Transmasculine reading list

ISBNs are included to make your life easier. You can call any bookstore and give them any ISBN, and they can easily find it in their computer and order it for you (or tell you if they have it in stock). No more searching shelves, trying to remember the names of publishers, etc.

NetLibrary is a fantastic resource for those in the United States. You have to have access to NetLibrary in order to view it, but check with your local public library – many public libraries have a subscription to NetLibrary and can help you set up an account. There are also a number of other Trans-related books on there, mostly non-fiction. Notably, there is a book available about Asperger’s/autism and transsexualism. It may not be the ideal way to read a book, but it is a cheap, accessible way to find something you may be having a hard time getting your hands on.

If you are in the US and looking for a print copy of something and having trouble finding it, search at WorldCat, which asks for your ZIP code and spits out a list of libraries near you that have the book you ask for. In many cases, your public library can request a copy on interlibrary loan at no cost to you. Most librarians are way more interested in you having access to information than they are in your gender identity, so it’s a pretty safe group to make this kind of request of, even if you are trying to be discrete or you have some concerns about being judged.

Books of Photography

Cameron, Loren. Body Alchemy: Transsexual Portraits. Cleis Press (1996). ISBN 978-1573440622

Absolutely amazing.

Volcano, Del La Grace and Halberstam, Judith “Jack”. The Drag King Book. Consortium Book Sales & Distributers (1999). ISBN 978-1852426071

GREAT book.

Biographies and Autobiographies

Allen, Robert (1954). BUT FOR THE GRACE: the true story of a dual existence. London: W.H. Allen. ASIN B000QRGBMS

Hewitt, Paul with Warren, Jane. A Self-Made Man: The Diary of a Man Born In a Woman’s Body. (Headline Books, 1995) ISBN 978-0747249986

I thought people might be interested to hear that there have been 3 FTM autobiographies (see Hewitt, and Rees) printed in the UK in 1995. All are well worth adding to your library. Both (Thompson, and Hewitt) are ghost written which is perhaps unfortunate in the way they have been edited, and the way the emphasis is. However Ray Thompson’s book is an excellent account of being a FTM who has a hard time, and ends up on the wrong side of the law, in prison etc. Paul’s is much more a diary account of the actual process of transition. Both are members of the UK FTM network. (commentary by Stephen Whittle)

Hodgkinson, Liz (1999). Michael Nee Laura, The Story of the World’s First Female To Male Transsexual. London: Columbus Books Ltd. ISBN 978-0862878726

Text from the book’s jacket: Oxford blue, garage hand, medical student, philanthropist, ship’s doctor, prolific author, heir to a baronetcy and ordained Buddhist; the subject of this biography was all of these, but most extraordinary of all, Michael Dillon was born female. Liz Hodgkinson’s account of the life of this remarkable and accomplished individual is based on Dillon’s unpublished autobiography and correspondence as well as extensive interviews with those who knew him.

Johnson, Chris; and Brown, Cathy with Wendy Nelson. The Gender Trap: the moving autobiography of Chris and Cathy, the first known transsexual parents. (London: Proteus Books, 1982) ISBN 978-0906071540

Jones, Aphrodite. All She Wanted. (Brandon Teena Story) Simon & Schuster. ISBN 978-0671023881

Kailey, Matt. Just Add Hormones: An Insider’s Guide to the Transsexual Experience. Boston: Beacon Press, 2005. ISBN 978-0807079591

A candid look at gender roles and reassignment from a middle-aged, Midwestern, middle-of-the-road transman.

Matt Kailey lived as a straight woman for the first forty-two years of his life, and then he changed. With the help of a good therapist, chest surgery, and some strong doses of testosterone, Kailey began living life as the man he’d always wanted to be. Now, in Just Add Hormones, Kailey uses humour and humility to explain his journey toward accepting himself as neither a woman nor someone born male.

