Author and photographer Susan Kuklin met and interviewed six transgender or gender-neutral young adults and used her considerable skills to represent them thoughtfully and respectfully before, during, and after their personal acknowledgment of gender preference. Portraits, family photographs, and candid images grace the pages, augmenting the emotional and physical journey each youth has taken. Each honest discussion and disclosure, whether joyful or heartbreaking, is completely different from the other because of family dynamics, living situations, gender, and the transition these teens make in recognition of their true selves.
This is a collection of stories about several transgender teens. I'm purposely not putting a star rating on this because I don't feel it appropriate to put a rating on their stories, because they are just that their stories. Seeing the journeys that each of these people have gone through is something that has helped me to grow as a person. I've tried to explain to my husband why it is so important for me to be gender affirming to those who are in this situation (or anyone for that matter) and this book just gives me more reasons to do so. You never know what someone is dealing with. If I can help one person to feel like themselves in their own skin by using pronouns that make them comfortable, I'm going to do that. This book (and others that I've read recently) are opening my eyes to the people who have been too long kept in the shadows or the closet. Let them out and let them be who they are.
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