Here are 100 books that The Detransition Diaries fans have personally recommended if you like
The Detransition Diaries.
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I am a mom who has struggled to understand the changes I have witnessed in my child after she told me she was âtrans.â Nothing about her declaration or how she came to that point made sense to me. As a loving mother and curious person who loves to learn, I studied the topic of gender from multiple angles. As I recorded my research findings and experience, the content developed into a book. I provide a voice for parents who challenge transgender medicalization of cross-sex hormones and surgeries and instead desire natural options to treat the root cause of their childâs distress.Â
This is the first book I discovered that helped me understand what was happening to my daughter after she told me she identified as âtrans.â I learned about the vulnerability of girls to social contagions by peers and social media influencers.
Although I was baffled by reading that gender-affirming care doesnât address the root cause of a girlâs distress and instead helps her rush into a medicalized model with long-term, adverse health effects, it confirmed my familyâs experience.
This book boosted my confidence to advocate for young people to address and heal what lies beneath the proclamation that they were born in the wrong body, and it also helped me understand the potential damage caused by gender drugs and surgeries.
NAMED A BOOK OF THE YEAR BYÂ THE ECONOMISTÂ AND ONE OF THE BEST BOOKS OF 2021 BYÂ THE TIMESÂ ANDÂ THE SUNDAY TIMES
"Irreversible Damage . . . has caused a storm. Abigail Shrier, a Wall Street Journal writer, does something simple yet devastating: she rigorously lays out the facts." âJanice Turner, The Times of London
Until just a few years ago, gender dysphoriaâsevere discomfort in oneâs biological sexâwas vanishingly rare. It was typically found in less than .01 percent of the population, emerged in early childhood, and afflicted males almost exclusively.
It is April 1st, 2038. Day 60 of China's blockade of the rebel island of Taiwan.
The US government has agreed to provide Taiwan with a weapons system so advanced that it can disrupt the balance of power in the region. But what pilot would be crazy enough to runâŚ
I am a mom who has struggled to understand the changes I have witnessed in my child after she told me she was âtrans.â Nothing about her declaration or how she came to that point made sense to me. As a loving mother and curious person who loves to learn, I studied the topic of gender from multiple angles. As I recorded my research findings and experience, the content developed into a book. I provide a voice for parents who challenge transgender medicalization of cross-sex hormones and surgeries and instead desire natural options to treat the root cause of their childâs distress.Â
As a mom who found herself in deep grief from losing a daughter to trans ideology, I connected with this book because it was the first to acknowledge the trauma I experienced as a mom.
In Chapter 10, Mourning the Living, I felt understood by a medical professional for the first time. To have the author acknowledge parental devastation helped me feel seen and less alone.
Reading about the multiple layers of loss: daughter, family relationships, friendships, and the trust of institutions, organizations, and community validated my grief and provided the support I desperately needed in my darkest hours of despondency.Â
Throughout our country, atrocities are taking place in doctor's offices and hospital operating rooms. Physically healthy children and adolescents are being permanently disfigured and sometimes sterilized. Those youth say they're transgender, and we-their parents, teachers, therapists, and doctors-are supposed to agree with their self-diagnosis and take a back seat as they make the most consequential decision of their lives: to alter their bodies in order to, we are told, "align" them with their minds.
Medical, educational, and government authorities advise us to support the "gender journeys" of still developing kids, including medical interventions with poor evidence of long-term improvement.
I am a mom who has struggled to understand the changes I have witnessed in my child after she told me she was âtrans.â Nothing about her declaration or how she came to that point made sense to me. As a loving mother and curious person who loves to learn, I studied the topic of gender from multiple angles. As I recorded my research findings and experience, the content developed into a book. I provide a voice for parents who challenge transgender medicalization of cross-sex hormones and surgeries and instead desire natural options to treat the root cause of their childâs distress.Â
After my daughter identified as trans, I devoured this book, craving a wider understanding of trans identification from other parents. This book contains 75 stories written by parents about the effects of âtransâ in their family life. This large swath of narratives also gave me a better understanding of different age groups of kids influenced by gender ideology.
