Trans Kids and Teens

Starred review from April 1, 2017
There could hardly be a better time for this insightful, thoughtful guide to supporting transgender children and youth. Nealy, an academic and counselor who has worked in the GLBTQ community for decades, is acutely aware from his own experience as a transgender man just how fragile trans young people can be. After a brief introduction highlighting his personal experience, he presents informative chapters on topics such as gender diversity and dysmorphia, medical transition, teens in therapy, school situations, and preparing for college and work. Through vignettes illustrating common counseling situations, Nealy shares experiences with parents and teens going through the coming-out process and provides an enormous amount of guidance for those facing gender questions for themselves or family and friends. In fact, this should be considered a critical volume for anyone involved with schools or working or volunteering with children and teens. The suffering of the nation's young trans and gender-diverse populations must be acknowledged and addressed sooner rather than later, and through his knowledgeable and empathetic prose, Nealy powerfully makes the case for what can be done to ease the pain of these children. A must-read for anyone who wants to help trans youth.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2017, American Library Association.)