Kailey answers all the questions you’ve ever had about what it’s like to live as a transsexual. From the fear of public restrooms to deciding whether to “pack” his pants, he explains what the world looks like from his new male vantage point. More than a memoir, Just Add Hormones is full of advice for those who may be questioning their gender while also offering valuable insights to the family and friends of those who have started a transition.

People frequently ask Kailey “Are you done?” In Just Add Hormones, Kailey reassures readers that being a transsexual is about more than some operation: it is a state of mind, a place between the two genders that can cause us all to consider – and even laugh at – our own notions of what being a man or a woman means.
Matt Kailey is an author, journalist, public speaker, and female-to-male transsexual. A former social worker, he now writes and speaks on issues of gender and sexuality. Kailey lives in Denver, Colorado.

Kobak, Annette (198). Isabelle: The Life of Isabelle Eberhardt. New York: Alfred A. Knopf. ISBN 978-0679728214

Biography of FTM Arab Si Mahmoud, late 19th century.

Krieger, Nick (2011). Nina Here Nor There: My Journey Beyond Gender. Beacon Press. ISBN 978-0807000922

The next-generation Stone Butch Blues – a contemporary memoir of gender awakening and a classic tale of first love and self-discovery. Ambitious, sporty, feminine “capital-L lesbians” had been Nina Krieger’s type, for friends that is. She hadn’t dated in seven years, a period of non-stop travelling – searching for what, or avoiding what, she didn’t know.

When she lands in San Francisco’s Castro neighbourhood, her roommates introduce her to a whole new world, full of people who identify as queer, who modify their bodies and blur the line between woman and man, who defy everything Nina thought she knew about gender and identity. Despite herself, Nina is drawn to the people she once considered freaks, and before long, she is forging a path that is neither man nor woman, here nor there. This candid and humorous memoir of gender awakening brings readers into the world of the next generation of Transgender warriors and tells a classic tale of first love and self-discovery.

Martino, Mario (1979). Emergence: A Transsexual Autobiography. Signet. ISBN 978-0451085207

Middlebrook, Diane Wood (1999). Suits Me: The Double Life of Billy Tipton. Mariner Books. ISBN 978-0395957899

Rees, Mark. Dear Sir Or Madam. (Cassells, 1995) ISBN 978-0304333943

(This book) is by one of the pioneers in the UK. Mark Rees was the first TS in the UK to go to the European Court of Human Rights, also he is one of the founders of Press For Change the campaign and lobby group on behalf of TS/TG rights over here, and is a great campaigner on behalf of the cause with a very public profile over here. He is also a leading figure in the FTM network. (commentary by Stephen Whittle)

Schofield, Scott Turner. Two Truths and a Lie. Homofactus Press, 2007. ISBN 978-0978597320. Can be ordered at http://www.homofactuspress.com/

Homofactus Press proudly announces Two Truths and a Lie, a memoir in the form of three solo plays written and performed by critically acclaimed solo artist Scott Turner Schofield. From inside the often hilarious — but all too real — moments of his young life on the Homecoming Court and Debutante Ball circuit (in a dress), armed with only a decoder ring and a gifted tongue, Schofield comes out with truly unbelievable stories of a body in search of an identity. By turns slapstick and slap-to-the-face, this drama invites audiences and readers to explore gender, sex, sexuality, and self in their own first person.

Scholinski, Daphne (1998). The Last Time I Wore a Dress. Riverhead Books. ISBN 978-1573226967

Note that Scholinski’s first name is now Dylan, but the book is published under Daphne.

Smith, Pete. Long Time Coming.