My trans-identifying daughter is in her late twenties, so I learned a lot from parents about school-aged kids and how medical professionals often disregard the parents of minors. My perspective grew significantly when I read these heartfelt, honest accounts of parental loss and learning.Â
A medical scandal is currently unfolding across Western liberal countries. As Parents with Inconvenient Truths about Trans reveals, the primary victims are vulnerable, socially-awkward kids with normally developing bodies who fall for the Internet-fuelled promise that they can solve their emotional, psychological, or physical discomfort by adopting an opposite-sex identity.
With deep reservations about the new gender orthodoxy that informs this promise and the one-size-fits-all medical prescription that comes with it, the parent contributors to this volume share deeply personal stories about transition and desistance that won't be told at the gender clinic.
A Duke with rigid opinions, a Lady whose beliefs conflict with his, a long disputed parcel of land, a conniving neighbour, a desperate collaboration, a failure of trust, a love found despite it all.
Alexander Cavendish, Duke of Ravensworth, returned from war to find that his father and brother hadâŚ
I am a mom who has struggled to understand the changes I have witnessed in my child after she told me she was âtrans.â Nothing about her declaration or how she came to that point made sense to me. As a loving mother and curious person who loves to learn, I studied the topic of gender from multiple angles. As I recorded my research findings and experience, the content developed into a book. I provide a voice for parents who challenge transgender medicalization of cross-sex hormones and surgeries and instead desire natural options to treat the root cause of their childâs distress.Â
This book appealed to me so I could better understand the ideological agendas affecting women and girls. As a woman and a mom of daughters, I feel troubled by what I have been witnessing as the sex category of âfemaleâ is eliminated in certain contexts.
The author politically leans left, so I learned from her perspective about how our society is being shaped by new ideologies that affect the future of womenâs rights, safe spaces, and fairness in sports. I felt alarmed when I read about what is happening but also grateful to the author for shedding light on the topic so I could be more observant and empowered when my safety and rights as a female are being infringed upon.
"Danskyâs book, The Abolition of Sex, isnât written in the same kind of fulminating, entertainingly rageful prose, but it is a persuasive exercise in no-bullshit argumentation. I recommend it even to people who are inclined to disagree with her." âMatt Taibbi, Meet the Censored: Kara Dansky
The so-called âtransgenderâ agenda is a misogynistic assault on the rights, privacy, and safety of women and girlsâand is being fueled by a massive, vicious, and well-funded industry.
Most Americans do not understand the real threat that the âtransgenderâ agenda, or the so-called âgender identityâ movement, poses toâŚ
Iâm a British author who specializes in writing about diversity and inclusion. Iâve always been a firm believer in equality for all, and I think diversity is such a vital subject for children to learn. Itâs so important to teach children to love themselves and treat others how they would want to be treated, even if they are different than you. I believe a little bit of love goes a long way. I hope you enjoy my list of childrenâs books about diversity and share in my passion for childrenâs books that champion love and acceptance for everyone.
The idea that certain colors are only for certain genders has always bothered me. So, I love that this book addresses this subject without being âpreachy.â It simply says that all colors are for everyone: boys and girls alike. Itâs such an important message for children to learn and it allows young people to celebrate their own identity without fear of judgment. The text itself is very simple and uses clean but impressively colorful illustrations to tell the story.Â
An empowering and educational picture book that proves colors are for everyone, regardless of gender.
