Transitions of the heart - book discontinued by Cleis Press Inc. - review by caffeinated

From Sarah to Sean, Jenna to John, Thomas to Tonya...

Transitions of the Heart is an incredibly important read for anyone interested in learning more about the process of acceptance for the families of transgender and gender variant individuals. Whether a transgender individual, family member, friend, or simply someone who is interested in widening their perspective on gender issues, readers of Transitions will be glad that they picked it up.

Transitions of the Heart was edited by Rachel Pepper and has a foreword by Kim Pearson, who is the Executive Director and Co-founder of Transyouth Family Allies. It has over thirty stories from mothers of transgender and gender variant children, each of which adds to the variety and diversity of the book as a whole. From single mothers to adoptive mothers to mothers whose own childhoods weren't stable to mothers with a large variety of spiritual beliefs, the authors of the stories that make up Transitions have so many different outlooks on the identities and decisions of their children. While there is always tenderness and maternal affection in the writing, some mothers are much more accepting than others, representing the wide variety of responses that transgender children receive from their families when coming out.

I really appreciate Transitions of the Heart for stepping away from more clinical, detached portrayals of transgender issues and choosing instead to focus on the emotional nature of transgender identity for transgender individuals and their loved ones. I chose to review Transitions in part because one of my friends recently told me that he was transgender, and I wanted to develop a better understanding of the implications of this identity. Transitions of the Heart definitely gave me what I was looking for, and I am eager to read more literature on the subject of transgender identity in the future. I'm also excited to share this book with my friend!

I feel that this book is a must-read for transgender individuals, their families, and for anyone who wants to add more dimension to their understanding of what it means to be transgender or to have a transgender loved one. For those who are transgender, I hope that this book gives them courage to share their identity with their family and friends, knowing that those who truly love them will still love them, regardless of whether they are male or female.

I still love this book so much; it actually sits with a collection of other books on sex and sexuality in my apartment. It has given me a lot of empathy for my friends who are transsexual and it has allowed me to add more dimension to my understanding of the joys and difficulties of loving someone who is transsexual.