Genre: Nonfiction, Autobiography, Music
A searing account of her search for identity and true self, TRANNY reveals the struggles and victories that Laura Jane Grace, the lead singer of the cult punk rock band Against Me! experienced in her quest for gender transition (description via goodreads).
WOW, what a book. I generally don’t review memoirs/autobiographies because it feels like I’m reviewing someone’s life, which is kind of a dick move. However, I tore through this in 24 hours and immediately started recommending it. Her journal entries were so candid and well written that I was inspired to start writing more regularly, again. I also wrote my first piece of fan mail (is it still called fan mail if it’s an instagram message?) after reading this and don’t regret it.
The book covers the personal and musical life of Laura Jane Grace, the lead singer of Against Me! From a music standpoint, it’s really interesting to see the emotion and reasoning behind specific lyrics and albums. I liked going through the band’s discography and playing the songs while reading about them. I happened to be an Against Me! fan before picking up the book, but I appreciate their music even more, now. The book covers the judgmental punk scene at that time, and the struggles that the band faced when they were labeled as “sell outs” by their fans. Tour stories, as well as a brutally honest depiction of big-name record labels were provided, and it was refreshing to read something that was not sugarcoated. It was unapologetically honest, and that’s hard to come by.
From a personal standpoint, I think that it’s an important book to read. Her mental health, along with her identity struggles were beautifully analyzed in a way that offered so much insight. I felt like I understood everything that she was feeling and describing. This made it both an inspiring and heartbreaking memoir about her life.
I would highly recommend this book. If you haven’t listened to Against Me! I would also recommend the song Tonight We’re Gonna Give It 35%.
