Trans Forming Feminisms: Transfeminist Voices Speak Out Krista Scott-Dixon, ed. Toronto, Ontario: Sumach Press, 2006; 255 pages; ISBN 978-1-894549-61-5; $28.95 (US)
This anthology is a good introduction to the emerging convergences between transgender studies and fem inism s. Providing an overview of the turf wars in this history, Scott-Dixon locates the potential for transgressive m ovem ent in em bracing m ultiplicity in contrast to the rigid definitions surrounding trans people frequently enforced by medical and psychotherapeutic models.
Interestingly, Scott-Dixon does not incorporate a lot of queer theory into her introduction. This may have been a conscious choice, as the intersections between transgender studies and feminism are explicitly at the centre of inquiry in the collection. Framing the collection in this m anner is interesting; it presents questions from a slightly different angle than the dominant theoretical approaches offer. However, as this text may best serve as an entry point into these rich debates for some readers, the om ission of queer theories seem s problematic when so much care has been taken by Scott-Dixon to explain trans histories and term inologies. Though ScottDixon motions prim arily in the direction of generating more theory, many of her contributors seek to expand how feminist and trans theories (co)exist in the actual lived experience of trans people.
The consensus seems to be that the relationships forged between fem inist and trans voices are incredibly complicated. Though this conclusion is not surprising, the depth of som e of these ambitious essays, probably largely constrained by length, m akes

this conclusion unsatisfying. Despite the fact that som e contributors tried to tackle m ore than they could successfully deliver, I found the shorter length of the majority of the papers (approximately 5 pages) advantageous. This m akes the essays accessible and allows for the inclusion of more perspectives than would have been possible with fewer, longer pieces. This anthology adds to the growing theories about trans people by trans people, itself dem onstrating som e of the movem ents outlined in the introduction. Though this volume includes contributors from the United States and Europe, it also brings into focus the rich contributions Canadian trans theorists are adding to these discussions.
Mary Shearman Simon Fraser University

www.msvu.ca/atlantis Atlantis 33.2, 2009

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