Transition by Chaz Bono

[katekintailbc]

Transition
by Chaz Bono

I was born in the 80s, so I didn't have the same familiarity with Chastity as people like my parents have. I knew Chas through occasional appearances on TV or LOGO shows. When I heard that Chaz was going to change genders, I think I remember my reaction was a shrug and a "oh, cool." It's a personal decision, albeit a particularly brave one. Though I did think it was pretty awesome that he allowed a documentary access, so others could see what he went through leading up to the surgery, during, and after.

Also, I don't read a lot of biographies. Probably 1% or less of what I read are biographies. But when I saw tons of copies of this book at Borders, looking all sad and on serious sale as the store was going out of business... I took a chance and bought a copy. I enjoy LGBTQ stories and figured that I could always just put it in the next bookbox to come my way.

To my surprise, I LOVED this book. There were a few times when Chaz seemed to be justifying his decision and lifestyle to the reader, which is not something I needed. I also felt like a few times, things stated in the book could easily have come across to some readers as the old "lesbians just want to be men" thing, which is utterly ridiculous (Chaz admits he didn't always fit in as a lesbian either, which makes sense because he's actually a man).

But most of the book was spent just talking about his realizations and the struggle to be who he wanted to be. Coming out not just once (realization that she liked girls) but twice (realization that she should be male) was incredible. I loved really understanding what that took--all the wonderful moments (loves, successes, acceptances) and terrible ones (losses, drug addiction, difficult relationships) as well--that led up to it. But it's not just about the mental journey--it's also about the physical one. We see exactly what the transition was like on many levels. Along with insights and observations from Chaz's childhood until now, we even get a bunch of pictures of Chaz spanning the early years to today.

I guess the only real problem I had with this book is that some chapters are a bit subject based and jumping around in time made it REALLY hard to figure out exactly what happened when. Suddenly Chaz was living back in an old house or still with someone who I'd thought the relationship with ended already. I had a tough time keeping track of the passage of time, when Cher was talking to her or not, etc. for some of the first half of the book. But, hey, maybe that confusion just lead to the overall tone for that part of the book.

Chaz's situation is a very unique one, having grown up in the public eye, however, it's also one that is easily accessible to any reader--be they lesbian, straight, bi, or what have you. I can imagine it would be extremely useful for someone considering a change in gender. There is SO little out there for the trans community, and I feel like this book might be a big help in understanding one person's personal journey. More importantly, it helps us all understand each other a little better. I was inspired many times throughout while reading, and it certainly had me thinking about gender roles (and how people treat others in society) and the role of fear in my own life as I tried to figure out who I was.

I highly recommend this book. It's a fast but uplifting and worthwhile read.