The Transgender Child: A Handbook for Families and Professionals
"Libraries may own books dealing with transgender adults, but this is the only guide about raising transgender children. While the general message to parents is that "you have nothing to apologize for and nothing to be embarrassed about," the authors make it clear that parents and families will not have it easy. Realistic and empowering. Background: What do you do when it's Grandma's birthday dinner and your eight-year-old son insists on wearing his dress and Mary Janes? And how do you handle dating when your transgirl daughter still has male sex organs? Brill (founder, Gender Spectrum Education and Training) and Pepper (coordinator, LGBT studies, Yale Univ.) bring solid credentials and years of research to help parents and others deal with issues specific to transgender children. Answers may not be easy, but blaming the child, denying access to transgender friends, and verbal threats are not helpful. When parents recognize their child's gender identity, there can be feelings of confusion, anger, shock, fear, shame, and grief. Most children have gender identities by age two or three; like homosexuality, being transgender is not a choice. Nor is it, as it has often been labeled, "acting out" in anger against parents. There is much detail about medical practices and legal matters, most of which become issues as transgender children become adults."---Linda Beck, Indian Valley P.L., Telford, PA--Library Journal--June 24, 2008