Pink is for boys . . . and girls . . . and everyone! This timely and beautiful picture book rethinks and reframes the stereotypical blue/pink gender binary and empowers kids-and their grown-ups-to express themselves in every color of the rainbow. Featuring a diverse group of relatable characters, Pink Is for Boys invites and encourages girls and boys to enjoy what they love to do, whether it's racing cars and playing baseball, or loving unicorns and dressing up. Vibrant illustrations help children learn and identifyâŚ
I think thereâs a little voyeur in all of us, which is why we love reading memoirs. These stories typically are written by people whoâve wrestled with a life-changing event and emerged on the other side with wisdom to share. Whether theyâve grappled with a heartbreaking loss, a debilitating illness, or an unsettling change in circumstances that left them reeling, authors who temper their truth with humor are the ones who inspire me most. Finding hilarity in the midst of hardship is no easy feat, but it reminds us that humor is a great coping skill.
I adore Annabelle Gurwitchâs humor and keen observations. She never loses her trademark wit as she navigates midlife curveballsâdivorce, empty nest, financial challenges, dating, and taking in roommates.
A finalist for The Thurber Prize, this memoir in essays made me laugh as I nodded along in commiseration. Reinventing yourself in midlife can be funny if you look at it right; Gurwitch reminded me just when I needed it most.
"In this surprisingly upbeat memoir, Annabelle Gurwitch writes about the financial curveballs that can hit you in midlife . . . Somehow, Ms. Gurwitch manages to find humor in these setbacks. Ultimately, this is a story about harnessing resilience and learning how lifeâs disappointments can teach you about the things that matter most." âTara Parker-Pope, The New York Times
From the New York Times bestselling author of I See You Made an Effort comes a timely and hilarious chronicle of downward mobility, financial and emotional.
With signature "sharp wit" (NPR), Annabelle GurwitchâŚ
The Duke's Christmas Redemption
by
Arietta Richmond,
A Duke who has rejected love, a Lady who dreams of a love match, an arranged marriage, a house full of secrets, a most unneighborly neighbor, a plot to destroy reputations, an unexpected love that redeems it all.
Lady Charlotte Wyndham, given in an arranged marriage to a man sheâŚ
Iâm a woman in a technology field dominated by men, a person with both mental and physical problems, and Iâve studied a dozen different martial arts. Iâm a mean shot with a bow and love to hurl axes and spears. None of these things are contradictory. Theyâre just different aspects of me. Real people donât fit in boxes and neither should good characters. My world is filled with my Hispanic grandkids, my bi daughter, my gay foster brother, my friends and family and people I love that donât fit the Captain Awesome stereotype. Remember that we, too, can be heroes.
My mother has a service dog, and Iâve inherited a disability or two. The heroine in The Spare Man didnât let her dog or her physical limitations stop her. She even used them to her advantage when she could.
I also loved how the book was an old-school Nick and Nora style murder mystery told in the far future on a space cruise ship. The author mixed those genres like she was mixing a tasty cocktail.
It was glorious fun from first page to last. And like all the stories on my list, it showed how much a hero can shine, no matter what gender or lack of gender she is, no matter how big or how small, what sort of personality or capability she has. It might be more of a mark of courage for a hero to find a friend than storm a castle, but thatâs okay becauseâŚ
Hugo, Locus, and Nebula-Award winner Mary Robinette Kowal blends her no-nonsense approach to life in space with her talent for creating glittering high-society in this stylish SF mystery, The Spare Man.
Tesla Crane, a brilliant inventor and an heiress, is on her honeymoon on an interplanetary space liner, cruising between the Moon and Mars. Sheâs traveling incognito and is reveling in her anonymity. Then someone is murdered and the festering chowderheads who run security have the audacity to arrest her spouse. Armed with banter, martinis and her small service dog, Tesla is determined to solve the crime so that theâŚ
As a Gen X kid growing up in a very conservative place, I struggled with gender, not feeling like the girl I was supposed to be. I knew I wasnât a boy, and that just led to uncertainty and perpetual emotional discomfort. When I first heard about the concept of nonbinary gender a few years ago, my mind was blown. I knew if I were young, I would have immediately come out as nonbinary. But as an older person, it felt weird and pointless. Writing and reading books about people struggling with gender gave me the courage to finally be true to myself, and acknowledge that I am agender.
I loved this nonfiction book because it puts the gender binary in the context of other things that we often falsely consider binaries.
