This was a weird one for me. Ultimately I didn't really connect with it, probably because of the tone. There was also a ton of generalization, which was sort of funny considering the concept here is to tell a not often told story and provide nuance to an overlooked topic. The ending is also fairly abrupt.

That said, I would still recommend it to other people who might connect with the author's journey. It's well told. I was about to take for granted that a book like this exists, but I won't.

fantastic graphic memoir about growing up genderqueer. as more gender identities appear in literature and beyond, works like these are exactly what readers deserve to be able to see themselves and/or learn more about others.

I finally got around to reading Maia Kobabe's graphic memoir Gender Queer, and I deeply regret waiting so long to get to it. Although I also identify as genderqueer, my experiences are vastly different from the author's, so it was interesting to see what a huge scope of experience the label can cover in such a detailed way. The book is informational and emotional all at once and makes for great reading. I loved the art and the lettering was great (particularly because it is larger than average, which I like).

I loved this. I wish I'd had access to it when I was younger. Recommended for all YA and adult readers.

A beautiful graphic memoir that is informative and necessary for all people to be aware of. I highly recommend this title.

We chose this title as one of our best graphic medicine of 2019 for JAMA. It's fantastic and a must read for anyone I'd say.

An amazing and insightful story about self-discovery and artistic dedication. I loved this book, and loved growing up with Maia, learning about the roots of their childhood, finding a space where identity makes sense, and the ultimate achievement of doing what they love. The art was beautiful, and the flow of the story was measured and wise.

I was unable to read this title before it was archived and therefore will not be reviewing it, even though I was extremely excited for it.

This is hands-down one of the best books I read in 2019, and easily within the top 5 graphic novels I have ever read.

I haven’t read many memoirs, and memoirs in the comic/graphic novel format? It is a very small number. Maia Kobabe’s Gender-Queer is many things: a memoir, a coming of age tale and autobio set in a graphic novel as so much more. I will also note that this is the first book AND comic that I’ve ever read and that featured and also was created by a person who uses e/em/eir pronouns! A class back in 2014 taught by cartoonist Mari Naomi when the author left home to pursue an MFA in comics and it is that particular class that proved to be a catalyst for this book’s birth. This is an offering that covers so much: much more than the author’s sexuality and gender orientation—it is a heartfelt and in depth look at eir how identity can be shaped through the lens of how society views gender—and how one can find their own path eventually.

Kobabe details life early back as a small child and what some might consider the unusual upbringing eir had: parents that didn’t re-enforce strict gender roles, the comfort of not owning the girl identity that was forced on eim and so much. The cover image comes from an eye opening and insightful childhood story from the book of that touches upon themes of nudity, reflection and comfort. Young Maia enjoyed the freedom that the male beach attendees were having and couldn’t then understand the shame and confusion caused and why her female teacher was flabberghasted and adamant that young Maia put the shirt back on.

This isn’t a short read, Gender Queer is almost 250 pages and most certainly one of my favorite books of 2019. There’s so much in these pages first crushes, the dreaded first menstrual cycle, trauma and the nightmares it caused. Maia has a number of instances of coming out and budding knowledge of knowing that eir different but not having the vocabulary for it at that then present time. What I thoroughly enjoyed were the markings of a queer adolescence that included: David Bowie, pouring over gay fanfiction and having queer readings of popular films like the LOTR trilogy. Finding themselves in eir in the high school Queer and Straight Alliance, The Laramie Project, identifying as A.F.A.B. and learning to gain happiness and confidence through cutting hair and binding.

Kobabe’s art style is easy on the eyes and there is a special attention to detail in regards to the lettering and coloring: some panels are so artfully placed to bring bigger impact to the particular scene. Seeing Kobabe’s transformation throughout the years from small child to fledging youth to young adult portrays eir as someone to follow, a protagonist worthy of reading about even until the final pages. There’s a lot of fun visuals too like the artist’s depiction of some favorite films and fandoms and the detailing of eir indemnity and how to balance everything. There’s a really great couple of pages pages half way through the book of Maia with a scale as a metaphor balancing how eir felt with the pressures of being assigned female at birth and the fantasy of eir being assigned male at birth which was tied to dressing up as Male characters for cosplay and such.