Sullivan, Louis G. (1990). From Female To Male: The Life of Jack Bee Garland. Boston: Alyson Publications Inc. ISBN 978-1555831509

Thompson, Raymond with Sewell, Kittey. What Took You So Long: A Girl’s Journey to Manhood. (Penguin Books, 1995) ISBN 978-0140246452 (see commentary under Hewitt, Paul)

Academic-Type Books

Dekken, R.M and Van de Pol, Lotte C. (1989). The Tradition Of Female Transvestism In Early Modern Europe. London: Macmillan Press Ltd. ISBN 978-0333412534

Devor, Holly. FTM – Female to Male Transsexuals in Society. (Indiana University Press, 1996) ISBN 978-0253212597

Note that Devor’s first name is now Aaron, but his books are published under Holly. One person says, “This book has 695 pages and reads more like a textbook than anything else. In my opinion, it’s worth reading, but not worth purchasing. Try to borrow a copy from a library or someone you know. Many therapists will have a copy.”

Hage, J. Joris (1992). From peniplastica totalis to reassignment surgery of the external genitalia in female-to-male transsexuals. Amsterdam: Vrieji Universiteit Press. ISBN 978-9053831151

Reviews the various stages of constructing male genitalia and gives outcome data for the author’s work. Very comprehensive. Illustrations, photographs. 16-page bibliography. Remember, this was published in 1992 and thus is somewhat out of date in terms of procedure descriptions, etc.

This book is currently out of print, but you may be able to find a used copy.

Hargreaves, Reginald (1930). Women At Arms – their famous exploits throughout the ages. London: Hutchinson & Co., Ltd.

Sullivan, Louis G. (1985). Information For the Female-To-Male Cross Dresser and Transsexual. Seattle, WA: Ingersoll Gender Centre. ASIN B000732WKQ

Covers all important topics, from a historical review of “passing” women to issues of masculine presentation and top and bottom surgeries. Photographs, illustrations. Note that it’s quite dated at this point.

For Therapists and Helping Professionals

Brill, Stephanie and Pepper, Rachel. The Transgender Child: A Handbook for Families and Professionals. Cleis Press, 2008. ISBN 978-1573443180

What do you do when your son insists on wearing a dress to school? Or when your toddler daughter’s first sentence is that she’s a boy? Offering an extensive understanding of gender-variant and transgender youth, The Transgender Child answers these questions and more. Covering developmental, legal, medical, and school issues, The Transgender Child is a comprehensive, first-of-its-kind guidebook for the unique challenges that thousands of families face raising children who step outside of the pink or blue box.

Ettner, Randi (1996). Confessions of a Gender Defender: A Psychologist’s Reflections on Life Among the Transgendered. Chicago Spectrum Press. ISBN 978-1886094512

Ettner, Randi and Brown, George (1999). Gender Loving Care: A Guide to Counselling Gender-Variant Clients. W.W. Norton & Company. ISBN 978-0393703047

Gorton, Buth, and Spade (2005). Medical Therapy and Health Maintenance for Transgender Men: A Guide For Health Care Providers. Available free in several formats at http://www.nickgorton.org/

Israel, Gianna E., and others (1998). Transgender Care: Recommended Guidelines, Practical Information, and Personal Accounts. Temple University Press. ISBN 978-1566398527

Kirk, Sheila, M.D. (1994). Masculinizing Hormonal Therapy For the Female-To-Male Transgendered. Waltham, MA: IFGE Publications. ISBN 978-1887796026

Written for the Transgender consumer by a Transgender physician, this 36-page booklet contains a wealth of information on male hormones.

Lev, Arlene Istar (2004). Transgender Emergence: Therapeutic Guidelines for Working with Gender-Variant People and Their Families. Haworth Press. ISBN 978-0789021175

Lev, a family therapist in Albany, NY, takes a feminist family- systems perspective that approaches transgenderism as a normal and potentially healthy variation of human expression. Positing that transgendered people are not “mentally ill,” but rather are trying to adapt and cope with an untenable culture, she describes a therapeutic empowerment model for clinical assessment and advocacy on behalf of gender-variant people.

Re-examining the historic therapeutic focus, she writes, “forces the clinical community to re-evaluate some of its cherished philosophies of treatment, including the validity of the diagnosis of gender identity disorder, the surgical treatment of intersexed babies, and the mandated treatment of gender-variant children and adolescents.” Copyright 2004 Book News, Inc., Portland, OR – This text refers to the Hardcover edition.

