To My Trans Sisters

This invigorating anthology, written by trans women for trans women, is a welcome departure from the established genre of texts about trans individuals that seek to explain their lives and experiences for a presumed audience of primarily cisgendered individuals. Editor Craggs, a trans activist and founder of Nail Transphobia, assembles over 70 letters written by trans women, sharing the advice they wish they had been given earlier in life. Rather than documenting the psychological or physiological steps of self-discovery and transition, these letters discuss transness as embedded in fully individual lives. “Don’t get lost in the transition!” writes Kate Stone, founder of Novalia, a groundbreaking printing company. Fashion designer Gogo Graham’s advice is more sobering: alluding to the threat of violence many trans people face, she writes, “Find shoes in which you feel able to run.” Contributors are predominantly from the United States and Britain, though a scattering of letters, such as entries by Audrey Mbugua, a transgender activists based in Kenya, and Miss SaHHara, a singer-songwriter from Thailand, provide global context. The impressive professional and activist credentials of the letter writers, who include the creator of the transgender pride flag and the first transgender officer to serve openly in the U.K. military, might leave the reader wishing for a few unexceptional voices. Yet these women’s success stories help counteract media narratives of tragedy without glossing over the pervasive discrimination and violence trans women, particularly trans women of color, face daily. While this book is written for a trans audience, cis readers will find value in reading a work not written primarily for them. (Nov.)