Reviews tagging 'Lesbophobia'

Detransition, Baby by Torrey Peters

29 reviews

lovegriefandgender's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional funny reflective sad tense fast-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

It's tough being trans. As I was reading Detransition, Baby a 16-year old trans girl was murdered in London, and unable to articulate so much rush of feeling I turned hungrily, savagely back to the pages of the book. It seems to be a place, being trans, of endless longing and therefore endless loss, where we are summoned to question our own pain and circular motions and regret and suffering against any other group who had experienced any of those things. I don't think we're brave. Not really. I think we live in an interrogated space, a grey space, where no future can be known as fact.  Then we have to ask what we want: motherhood? Career? Love? Sex? Most of us would be happy just to have something meaningful to say. Yeah. This is where we live. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Medical trauma, Abortion, Alcohol, Drug abuse, Homophobia, Medical content, Misogyny, Physical abuse, Rape, Suicidal thoughts, Grief, Hate crime, Infidelity, Self harm, Mental illness, Panic attacks/disorders, Sexual content, Addiction, Body shaming, Bullying, Cursing, Death, Domestic abuse, Lesbophobia, Suicide attempt, Abandonment, Miscarriage, Dysphoria, Eating disorder, Emotional abuse, Outing, Pregnancy, Toxic relationship, and Transphobia

annabulkowski's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional funny hopeful reflective sad tense medium-paced

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

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Death of parent, Racism, Self harm, Sexual content, Suicidal thoughts, Homophobia, Mental illness, Misogyny, Suicide attempt, Abortion, Alcohol, Body shaming, Cultural appropriation, Dysphoria, Emotional abuse, Grief, Body horror, Car accident, Cursing, Fatphobia, Sexual violence, Toxic relationship, Death, Domestic abuse, Eating disorder, Sexual harassment, Infidelity, Lesbophobia, Panic attacks/disorders, Alcoholism, Biphobia, Hate crime, Suicide, Blood, Miscarriage, Police brutality, Sexism, Transphobia, Classism, Deadnaming, Gaslighting, Ableism, Adult/minor relationship, Bullying, and Pregnancy

madeleinebay's review against another edition

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Dysphoria, Homophobia, Lesbophobia, Pregnancy, Deadnaming, Emotional abuse, Grief, Miscarriage, Transphobia, Domestic abuse, Outing, Physical abuse, and Sexual content

Moderate: Infidelity

fatkidatheartreads's review against another edition

dark emotional informative reflective

3.5

What an interesting look into the complexities of queerness and queer relationships especially through the lens of trans women! 

When reading this, please keep in mind that one trans person's experiences will always differ from another's. Or as the saying goes, if you've met one trans person, you've met one trans person. Experiences with gender identity and sexuality will rarely ever be similar. 

Also, I had no idea this book was written by a white woman. Idk why I thought it was by a Nigerian author all along lol.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Lesbophobia, Homophobia, Physical abuse, and Transphobia

michaelion's review against another edition

emotional funny hopeful informative inspiring reflective medium-paced

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

4.5

I hate contemporary references in books–most readers do–but I can't exactly explain what sets this book apart from the others. With most books I think, This had the potential to be timeless, but unfortunately they made reference to [insert pop culture moment that was probably already out of date by the time the book was published]. Not here, though. In fact I argue it is a strength of the book. Something about it makes me feel like despite the references to now / pre-pandemic / mid- to late 2010s, this book will be regarded as a queertrans time capsule. It could be studied in 300 level university courses, and honestly it probably will be sooner than you think. I'm very excited to see what Miss Peters has in store next. I will be pre-ordering.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Grief, Homophobia, Misogyny, Outing, Infidelity, Miscarriage, Abortion, Lesbophobia, Transphobia, Pregnancy, and Self harm

Moderate: Death, Alcohol, Toxic relationship, Sexual content, Drug use, Body shaming, Classism, Physical abuse, Hate crime, Racism, Domestic abuse, and Infertility

Minor: Car accident, Deadnaming, Suicide attempt, and Biphobia

There needs to be a tag for slurs that aren't racial.

charlottemmeline's review against another edition

challenging dark emotional funny hopeful informative reflective sad tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