Shackman, Joshua; Ptacek, Greg; & Ullis, Karin C. (1999). Super “T”: The Complete Guide to Creating an Effective, Safe, and Natural Testosterone Supplement Program for Men and Women. Fireside. ISBN: 978-0684863351

Family

Boenke, Mary (editor) (2003). Trans Forming Families: Real Stories About Transgendered Loved Ones, 2nd Edition. Oak Knoll Press. ISBN 978-0615123073

Highly recommended.

Brill, Stephanie and Pepper, Rachel. The Transgender Child: A Handbook for Families and Professionals. Cleis Press, 2008. ISBN 978-1573443180

What do you do when your son insists on wearing a dress to school? Or when your toddler daughter’s first sentence is that she’s a boy? Offering an extensive understanding of gender-variant and transgender youth, The Transgender Child answers these questions and more. Covering developmental, legal, medical, and school issues, The Transgender Child is a comprehensive, first-of-its-kind guidebook for the unique challenges that thousands of families face raising children who step outside of the pink or blue box.

Gillespie, Peggy and Martin, April (1999). Love Makes a Family: Portraits of Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, and Transgender Parents and Their Families. University of Massachusetts Press. ISBN 978-1558491618

Highly recommended.

Howey, Noelle; Samuels, Ellen; and Cammermeyer, Margarethe (2000). Out of the Ordinary: Essays on Growing up with Gay, Lesbian and Transgender Parents. St Martin’s Press. ISBN 978-0312244897

Martinez, Jace (2007). My Mommy Is a Boy. For sale at http://jcarsner.tripod.com/id23.html

A children’s book about having an FTM parent.

Work

Brown, Mildred L. & Rounsley, Chloe Ann (1996). True Selves: Understanding Transsexualism – For Families, Friends, Coworkers, and Helping Professionals. Jossey-Bass Publishers. ISBN 978-0787967024
Walworth, Janis (1998). Transsexual Workers: An Employer’s Guide. Centre for Gender Sanity. ISBN 978-0966548808
Walworth, Janis (1999). Working with a Transsexual: A Guide for Co-Workers. Center for Gender Sanity. ISBN 978-0966548815

School

Howard, Kim and Stevens, Annie (Editors) (2000). Out & About Campus: Personal Accounts by Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual & Transgender College Students. Alyson Publishers. ISBN 978-1555834807
Sanlo, Ronnie L. (Editor) (1998). Working with Gay, Lesbian, Bisexual and Transgender College Students. Greenwood Publishing Group. ISBN 978-0313302275. Highly recommended.

Fiction

Beam, Cris. I Am J. (Little, Brown, 2011) ISBN 978-0316053617

Story about a teen FTM.

Growing up, J always thought of himself as a boy stuck in the body of a girl. In elementary school J shunned his mom’s attempts to stick him in dresses and preferred the rough-and-tumble play of boys on the playground. Now, as a teenager, J’s Puerto Rican mother and Jewish father want him to think about his future and one day start a family, a possibility that makes J feel misunderstood and anxious about what lies ahead. So after an argument with his best friend, J strikes out on his own.

He starts classes at a school for Transgender and gay teens, but the complications resulting from who he is and who he wants to be prevent J from truly connecting with anyone. Fed up hiding inside layers of oversized t-shirts, J decides to explore testosterone treatments and embarks on a path that will test his patience, maturity, and commitment. Author Cris Beam’s extraordinary understanding of this often overlooked population shows in J a complex, conflicted character whose emotional journey will resonate beyond the final page.

