Nameless Woman: An Anthology of Fiction by Trans Women of Color

by Ellyn Peña (editor), Jamie Berrout (Editor), Venus Selenite (editor)

Nameless Woman, the Collective's first publication, is an expanded edition of An Anthology of Fiction by Trans Women of Color, which was originally published as an ebook by editors Ellyn Peña and Jamie Berrout on March 31, 2016. Nameless Woman is twice the length of the original anthology and features the contributions of eleven more people, including editor Venus Selenite and artist Luvia Montero.

Free ebook here: http://www.transwomenwriters.org/books/

Genres: Short Stories, Queer, Fiction, LGBT, Anthologies, Transgender, Gender

260 pages, ebook

Published February 16, 2018

Reviews

[Bogi Takács]

This was cool! Also, a free download. I will not review it now, because several stories are eligible for reprinting in the next Transcendent.

Source of the book: I was a fundraiser backer (but, it is free online: http://www.transwomenwriters.org/books/ )

[Nathaniel · Rating 5 out of 5]

4.5. some really stunning pieces in here — definitely recommended. I really hope Michelle Evans’s No More Secrets will be available in full at some point because. wow. other standouts for me were Vita E.’s “Retrospect” (absolutely brutal but so powerful), Kylie Ariel Bemis’s “The Sixth World”, Jasmine Kabale Moore’s “The Girl and the Apple”, Gillian Ybabez’s “Lisa’s Story: Zombie Apocalypse” (surprising in that I don’t usually like zombie stories, unsurprising in that I loved Ybabez’s booklet for the Trans Women Writers Collective booklet series), Jamie Berrout’s “Three Fragments” (also published in Incomplete Stories and Essays), and Lulu Trujillo’s “Space Hunters” (a fun, light change of pace).

[Maja · Rating 3 out of 5]

Short stories are just not my thing. Unless they’re by the same author set in the same place or following the same character/s. With that being said, there were stories here that I really liked. But over all I’m not sure how to rate an anthology when every story is different and by a different author. So I’ll just settle for 3 stars, a nice midpoint.

“Yes, Diana. Yes. I feel so unsafe when trans women are murdered and forced to kill themselves. But more unsafe? Like what, like this is new to me? Or at all? Like if I didn’t see all of these graphs and news stories and statistics projected around the stage, none of the threats, assaults, or comments I’ve experienced would have been enough? Or mattered as much?

No, Diana. No. I don’t feel more unsafe in a world that hates me because I’m black, hates me because I’m trans, hates me because I’m a woman, and hates me because I’m not a man just because you just started finally seeing it too.

But do you? Do you feel more unsafe? Does it frighten you to see the fragility of so many lives shattered by the negligence of an apathetic country? Does it concern you to be reminded of the systematic ease with which this machine can chew every rich morsel of your worth and spit out your body like a plaque when it no longer has any need for you?”

[musa b-n · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was pretty okay. I don't think I'm good at reading short fiction; my attention wanders too quickly. My very favorite story was called 'The Sixth World.'

[Adrian · Rating 4 out of 5]

Short, gripping stories of diverse types, from sci-fi escapism to walking-down-the-street or taking the bus because the metro broke down. Most left me wanting a longer, ongoing story! The authors have varying strengths and the editing, as acknowledged in the preface, is ocasionally spotty due to time and the pressures of real life facing so many trans women of colour, but none of this stops it from being an enjoyable book.

[akriti · Rating 2 out of 5]

had high hopes.. but this was so awful im sorry

[Olives Erickson · Rating 5 out of 5]

You have to sit with this one, like, really let the stories hit you and sit with them. I was doing about two stories a week, really letting them resonate. Trying to read them while juggling school felt sacreligious. It felt like a betrayal to the tales. That’s, not a normal feeling for me. I had to wait for the term to finish before I could pick it back up and give it the attention it deserves. But I cannot begin to describe the scope of stories here, how often I laughed and cried and bled and related to it all. The emotions are recognizable, even when the situation is not. Take your time, some stories are confusing on the first pass, and maybe the second too. Not all of them will sit with you, but some of them will carve a new spot for themselves in your skin. I still can’t get the mental image of the ending of The Sixth World out of my head, and I read it months ago. It will catch me randomly at times, as I go about my day. I hope you find a story like that too, in these pages. I really do.

[Fran · Rating 4 out of 5]

Some of the stories in here are quite good. I enjoyed "Fidelity," "Ice Princess," "The Sixth World," and "The Root of Echoes" in particular. Most of the others felt like they needed to go through a few more drafts before publication.

[t · Rating 3 out of 5]

obviously a v important collection - but some stories just weren’t my thing. really liked others - esp Lord, be a femme, The Sixth World and Two Stories :)

[hawk · Rating 5 out of 5]

I really enjoyed this anthology.

the collection of stories is really varied - in style, genre, content, form/structure.
even the stories that connected with me least were interesting, and none I left unfinished.

all of the stories in this anthology read as passionate, and often nuanced and layered in the experiences, hopes, desires, ideas they speak of.

I found the stories really rich. the anthology has a great sense of heart and soul, and a impressively tangible sense of physical body.
❤️💜🤎🖤

[月海 Yuehai · Rating 3 out of 5]

some of stories I found entertaining. some of them I didn't quite get. and that's fine.