Reviews

Fantastically queer work by Roz Kaveney, my first read by this badass trans, feminist activist. It's just the type of radical work I'm seeking out, a gritty depiction of trans street life mostly among sex workers in Chicago in the 1970s. I love the way the women support each other but also can dish out the T as only family can. These women are fierce, fearless, will kick the shit out of the heteropatriarchy, then go out for brunch after. The brutality is startling at times, like when a character is accused of doing drugs again by her transgodmother, locked in a camping sleeping bag, then tossed from a 7th floor window - she survives but DAMN! Talk about tough love.

The editing can be rudimentary, there are some misspellings and quite a few incoherent transitions - but the writing is whip-smart and fiendishly queer. This is not trans 101, you don't get baby explanations of these women's lives, you either know or you don't know - I love it <3

chukg's review against another edition

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4.0

Fairly short, I read it in paper so I kept picking it up and putting it down. Kind of reminded me of Hubert Selby or maybe Kerouac? Except it came out fairly recently and was first written in the late 80s, based on events that happened in the late 70s, early 80s. Lots of good turns of phrase, the third person keeps us a bit distant from the protagonist. Often a subtle book.

circesophelia's review against another edition

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challenging dark emotional funny informative reflective fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

Some of the best pieces of literature in all of human history have come from a place of desperation and necessity. This is certainly the case here. The story of it's origin, existing in manuscript for 25 years before being published shows the importance and lasting impact of this book. While nothing groundbreaking happens, the focus in minute detail of people so often forgotten in literature creates a stunning view of life for trans people in Chicago at the time. I personally believe the influence of this book, the characterisation in particular, can be viewed within the work of Gaiman, an early supporter of this book. It picked me up and swept me away, often in a way I didn't understand. As the culture moves the way it does, this book must be read.

nosie's review

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challenging dark funny fast-paced

Strong character development? It's complicated
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

rhodered's review

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4.0

It took me a while to get into this book and then I was in love with it by the end. Now I'm wondering if maybe that was a super-clever author trick to echo how uncomfortable (or just awkward) Annabelle feels at first in the UK and US, and then the writing unfurls bit by bit as she finds her feet, odd strangers turn into friends, or at least known compatriots, and banter and adventures take the place of wary unease.

By the end of the book, the story that began in such an ungainly fashion has clearly transformed itself into the adventure of a lifetime. Something to look back on with a mixture of horror (omg I actually did that), pride (omg I actually did that), and delight (ditto).

I was quite fed up with Annabelle's naïveté in the New York train station - really I was traveling on my own during the same time period, although I was far younger than she was and I would never, ever have done anything so stupid.

But then she absolutely won me over with her descriptions of the underbelly of Chicago in the late 70s. Not just the background dirty, hardscrabble city with burnt bits, but mostly the relationships between oddballs on the down and out, girls scrabbling together, alternately stabbing, aiding, competing, allying, gossiping and nearly always falling for unsuitable men.

(There are, in fact, no positive men in this book that I can recall. The girls are at the center, men are on the periphery and they are weak or pompous or assholes or dull.)

It was also a bit of a shock to read of a world without cell phones, ATMs, Internet or credit cards being used by all and sundry. The shock in fact came from just how unusual it seemed, I had forgotten how we all managed. At least there was superglue!

You might say a weakness of the book is the fact that we never quite know why Annabelle takes this plunge into the underworld. Even when things were at their worst, she has an apartment and career back in London, plus a plane ticket to get there. However, that doesn't bother me because I don't think many of us always know why we do what we do, plus survival in those circumstances takes a lot out of you. And, it was a terrifically good adventure in the end. She got lucky and she knew it.

Highly recommended for anyone into the 1979-era, trans bios, stories of intense friendships between women who are close due to circumstances rather than selection, and/or just really great banter.

A side note: the book's mostly about trans women. Not one trans man is mentioned. In my memory of back then, the worlds of LGT rarely intersected. In particular the genders stayed in separate camps. So separate I think I would have called them uneasy allies at best in the immediate wake of the women's movement. That's just my recollection though, it was a long time ago and I was only ever on the periphery myself. So I could be wrong. But this narrative fits that to some extent.

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