Equally impressive is Beam’s vivid dialog, which illuminates relationships and situations that any teen who has felt isolated will easily relate to. Thoughtfully researched and written, I Am J’ is ultimately an inspiring novel about deciding to lead the life one is meant to–no matter at what cost. –Jessica Schein for Amazon Best Books of the Month, March 2011

Feinberg, Leslie. Stone Butch Blues. (Ithaca, NY: Firebrand Books, 1993) ISBN 978-1555838539

About a butch lesbian who explores transitioning, but returns to living as female. Won the Lambda Literary Award for best lesbian novel.

Woman or man? That’s the question that rages like a storm around Jess Goldberg, clouding her life and her identity. This book tells of her coming to terms with the tempest of who she is. Growing up differently, coming out as butch in the bars and the feminist ’60s, taking hormones and passing as a man to get a job in the ’70s, she must ultimately deal with her Transgender status when her hormones wear off and she is brought full circle in her identity.

Kennedy, Ryan and Edwards, Hazel. F2M: The Boy Within. (Ford Street Publishing, 2010) About an FTM teen in Australia. ISBN 978-1876462901

What happens when who you are on the inside clashes with what you are on the outside?

All adolescents face the quest for identity, but gender change complicates ‘coming of age’.

School-leaver Skye plays guitar in her all-girl band, The Chronic Cramps. Making her name in the punk music scene is easier than FTM (female to male) transitioning: from Skye to Finn, from girl to man. At the school reunion, Finn faces victimisation, but challenges the bullies.

Uncovering genetic mysteries about family heritage tears the family apart. Gran’s loved sibling Al was also Alberta. Transgender identity is more than hormones and surgery, it’s about acceptance. Going public, Finn sings FTM lyrics on TV.

With a little help from bemused mates and parents who don’t want to lose a daughter, but who love their teenager, Finn is transitioning.

Tremain, Rose. Sacred Country. (Washington Square Press/Pocket Books, 1999) ISBN 978-0671886097

I don’t read very many novels for two reasons. First, I don’t have much time for leisure reading. Second, very few interest me enough to get past the first few pages. So this summer when a friend asked me if I’d read (this) book, I replied “no, and I probably won’t.” She handed it to me anyway and said, “read this,” indicating the blurbs on the back. I can’t say it any better, so I quote:

“On February 15, 1952, as England observes two minutes of silence in honour of the dead King, Mary Ward, age six, realises with perfect clarity her true identity: ‘I have a secret to tell you, dear, and this is it: I am not Mary. That is a mistake. I am not a girl. I’m a boy.’

“Mary’s fight to become Martin, society’s hypocrisy, and its abundant left-of-centre characters are the core of this remarkable and intimate novel. Sacred Country spans three decades, from the repressive English countryside of the fifties to the swinging London of the sixties and the rhinestone tackiness of seventies America. Emotional yet unsentimental, as daring and inventive as Virginia Woolf’s Orlando, Sacred Country inspires us to reconsider the essence of gender, and proposes new insights in unraveling that timeless malady known as the human condition–insights certain to touch and possible even unmask the ‘sacred country’ within us all.”

It is a remarkable novel that accurately captures without unnecessary angst what it is to be FTM. I rarely read a novel a second time, but I will this one. I highly recommend it. (commentary by Jason Cromwell)

Wittlinger, Ellen (2007). Parrotfish. ISBN 978-1416916222

Angela McNair is a boy! Oh, to the rest of the world she’s obviously a girl. But the Transgender high school junior knows that she’s a boy. And so, bravely, Angela cuts her hair short, buys boys’ clothing, and announces that his name is now Grady and that he is beginning his true new life as a boy. Of course, it’s not as simple as that; Grady encounters an array of reactions ranging from outright hostility to loving support.

