Me, Myself, They

April 22, 2019
Ferguson, who uses they/them pronouns, highlights experiences from their life to explore gender and nonbinary identity expression in this somewhat disjointed memoir. Ferguson writes, “The ‘born in the wrong body’ narrative about trans people that is often reported in the media does not encapsulate my story.” They note that, despite standing out due to their appearance, their nonbinary identity is often “invisible” to others, because nonbinary gender categories aren’t widely known. They recount being diagnosed by a doctor in childhood as a “cross dresser” and receiving traumatizing interventions from doctors and psychologists to try to make them “normal.” After being bullied in school, violently attacked, and sexually assaulted, Ferguson turned to drugs, alcohol, and sexual relationships with older men. Transferring to a performing arts high school in 2001 brought new hope, and Ferguson went on to film school and established a film production company. The thematic, rather than chronological, structure makes it difficult for readers to feel they’re getting to know the author, and the tone is often flat. Less a work of self-reflection or self-revelation than a staunch defense of the right to be something different and a document of the social obstacles to doing so, this will likely appeal most to readers seeking representation of trans people and fans of Ferguson’s films.

April 1, 2019
Canadian filmmaker and activist Ferguson writes affectingly and informatively in this memoir/meditation about their life (Ferguson employs the gender-neutral pronouns they, them, and their) as a nonbinary trans person. It hasn't always been a happy one, the life. As a gender-creative child, they underwent months of dehumanizing gender-conversion therapy. Growing up gender nonconforming, they came out as gay at the age of 14, becoming subject to bullying so rampant that they became depressed and suicidal. As Ferguson continued to grow, the violence escalated, becoming physical and sexual. But they are clearly a survivor; indeed, they call themselves an Amazon. Though this fascinating book tells the story of the author's life, it is not structured chronologically but, rather, thematically; thus, there are chapters called The Child, The Fluidity, The Body, The Filmmaker, and more, all evidencing that their life has been filled with a complexity of fluid identities. Ferguson is, by nature, a storyteller, and their dramatic material is their life, which they have bravely shared with candor and grace.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2019, American Library Association.)