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Lou Grande (148 KP) rated Gracefully Grayson in Books

May 27, 2018  
Gracefully Grayson
Gracefully Grayson
Ami Polonsky | 2014 | LGBTQ+, Young Adult (YA)
6
8.0 (2 Ratings)
Book Rating
I have to say, this book was much better than I was expecting. I'm always wary going into a book about trans issues not written by trans people. But Grayson's story was treated thoughtfully and with respect. (Such a stereotypical name, though!) However, I'm disappointed that this story focused so much on violence and social resistance to trans people. While that can often be the reality for some of us, this book is intended for young readers, and I'm concerned that this could be scary for them. On the other hand, cisgendered kids who pick this one up might be more empathetic towards trans people in general. (But would cisgender kids be inspired to pick GRACEFULLY GRAYSON up if they've already formed negative opinions on trans issues? I don't know; I'm thankfully not a parent.)

Another thing: did this story really have to coalesce in a bathroom? It felt lazy. Where we pee is not the only political issue we face, and it's obvious the author knows this. I don't know. This book left me with mixed feelings.
  
List

Trashy Movies I Love

These movies are not good. They may even be bad. But they are pure, trashy fun.

Cruel Intentions (1999)

Cruel Intentions (1999)

8.5 (11 Ratings) Rate It

Movie Watch

Sarah Michelle Gellar (I Know What You Did Last Summer, Scream 2, TV's Buffy The Vampire Slayer) and...

      
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Andy K (10821 KP) created a video about Crossroads (2002) in Movies

Jul 16, 2018  
Video

Trailer Trash Sleaze

   
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Lou Grande (148 KP) created a post in LGBTQ+ Media

Jun 15, 2018  
I wish there were more trans entries on this list, but it's still a good read:

https://www.avclub.com/celebrate-pride-with-20-lgbtq-romances-that-don-t-end-i-1826750985
   
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Zackary Drucker recommended The Complete Fiction of Nella Larsen: Passing, Quicksand, and The Stories in Books (curated)

 
The Complete Fiction of Nella Larsen: Passing, Quicksand, and The Stories
The Complete Fiction of Nella Larsen: Passing, Quicksand, and The Stories
Nella Larson | 2021
(0 Ratings)
Book Favorite

"I think of this book as a secret key to understanding the division between stealth “passing” trans women and out trans women in our current culture. Quicksand is about a woman with a mixed background who escapes the racial injustice of America to Denmark in the 1920s. The thing that I’ve always thought was so curious was that Larsen published these books and then became a nurse, never to publish again. Larsen’s life is a mysterious allegory to her writing."

Source
  
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Trevor Noah recommended Homegoing in Books (curated)

 
Homegoing
Homegoing
Yaa Gyasi | 2017 | Fiction & Poetry
9.6 (5 Ratings)
Book Favorite

"Thanks to the trans-Atlantic slave trade, America and Africa are linked in more ways than we usually think about. This is a fascinating novel about the legacy of slavery and white supremacy on both continents."

Source
  
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Janet Mock recommended George in Books (curated)

 
George
George
Alex Gino | 2015 | LGBTQ+, Young Adult (YA)
9.0 (4 Ratings)
Book Favorite

"This small novel may have been written for young readers but we can all learn and feel as we read about a trans girl yearning to take center stage as Charlotte in her class’ production of ‘Charlotte’s Web.'"

Source
  
List

Great movies set on or featuring trains

Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid (1969)

Butch Cassidy and the Sundance Kid (1969)

User: 9
Avg: 8.3 (18 Ratings) Rate It

Movie Watch

The two most famous members of the "Hole-In-The-Wall Gang" take to bank and train robbing then flee...

Some Like It Hot (1959)

Some Like It Hot (1959)

User: 9
Avg: 7.9 (18 Ratings) Rate It

Movie Watch

After witnessing a Mafia murder, slick saxophone player Joe (Tony Curtis) and his long-suffering...

The Midnight Meat Train (2008)

The Midnight Meat Train (2008)

7.1 (9 Ratings) Rate It

Movie

From a Clive Barker short story, A struggling photographer pursuing dark subject matter leads him...

The Taking of Pelham One Two Three (1974)

The Taking of Pelham One Two Three (1974)

User: 8
Avg: 7.8 (5 Ratings) Rate It

Movie Watch

In New York City, a criminal gang led by the ruthless "Mr. Blue" (Robert Shaw) hijacks a subway car...

and 13 other items
     
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Lou Grande (148 KP) created a post in LGBTQ+ Media

Jul 5, 2018  
So, Scarlett Johansson has been cast as a trans man in an upcoming film, and some people are a little outraged at both her casting and the way she handled the backlash (which was to say "Tell them that they can be directed to Jeffrey Tambor, Jared Leto, and Felicity Huffman's reps for comment").

I'm a trans guy, and I get it. The goal of any movie is to make money, and Johansson is bankable. I think the way she handled it lacks a bit of class, but again, she's sort of right--no one got in a snit when these other cis actors were cast as trans people. However, I also understand the frustration from the other side. Johansson already, arguably, whitewashed the role of Motoko Kusanagi in Ghost in the Shell, which totally flopped. She's working with the same director for this film. My fear is that trans guys get so little representation in the media, and this casting decision is going to negatively impact the movie. When I was growing up, the first time I learned that women could transition was watching Boys Don't Cry. And as you recall, that movie does not end well for anyone! So of course I was scared. I stayed in the closet for a long, long time. I'm really just torn about the whole thing.

What do you all think?
   
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Abi (5 KP) Jul 15, 2018

Thankfully she’s officially stepped down from the role now.
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Lou Grande (148 KP) Jul 17, 2018

Yeah, and now all the "anti-SJW" groups have their panties in a twist about it. I would have been fine if she had handled herself with more aplomb, even though she was going to be hilariously miscast.
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Emma Donoghue recommended Far From the Tree: Parents, Children and the Search for Identity in Books (curated)

 
Far From the Tree: Parents, Children and the Search for Identity
Far From the Tree: Parents, Children and the Search for Identity
Andrew Solomon | 2021
(0 Ratings)
Book Favorite

"If you think 700 pages on the many ways in which exceptional kids (trans, Downs, autistic, Deaf, criminal, genius) can stretch their families’ conception of love doesn’t sound like summertime reading, Far From the Tree: Parents, Children and the Search for Identity will teach you otherwise."

Source