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A review by mariebrunelm
The Appendix by Liam Konemann
challenging
informative
reflective
fast-paced
5.0
In 2019, Liam Konemann set out to record all instances of transphobia he encountered online without looking for them. Unsurprisingly enough, there were many. He had intended to conduct this experiment over 3 months and publish the results as The Appendix, but for various reasons he abandoned before that. He did publish this book entitled The Appendix as a reflexion on what led him to this experiment, how he felt while conducting it, and why he decided to focus on trans joy rather than transphobia.
This very short, very accessible book is my first venture into the 404 Inkling series and it won’t be the last. The author is both very open about his process, and always makes sure to quote his sources so that there can be no doubt about the amount of hate trans people are subjected to on a daily basis. He is also very aware of his status as a white, privileged, male-passing person. In that regard, I'd say The Appendix may be better geared towards cis people, given that reading again and again about various instances of transphobia can obviously be triggering. It is very valuable as it addresses common misconceptions and candid questions people unfamiliar with trans rights may ask, but it does assume readers have a basic knowledge of the topic. It would feel strange to say I enjoyed this book, but there were very enjoyable parts about trans joy, after the very informative parts about transphobia. I highly recommandations it anyway.
CW as listed at the beginning: homophobic slurs, murder, rape, sexual assault, transphobic slurs.
This very short, very accessible book is my first venture into the 404 Inkling series and it won’t be the last. The author is both very open about his process, and always makes sure to quote his sources so that there can be no doubt about the amount of hate trans people are subjected to on a daily basis. He is also very aware of his status as a white, privileged, male-passing person. In that regard, I'd say The Appendix may be better geared towards cis people, given that reading again and again about various instances of transphobia can obviously be triggering. It is very valuable as it addresses common misconceptions and candid questions people unfamiliar with trans rights may ask, but it does assume readers have a basic knowledge of the topic. It would feel strange to say I enjoyed this book, but there were very enjoyable parts about trans joy, after the very informative parts about transphobia. I highly recommandations it anyway.
CW as listed at the beginning: homophobic slurs, murder, rape, sexual assault, transphobic slurs.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Transphobia and Homophobia
Moderate: Murder, Sexual assault, and Rape