Moving Truth(s): Queer and Transgender Desi Writings on Family

by Aparajeeta 'Sasha' Duttchoudhury (Editor), Rukie Hartman (Editor)

Moving Truth(s)” is written to move us all. Closer to home. To bring conversations about gender and sexuality home to family and community. To serve ourselves and our families and communities in better understanding the lives of queer and transgender individuals by sharing our stories – our truths – and together move toward a place of inquiry and respect, such that “truth” itself is moved to a new place. How do we stay engaged with family, community and culture when we experience homophobia and transphobia? Where have we found support systems? Who have been our most active and sometimes least expected advocates? What do we need to do to help grow the kind of community we seek support from? These questions move us toward a new sense of truth, shifting us out of the false belief that being queer and/or transgender is necessarily at odds with family and community. Our stories help us move those ideas into a new light. The rich, celebratory, and self-reflective personal narratives in this book offer something different in their overlapping approaches to discomfort, fear, silence, as well as forgiveness, patience and an active pursuit of a more loving way to navigate relationships with ourselves and with others. As a community-building project, this anthology was created from a heart-centered place involving not only collective editing and story-development, but also providing contributors room to expand, heal and connect with one another across boundaries of experience.

Genres: Nonfiction, LGBT, Essays, India, Queer, Anthologies, Memoir

186 pages, Paperback

First published April 15, 2015

Reviews

[SamSamSam · Rating 4 out of 5]

3.5 stars rounded up, because this book is important. I absolutely loved reading the stories of these individuals, and getting to understand some of the ways in which their identities intersect. There was a lot that felt relevant to my own life as a queer person that I plan to take away, especially choosing relationships with family members that still cause pain. I don't see that narrative very often, and it came into my life at just the right moment.
I wasn't a huge fan of some of the writing in this collection, which is mostly just my personal preference. A lot of it felt academic or at least academic-adjacent, which makes sense because a lot of people learn the language to describe their own gender/sexuality in an academic context. The result was that some things felt a bit buzzwordy (I feel like I read the word "radical" so, so many times).
Overall, this is a great collection and I hope I can read more like it!

[Vidisha · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book is incredible. It's such a diverse collection of stories that almost everyone who picks it up can relate. Although I do caution you, it focuses largely on gender-variant people, so a cisgender person may not get as much out of it. Also, some of the stories get kinda heavy, as the authors discuss abuse, depression, etc. All things considered, it's more than worth the read!

[Ashish Rastogi · Rating 4 out of 5]

Narratives from a multitude of queer identities from different parts of the world with one common thread, persons of South Asian descent. The stories offer you a glimpse into these vibrant lives, where pain contrasts with joy, and the highs and lows are evident.

[John · Rating 5 out of 5]

unique-- addition to Trans as it is in family dynamics--

[Christy · Rating 4 out of 5]

Highly recommended! Must read for allies!

[Laura Sackton · Rating 4 out of 5]

I wrote about this book here: https://booksandbakes.substack.com/i/...