Irreversible Damage

I'm posting this mainly because I am struck by how polarised most of the reviews of this book are. I suppose that is inevitable given how politically sensitive this topic is, but it is a shame none the less.

I don't think anyone who reads this book in good faith can think that it is hateful or transphobic. The author's main point is that there are a large group of young girls who are identifying as trans without the characteristics that are usually associated with gender dysmorphia as it is usually understood. Her worry is that these girls will make choices they later regret, not that people should not be able to transition or that it isn't the right choice for some people. To sum the book up oversimplistically, she is attacking the way society at large treats young women, not attacking trans people. Overall, I thought the book was striving to be compassionate and empathetic towards all it's subjects.

It may well be that the conclusions that the author reaches are wrong and that some or all of her fears are misconceived. However, it is very difficult, especially for a layperson such as myself, to say either way because even the scientific and clinical work on this issue has become so politicized and any work which challenges the prevailing orthodoxy is immediately attacked as ‘hate'.

As a result, in order to develop a narrative, the author is clearly going beyond the evidence and building her book on anecdote and superstition at times. No one should regard this as an authoritative academic work on this issue. That said, the book doesn't claim to be. The author frequently eludes to the fact that she is being bolder in her assertions than many of the experts in the field would be confident being. Furthermore, I don't think that it is reasonable to say that journalistic speculation is hate speech. It might be off the mark, but it is (in this case I believe) a genuine attempt by a none-expert to question and understand these issues.

Overall I thought the book was really interesting. It's ideas will make you think, it has powerful anecdotes and interviews with a wide range of experts and trans people with different perspectives on these issues. There are also some very moving sections on what it is to be a woman which I found extremely illuminating.

Whatever your current views on these hot-button issues, I'd really recommend trying to put them aside when you pick up this book. Whether it is right or wrong, I think everyone will be able to get something out of it as long as they are prepared to approach it in good faith.