5.0

This book was simultaneously one of the most beautiful, stressful and at times horrifying things I've ever read. Obsessed and am in a state of shock having finished it. Everyone should read it.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Sexual violence, Sexual harassment, Sexual content, Lesbophobia, Grief, Homophobia, Suicide, Rape, Racism, Physical abuse, Abortion, Transphobia, Violence, Toxic relationship, Sexism, Pregnancy, Sexual assault, Trafficking, Suicide attempt, Suicidal thoughts, Outing, Miscarriage, Misogyny, and Mental illness

kaii's review against another edition

emotional funny informative reflective sad slow-paced

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

4.5

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Sexual content, Transphobia, and Pregnancy

Moderate: Infidelity

Minor: Abortion, Classism, Injury/Injury detail, Lesbophobia, Violence, Suicide, Suicide attempt, Grief, and Domestic abuse

brnineworms's review against another edition

emotional reflective sad tense medium-paced

• Plot- or character-driven? Character
• Strong character development? Yes
• Loveable characters? Yes
• Diverse cast of characters? Yes
• Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.5

Messy bitches all round.
Exceptionally well-written, until the ending where it felt like the brakes were slammed; it faltered then just kind of stopped, and not in a satisfyingly unsatisfying way. Still, I liked it a lot.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Grief, Infidelity, Outing, Dysphoria, Sexism, Misogyny, Pregnancy, Sexual content, Stalking, Toxic relationship, and Transphobia

Moderate: Abortion, Hate crime, Homophobia, Physical abuse, Alcohol, Alcoholism, Deadnaming, Death, Domestic abuse, Drug use, Emotional abuse, Panic attacks/disorders, Suicide attempt, Blood, Chronic illness, Suicide, Violence, Cursing, Injury/Injury detail, Miscarriage, Self harm, and Sexual assault

Minor: Ableism, Animal cruelty, Pedophilia, Rape, Suicidal thoughts, Lesbophobia, Medical content, Classism, Forced institutionalization, Incest, Murder, Racism, Eating disorder, Trafficking, Car accident, Infertility, Adult/minor relationship, Animal death, and Colonisation

tinylittlerat's review against another edition

challenging emotional informative medium-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

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Lesbophobia, Transphobia, Sexual content, Hate crime, Deadnaming, Toxic relationship, Physical abuse, Outing, Miscarriage, Homophobia, and Dysphoria

Moderate: Abortion and Suicide attempt

travelseatsreads's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark emotional funny informative inspiring reflective tense medium-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

4.5

Detransition, Baby is a book which will inevitably polarize people. Just like its title, its contents are at times quite challenging. Even at its least provocative there will be someone reading somewhere shrieking in horror at what they just read. It is in that challenging nature of the book that I adore how brave Torrey Peters was in telling a story of gender, of mother & fatherhood, of queerness and overwhelmingly of the prejudice and trauma that everyone carries around regardless of their gender or sexual orientation.

It would have been easy and hugely less controversial for Peters to make these 3 women flawless and likeable but rather than take the easy route she showed how deeply flawed and damaged all three of them were in their own ways. There are chunks of the book that reek of misogyny. There are violent, graphic and demeaning sex scenes. There are deeply prejudiced thoughts thrown about on occasion. There are sections where you will think what the actual f*** is wrong with them. And then there are sections full of love, tenderness, fulfillment and a deep yet brutal level of understanding and self awareness. Peters shies away from the fluffy rainbow coloured persona often provided and delves deep into what can be at times an absolute tangle of beautiful destruction.

Towards the last few chapters I longed to know just that little bit more about Reese and her backstory, her character was so full and intriguing I wanted to know more about where all that angst and inner turmoil came from. That and some other lingering questions kept me from that last star.

Overall, while this will not be a book for everyone, I think everyone should at least attempt to read it with an open mind and glean from it what they can.
What Peters showed effortlessly throughout the book is that none of it is easy, being trans, being queer or indeed immersing yourself into those worlds as a straight cis female. It's complicated and I loved Detransition, Baby for that honesty and rawness. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Abortion, Cursing, Gaslighting, Infidelity, Miscarriage, Misogyny, Outing, Toxic relationship, Transphobia, Pregnancy, Lesbophobia, Suicidal thoughts, Toxic friendship, Violence, Deadnaming, Domestic abuse, Homophobia, Sexism, Sexual content, and Sexual violence

Moderate: Death, Grief, Hate crime, Mental illness, and Drug use