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A Letter to My Transgender Daughter

A Letter to My Transgender Daughter

Audiobook
1 of 1 copy available
1 of 1 copy available

'Stunning . . . Built like a thriller, moving, wise and illuminated on every page with love' -Joanne Harris, author of Chocolat
A parent's deeply moving love letter to a daughter who has always known exactly who she is.

When Carolyn Hays's child made clear to the family that they were all wrong, he was not a boy, but, in fact, a girl, the Hays shifted pronouns, adopted a nickname and encouraged her to dress as she felt comfortable. One ordinary day, a caseworker from the Department of Children and Families knocked on their door to investigate an anonymous complaint about the upbringing of their transgender child. It was this threat that instilled in them a deep-seated fear for their child's safety in the Republican state they called home. And so they uprooted their lives to the more trans-accepting Northeast United States, though they were never far from the hate and fear resting at the nation's core.
Intimate, lyrical and thought-provoking, A Letter to My Transgender Daughter is an ode to Hays's brilliant, brave child, as well as a cathartic revisit of the pain of the past. It tells of the brutal truths of being trans, of the sacrificial nature of motherhood, and of the lengths a family will go to shield their youngest from the cruel realities of the world. Hays asks us all to love better, for children everywhere enduring injustice and prejudice just as they begin to understand themselves.
A Letter to My Transgender Daughter is a celebration of difference, a plea for empathy, a hope for a better future, but moreover, it is a love letter to a child who has always known herself and is waiting for the rest of the world to catch up.
Originally published as A Girlhood: A Letter to My Transgender Daughter

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    • AudioFile Magazine
      Narrator Erin Bennett confidently delivers this compelling memoir, presented in the form of a mother's love letter to her teenage transgender daughter. The author seamlessly interweaves family experiences with the history and struggles of transgender people. The narrative begins with an account of an anonymous child abuse complaint made to DCFS regarding Hays's support of her daughter's transition. This terrible event both upends their lives and reinforces their love and support for each other. With deliberate pacing and a clear, assertive voice, Bennett captures the author's fierce love for her child and fervent advocacy for the transgender community. Her serious tone channels Hays's urgent plea for all children to be seen and loved for exactly who they are. V.T.M. © AudioFile 2022, Portland, Maine

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