Detransition, Baby by Torrey Peters

★★★★★

I have mixed feelings about this novel, but I closed the book with an ache. With a sense that no matter what decisions or paths the characters took, hearts would be broken, lives changed, and relationships forever altered. There’s no easy path, no right way. This book embodied the messiness that is life. I’m also very aware that this book was not written for me and that the characters and the intended audience speak a language that I am not fluent in so it’s likely that what I didn’t love about the book comes from a lack of understanding from not having lived and experienced life in that way.

Detransition, Baby was chaotic, gorgeous, erotic, frustrating, and everything in between. Beautifully written, the author does not shy away from the tough questions. In fact, she confronts us with the most difficult questions we all grapple with to some degree – motherhood, fatherhood, gender, identity, relationships, family, rites of passage, friendship, eroticism and sexuality. No character was particularly lovable or unlovable, making them all that much more human. They were all complex and flawed, which made me feel immense compassion throughout the book. At times, I felt the characters were not explored as deeply as they could have been. There was much left unsaid about each of the characters which could either be a flaw in the writing or a purposeful tactic to keep the reader asking questions or filling in the blanks on their own. 

Torrey Peters tackles the uncomfortable and forces us to gaze in the mirror, dig deep, and confront ourselves. She does so with grace, with humor, and with beautiful prose. I absolutely recommend reading this book.