Transgender Explained For Those Who Are Not

by Joanne Herman

Joanne Herman, a transgender woman who read everything in sight to understand her own gender incongruity, has been helping others with her non-complicated explanations of transgender for almost a decade. Now she has written down her explanations for all to read in Transgender Explained For Those Who Are Not. Organized by topic into short, easy-to-read chapters, Transgender Explained is perfect for parents, relatives, colleagues, friends, allies and even journalists who want to quickly get up to speed on what it means to be transgender.

Genres: Nonfiction, Transgender, LGBT, Memoir, Queer, Psychology, Gender

172 pages, Paperback

First published September 30, 2009

Reviews

[James Stone · Rating 5 out of 5]

Invaluable resource for friends, families, lovers of transgendered people & those who ARE transgendered. I found this book to be so very honest and down-to-earth that it is quite refreshing. It covers every area that I can imagine and covers them well. The book is well-researched for those who may want to know more. Ms Herman humanizes the book through anecdotes, some personal, some gleaned via personal conversations with others.
I have given this book to family and friends and all have found it helpful. What is best for me is that it helps loved ones formulate questions. I welcome questions, I find they lead me to think about aspects of my own life as a transgender woman that I had not previously considered. Where relevant, this is a must read. Highest recommendation.

[Aneesa · Rating 3 out of 5]

The short chapters in this book are based on Advocate.com columns, and are designed to stand alone, making them pretty elementary and extremely repetitive. The book would probably make a good primer for organizations looking to create more inclusive policies and cultures (who knew that churches have non-discrimination policies called things like "Note on the Inclusive Dimensions of God's Grace"?), and the author is in fact a speaker and consultant on such matters. I surprised myself by finding the last section, "My Story," to be the most enlightening, since it's more interior (with chapters such as "On Family Acceptance" and "My Return to My All-Male College"--interestingly, the author was part of Dartmouth's last all-male class, but junior year "studied abroad" at Smith, which accepted 45 male transfer students). One sentence in the book that I found problematic: "Our view is that, much like a non-gay person can't possibly imagine loving someone of the same sex, a non-transgender person can't possibly imagine the feeling of living in the wrong gender." One sentence that I found somewhat illuminating: "I... remained strangely embarrassed by things that most guys are proud of."

[Danni Green · Rating 4 out of 5]

I'm often wary of "Trans 101" material, but this one is actually pretty good, and it is written by an actual transgender person. It doesn't cover everything, and it should be interpreted as one person's view rather than as a universal standard, but as long as the reader keeps that in mind, there's plenty of good info here. Glad to have this book in the world!

[Simon Brass · Rating 3 out of 5]

Lacks depth but otherwise fine and to be fair the author doesn't claim anything otherwise. I know more about the subject than I did before - not a ton - but laughed a few times which compensated. Interesting that the author and her partner stayed together despite the latter not being lesbian - the description of this scenario being one of the times I laughed.

[Cyd · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a great little book for transgender people to give to people they come out to who need a basic education in what it means to be trans. The chapters are short and the book is slim, so it doesn't overwhelm folks.

[Britt Fitts · Rating 3 out of 5]

While a lot of this information is outdated, I did find some of it to be useful. I just wish there was a little less of "this is what went wrong in the past" and a little more "this is what we can do better in the future."

[Andrew]

Recommended in Transgender 101: A Simple Guide to a Complex Issue as worth reading.

[Kate · Rating 3 out of 5]

Enlightening.

A self published memoir of a personnel journey.

I found much in this to help with my core beliefs and abilities to walk along side those working through gender clarification.

[Rafał · Rating 1 out of 5]

[Citation needed]

An incredible lack of reference for some quite throwaway statements in this book.

[Audrey Remusat · Rating 4 out of 5]

Great intro book! However, even for being published in 2009 some of the things she references to have already passed and changed for the better. So things need to updated. I got this book for my father because he's having troubles with me and my transition. I also read it after him and knew 90% of the contents without having to have read it, however, it was helpful in opening my eyes a bit more to my families needs in that I have to learn to accept them to referencing my past and be ok with it. I can agree with that but I think that they can leave off the "when you were a boy/guy...." as those stories don't need a gender. I was still a girl then only they didn't know it....

Anyway, back to the book. It is a great intro book to the topic of transgender individuals and some of the complications. She references other readings should the reader want to pursue more knowledge, and even some movies. She also explains her own experience in transitioning. Just keep in mind everyone won't necessarily fall into this process, everyone transitions in their own way.

[Karen · Rating 5 out of 5]

As I shared the story of my transition with family and friends, I wanted to find something that would help them learn more about the transgender experience. I've read "True Selves" but it just didn't resonate with me. It's never going to be possible to find a "one size fits all" book, but this is as close as I've found. It's a quick read, it covers many topics and it presents trans women in an honest, positive manner. It's a good book for someone who wants to learn "more than a little and less than a lot". I've given many copies of this book to family and close friends and I thank Joanne for making her words available to us.

[Bryan · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a great introductory book especially for those who already know a little about transgender issues, but want to learn more. The primary audience is non-transgender individuals, but it would also be useful for transgender individuals, IMO. It distills a lot of information that would take quite a bit of reading to get otherwise. The added bonus is that the author is MTF transgender (male to female) so she can add a lot of personal experience to the mix of information.

[marmix · Rating 3 out of 5]

While I agree that the chapters do become repetitive (the book is a collection of articles that first appeared in the Advocate), this book provides information on a potentially emotional subject in a straightforward way. I found the author’s list of recommended books for further reading very helpful.

[Irene · Rating 3 out of 5]

There is startlingly little helpful literature on this subject. This book is an excellent guide to give to parents, loved ones, and so on to help explain things to them - as the title promises. It is also potentially useful to the newly-awakened trans individual for a general introduction, but contains no crucial information or guidance.

[Gwen · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a pretty basic book regarding transgender issues. It doesn't have a huge amount of depth and it is a very fast read, but it does have sufficient introductory information for people who know someone who is transgender and want to learn more -- which, according to the title, is exactly what it purports to be.

[Brandi · Rating 4 out of 5]

A good book...lots of background on the (continual) evolution of the transgender community and the way it is viewed by science and people in general. I recommend this for those who find themselves asking "why." This work will help you understand why. It's not a choice. It just is...

[Khris · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was an excellent introduction to the topic which I read as preparation for hosting a panel discussion. Articulate and ultimately a great resource for further reading.

[Michelle Koleva · Rating 5 out of 5]

Very good reading about transgender issues!

[Aleksej Lebedev · Rating 4 out of 5]

A good introduction to the complicated topic in a very calm and neutral tone. Very good read.