To her credit, Wittlinger has managed to avoid the operatic (no blood is shed, no lives are threatened) but some readers may wonder if – in so doing – she has made things a bit too easy for Grady. His initially bewildered family rallies around him; he finds a champion in a female gym teacher; he loses but then regains a best friend while falling in love with a beautiful, mixed-race girl. Wittlinger, who is exploring new, potentially off-putting ground here (only Julie Anne Peters’ Luna, 2004,has dealt with this subject before in such detail), manages to create a story sufficiently non-threatening to appeal to–and enlighten–a broad range of readers, including those at the lower end of the YA spectrum. She has also done a superb job of untangling the complexities of gender identity and showing the person behind labels like “gender dysphoria.” Grady turns out to be a very normal boy who, like every teen, must deal with vexing issues of self-identity. To his credit, he does this with courage and grace, managing to discover not only the “him” in self but, also, the “my.” -Michael Cart

Other

Bornstein, Kate. (1994). Gender Outlaw: On Men, Women & the Rest of Us. Vintage Books. ISBN 978-0679757016

The work of a woman who has been through some changes: a former heterosexual male, a one-time Scientologist and IBM salesperson, now a lesbian woman writer, actress, and performance artist. In this disarming account of her life and genders, Bornstein covers the mechanics of her surgery, as well as everything you’ve always wanted to know about gender.

Bornstein, Kate (2006). Hello, Cruel World: 101 Alternatives to Suicide for Teens, Freaks and Other Outlaws. Seven Stories Press. ISBN 978-1583227206
Bornstein, Kate (1997). My Gender Workbook: How to Become a Real Man, a Real Woman, the Real You, or Something Else Entirely. Routledge. ISBN 978-0415916738
Brown, Mildred L. & Rounsley, Chloe Ann (1996). True Selves: Understanding Transsexualism – For Families, Friends, Coworkers, and Helping Professionals. Jossey-Bass Publishers. ISBN 978-0787967024
Burke, Phyllis (1996). Gender Shock: Exploding the Myths of Male and Female. Anchor Books. ISBN 978-0385477178
Califia, Patrick. (2003). Sex Changes: The Politics of Transgenderism. Cleis Press. ISBN 978-1573441803

Highly recommended. Patrick Califia writes:

“What would it be like to grow up in a society where gender was truly consensual? If the rite of passage was to name your own gender at adolescence, or upon your transition into adulthood? What would it be like to walk down the street, go to work, or attend a party and take it for granted that the gender of the people you met would not be the first thing you ascertained about them? … If these questions frighten, offend, or annoy you, you are one of the people who stand to benefit from transactivism – although it probably doesn’t feel like your benefactor. And if these questions amuse, engage, and challenge you, you’re probably a transactivist already. Welcome to the genderevolution.”

Cromwell, Jason (1999). Transmen and FTMs: Identities, Bodies, Genders, and Sexualities. University of Illinois Press. ISBN 978-0252068256
Feinberg, Leslie. (1999). Trans Liberation: Beyond Pink or Blue. Beacon Press. ISBN 978-0807079515

A short collection of Feinberg’s speeches. Truly inspiring to read, not dry or boring at all.

Feinberg, Leslie. (1997). Transgender Warriors: Making History from Joan of Arc to Dennis Rodman. Beacon Press. ISBN 978-0807079416
Fox, Katrina and O’Keefe, Tracie. Trans-X-U-All: The Naked Difference. ISBN 978-0952948209 (Currently out of print, but used copies may be available)
Green, Jamison. Becoming A Visible Man. (Nashville, TN: Vanderbilt University Press, 2004) ISBN 978-0826514578

In this artful and compelling inquiry into the politics of gender, leading transsexual activist Jamison Green combines candid autobiography with informed analysis to offer unique insight into the multiple challenges of the female-to-male transsexual experience, ranging from encounters with prejudice and strained relationships with family to the development of an FTM community and the realities of surgical sex reassignment.

Brimming with frank and often poignant recollections of Green’s own experiences – including his childhood struggles with identity and his years as a lesbian parent prior to his sex-reassignment surgery – the book examines transsexualism as a human condition, and sex reassignment as one of the choices that some people feel compelled to make in order to manage their gender variance.