For instance, the mind-body binary is ridiculous when you consider that experiencing emotions is not entirely in the mind, given what we know emotions and stress do to the body, both short-term and long-term. The authors also point out that feelings can be something other than completely positive or completely negative, and that the idea that emotion and rationality, or work and play, are mutually exclusive is absurd.
What makes this book especially good is that it shares practical advice for changing the binary mindset, like avoiding the either/or view by making yourself consider what possibilities are real between two extremesâor in both extremesâat the same time. Marginalized people can use these techniques to avoid judging themselves so harshly, and allies can learn better ways to understandâŚ
'The book we all need for this moment in time.' CN LESTER 'An absolute must read' FOX FISHER 'A genius book' LIBRARY JOURNAL REVIEW
Much of society's thinking operates in a highly rigid and binary manner; something is good or bad, right or wrong, a success or a failure, and so on. Challenging this limited way of thinking, this ground-breaking book looks at how non-binary methods of thought can be applied to all aspects of life, and offer new and greater ways of understanding ourselves and how we relate to others.
Using bisexual and non-binary gender experiences as a startingâŚ
Stuck at home during the pandemic, I started watching historical fiction and fell in love with the British miniseries, Hornblower. Suddenly I found myself writing my own stories about an imprisoned midshipman and Ella Parker, a surgeon that saves him. But there was a plot hole. Women could not be doctors in 19th-century England, leave alone ship surgeons. Thus, I sent Ella into medical school disguised as a man, and Hearts and Sails series was born. Looking for interesting cases for Ella to observe and treat, I became obsessed with the history of modern medicine. I also wanted my character to overcome great obstacles and eventually prove to others what a woman can do.
I scoured this book for strange and dangerous remedies people used to administer and it didnât disappoint. Arsenic, mercury, bloodletting, to name a few. When I read about leeches used to treat painful menstruation, I put the book down⌠to add that gem into my fiction, of course. Interesting stories, great illustrations, great learning, and fun.
A tour of medicine's most outlandish misfires, Quackery dives into 35 "treatments", exploring their various uses and why they thankfully fell out of favour - some more recently than you might think. Looking back in horror and a dash of dark humour, the book provides readers with an illuminating lesson in how medicine is very much an evolving process of trial and error, and how the doctor doesn't always know bests.
This book follows the journey of a writer in search of wisdom as he narrates encounters with 12 distinguished American men over 80, including Paul Volcker, the former head of the Federal Reserve, and Denton Cooley, the worldâs most famous heart surgeon.
In these and other intimate conversations, the bookâŚ
While the Bay Areaâs impact on the way we eat as a country, being at the forefront of the farm-to-table and seasonal produce movement, cocktails are being equal consideration. Why not? Distilled spirits are agricultural products, the same way wine and beer are, and so it reasons that we would worry about how they are made, their history, and the future. Can cocktails be made in a more sustainable way? Can I use beets in my cocktail? Do spirits have a sense of place? And will applying beer to a wound help it heal (note: it wonât)? Hereâs a selection of books that explore the past, present, and possible future of how you drink.
A fun read that explores the surprising history of alcohol used to treat medical maladies, from the Carthusian monks creating herbal elixirs, to the invention of tonic water to cure malaria.
English winds though the various maladies like wounds to worms to snakebites, and all the questionable, but delicious prescriptions, from gin and tonics to bourbon whiskey.
âAt last, a definitive guide to the medicinal origins of every bottle behind the bar! This is the cocktail book of the year, if not the decade.â âAmy Stewart, author of The Drunken Botanist and Wicked Plants
âA fascinating book that makes a brilliant historical case for what Iâve been saying all along: alcohol is good for youâŚokay maybe itâs not technically good for you, but [English] shows that through most of human history, itâs sure beat the heck out of water.â âAlton Brown, creator of Good Eats
Beer-based wound care, deworming with wine, whiskey for snakebites, and medicinal mixersâŚ
