the cisgender girls. And in fact, they mostly haven't been!

While Barnes doesn't have all the answers, because there needs to be more research done on how trans women's diminished but not negated physiological advantages from HRT translate to performance advantages (pg 94), they provide a number of insights from their job in this field as to how to proceed and an understanding of why people are so angry.

Essentially though, trans people should be able to choose which team they want to play on in low stakes (children's sports and recreational sports). For the Olympics it's more complicated (but a ban is not the answer), and most of us will never make it there, but these bills happening in the US affect thousands of trans lives now (pg 234).

I glossed over so many things, but if I keep going I'll just rewrite the book in my review... I hope this book explodes and encourages people to think critically about why they are gatekeeping trans people from sports, and hopefully we'll see more trans-sport inclusivity soon.

[Juliane Bell · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is an excellent read, a non-fiction book that informs, entertains, and enrages.

I think Katie Barnes does a great job of outlining the history of women’s sports, the current political climate, and key issues around transgender inclusion. They approach this in a nuanced, evidence based, and compassionate way.

To overgeneralize, one end of the political spectrum is blinded by hate and bigotry. But the other end of the spectrum is seemingly closed off to dialogue regarding valid concerns about transgender participation in certain elite level sports. Regardless, Katie highlights that the dignity of transgender athletes is often lost in these conversations.

Katie shares a balanced account throughout the book and hopes you will leave having formed your own opinions, and ends the book with some suggestions for policy.

I wish there was a book just like this on every social issue.

[Nicole Lloyd · Rating 3 out of 5]

An interesting read on both sides of the coin.
Very based on the American system.
Key messages:
There is this idea that somehow transgender people have sports superpowers - not all transgender people go on to be champions, but this is definitely the perception.
This book also touched on the question of
“what will happen to women's sports?” The point raised is that women's sports will continue growing; more people are watching women's sports on television than ever before. The threat to that progress is not transgender girls; it's media who ignore women's sports, women receiving fewer opportunities to participate, and professional athletes still practicing in high school gyms or community centers. It's the stories of rampant abuse from coaches and doctors and administrators.

[Casey · Rating 5 out of 5]

Saw this at the library and just knew I had to pick it up! Despite considering myself to be an ally to the LQBTQ+ community I felt like I still had a lot to learn about the influence of gender identity in the sports sphere and it’s wider implications. Barnes does an excellent job of articulating the convoluted intersection of gender and athletics while affirming transgender and non binary identities. I feel Barnes gave one of the most balanced representation of the history and current climate of gender in sports. Would highly recommend!

[Kari Heggen (checkedoutbooks) · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a very important book. It breaks down every aspect of gender in sports especially related to transgender athletes. It helps that I basically agreed with the author's viewpoint in how to shape policy at every variant level of competition. That being said this book dragged at times, I think some of it got repetitive and some went too far into detail that wasn't necessary. I liked the specific people examples best as well as the chapter where she shared her opinion. Would encourage anyone who currently has any opinion on transgender athletes' participation to read this

[Tessa Wakefield · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5 stars rounded up: SUPER important topic, really well researched and a lot of information and stories that help combat the misinformation about trans people playing sports. I’m happy to have in my back pocket more factual info and a bit of the history of women’s sports / trans inclusion in sports whenever I need to argue with someone that yes, trans people should get to participate in athletics. Dinged a little bit because this book isn’t the most well-written - it reads and feels almost like a college term paper.

[Meghan Bohn · Rating 4 out of 5]

I found this to be an informative introduction on a complicated subject that I didn't know much about. For the most part it was easy to follow, although some of the latter chapters had a lot of different people working for various organizations, and a lot of lawsuits to keep track of. Definitely recommended for anyone looking to learn more about the issue.
Thank you very much to NetGalley and St. Martin's Press for the ARC!

[Tasha · Rating 4 out of 5]

A timely book that seems well-researched and an important contribution to our current times. I really enjoyed learning about this issue and having more of an understanding about the many different angles concerning this topic.

Thank you to Netgalley and St. Martin's Press for an advanced ebook in exchange for a fair and honest review.