Halbarstam, Judith (1998). Female Masculinity. Duke University Press. ISBN 978-0822322436
Just Evelyn; Lindenmuth, Evelyn D.; Warhmund, Andrew; and Trook, Dawn. Mom, I Need to be a Girl. ISBN 978-0966327205

Also available free for download in English, Arabic, French, German, Hebrew, Portuguese, or Spanish at http://ai.eecs.umich.edu/people/conway/TS/Evelyn/Evelyn.html.

Kay, Kerwin; Gould, Baruch; and Nagle, Jill (2000). Male Lust: Pleasure, Power, and Transformation. Haworth Publishers. ISBN 978-1560239826
Langer, Jiri; Jolly, Stephen (Translator); and Langer, Mordechai Georgo (1993). Nine Gates to the Chasidic Mysteries. Jason Aronson Press. ISBN 978-0874412413
MacKenzie, Gordene Olga (1994). Transgender Nation. Popular Press. ISBN 978-0879725976
More, Kate & Whittle, Stephen (Editors) (2000). Reclaiming Genders: Transsexual at the Fin De Siecle. Cassette College Audio. ISBN 978-0304337767
Pratt, Minnie Bruce. (1995). S/He. Firebrand Books. ISBN 978-1563410598

From the partner of a Trans person. Mainly poetry … absolutely beautiful. Recommended.

Ramsey, Gerald, Ph.D. Transsexuals: Candid Answers to Private Questions. ISBN 978-0895947901
Sullivan, Louis. (1990). Information for the female-to-male cross-dresser and transsexual. Seattle, WA: Ingersoll Gender Centre. ASIN B000732WKQ

Covers all important topics, from a historical review of “passing” women to issues of masculine presentation and top and bottom surgeries. Photographs, illustrations. Note that it’s a bit dated at this point.

Swan, Wallace (Editor) (1998). Gay/Lesbian/Bisexual/Transgender Public Policy Issues: A Citizen’s and Administrator’s Guide to New Cultural Struggle. Haworth Publishers. ISBN 978-1560239161
Wilchins, Riki Anne. Read My Lips: Sexual Subversion and the End of Gender. ISBN 978-1563410901

Videos/DVDs

The ratings listed for these films are based in the United States. Most of them are linked to their pages on IMDB.com, where you can find their ratings in many countries, including (depending on the film) the UK, Australia, Canada, Argentina, Brazil, Chile, Denmark, Finland, France, Germany, Mexico, the Netherlands, Norway, Portugal, South Korea, Spain, and Sweden.

Ma Vie En Rose (My Life In Pink) (VHS video, in French with English subtitles, rated R) DVD ASIN B00001W9FZ; video ASIN 0767803337

Seven-year-old Ludovic can’t wait to grow up to be a woman. When his family discovers the little girl blossoming in him, they are forced to contend with their own discomfort and the lack of understanding from their new neighbours. Ludovic is sent to see a psychiatrist in the hopes of fixing whatever is wrong with him. This film beautifully addresses transgender and gender issues in general through the eyes of a child.

Transgender Revolution (VHS video, not rated) video ASIN 076701412X

Available from the Arts and Entertainment Network, aetv.com, 1888 423 1212.

You Don’t Know Dick: Courageous Hearts of Transsexual Men (VHS video, not rated)

Documentary, 75 minutes long. Very well done and extraordinarily sympathetic. The trans male experience in the first person.

This gallant and intimate program deepens gender and identity discourse and will touch you in places you least expect. Transsexuals are a minority within a minority, and yet their stories speak to anyone who has ever felt different from the perceived social norm. You Don’t Know Dick: Courageous Hearts of Transsexual Men profiles the experiences of a diverse range of female-to-male transsexuals, including an artist, two writers, a San Francisco police officer, and Loren Cameron, the creator of “Body Alchemy,” a photographic document of the journey from woman to man. Through their explorations and the experiences of their partners, friends and family comes a profound story of self-discovery that challenges all of us to re-examine the foundations of our own identity. These men have embarked upon an enormous struggle to recover their dignity and an identity denied.

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