“Beyond the gender binary” is a pocketbook by Alok Vaid-Menon.
It is a short, single-chapter, 65 page book, and took a little over an hour for me to complete.
I was encouraged to read the book by a colleague to develop awareness of the LGBTQIA+ community and learn off their daily experiences.
The first half of the book speaks about the author’s evolution and experience as a gender non-conforming trans feminine.
The second half addresses arguments against gender non-conforming people.
Structure And Style
The book points out that for many things, we focus on the topic (gender fluidity), without ever focusing on experiences of people living it.
The first half attempts to bridge the gap by sharing the experience of the author.
It questions the power structure of the society and institutions, and do they really encourage people to be different, or only different to a point where it allows them to place people in boxes without making things uncomfortable for the institutions.
The second half of the book addresses common talking-points against gender non-conforming people.
This part of the book is well structured.
The arguments are categorized into four categories – Dismissal, Inconvenience, Biology and Slippery Slope.
The author creates a sub-topic from a talking point and provides their analysis of the sub-topic, where it originates from and why they think its flawed.
The book is very easy to read, clear, concise and to the point.
The narrative is relatable, with author occasionally putting a humorous and witty twist to keep the reader engaged.
Conclusion
The book is thought provoking. While the conversation is about gender non-conforming people, a lot of discussion also applies to a broader spectrum of the society.
Given the short nature of the book, it was a perfect first book to begin a journey to learn about LGBTQIA+ for me.
Links
Amazon Purchase Link
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