The publisher wrote that “Gender Queer is more than a personal story: it is a useful and touching guide on gender identity-what it means and how to think about it-for advocates, friends, and humans everywhere” I agree and I hope to see more auto-biographical works, more memoirs, more narratives on gender and coming to understand who you are in the world for LGBTQIA folks being published by more and more comics publishers for all to read. A big shout-out to Maia for this incredible accomplishment, the coloring by Phoebe Kobabe, sensitivity reader Melanie Gillman and the editing team that made this happen!

This memoir of Maia Kobabe shares eir struggle coming to terms with their identify as gender queer and shares helpful explanations surrounding gender identity. Readers will empathize with Maia's challenges and the confusion surrounding self-identify and acceptance. This book for nicely in high schools, colleges, and public libraries to help advocate for and educate about the lives of those identifying as transgender, gender-queer, asexual, and/or nonbinary.

Gender Queer is absolutely fantastic and deserves all the praise it has been receiving! I do think it will have to go into my library's adult graphic novel collection due to some sexual situations; they're certainly not gratuitous, but I do live in a small town and having this in the YA collection would pretty surely ruffle some feathers. I'd rather convince my coworker in the adult department that she needs it and still have it available to all who need it (and I do think that it is a book that is needed).

Very beautiful!
I first asked the ARC because I thought it would be a nice read, to understand a bit about what it was being explained to the family as well. And I ended up at the end of the memoir feeling so many things.
A read I would indicate to lots of friends .

I don’t read memoirs very often. I really appreciate a narrative arc, and I find in memoirs that far too often either there is no narrative arc or a false narrative arc has been forced upon the writer’s life, as an ongoing life rarely has a neat beginning, middle, and end point before it has reached its final conclusion. However, I found myself drawn to Gender Queer. I’ve always been interested in learning more about non-cis gender identity, and while I have plenty of experience reading about it in impersonal, distanced writings, and I have only limited experience with personal stories of exploring gender identity, whether those be people I have known in my life or via texts such as Gender Queer. In this, Gender Queer was an absolute success. Kobabe’s story of the journey e made examining em life is one that is fully of uncertainty, confusion, and multiple attempts to navigate what gender and sexuality actually means to em. It was so refreshing to see not just the end result, but the journey, and to find the person behind the experience. I have to imagine putting em life on display like this was a pretty scary and vulnerable endeavor for Kobabe, but I believe it is wonderfully powerful, both for people examining their own gender, as well as those looking to better understand and build empathy. I fully recommend this book.

Thank you to Netgalley and Diamond Book Distributors for an e-arc of this graphic novel in exchange for an honest review. Receiving this e-arc does not affect my rating and review.

Simply put, I enjoyed this graphic novel/memoir. As someone who sometimes struggles with terminology like non-binary, cis-gender etc., I now have a better understanding of what some of these terms mean and how they are applied. It was refreshing to be taken on a journey with the author, Maia Kobabe. I enjoyed diving into childhood determinations that grew as the author went through junior high, high school, undergrad and graduate school. I admired Maia choosing to be comfortable even when those around maybe didn't understand. Maia throughout the memoir grapples with identity both internally and externally. Readers are given a front seat to some of the turmoil and aha! moments Maia faced. It was so easy to empathize with Maia. I often found myself wanting to reach through my tablet and give Maia the biggest hug of encouragement. Gender Queer: The Memoir is as inspiring as it is informative.

I'm also a huge fan of Maia's graphics. I enjoyed the art style and the different angles used.

Gender Queer: A Memoir is a fantastic read and I recommend it to anyone who may or may not struggle with their own identity and may feel alone throughout their personal journey. I believe this book will provide great hope. I also recommend it to those of us who are allies of the LGBTQ community who may or may not understand your fellow person's journey but desire to learn more.

This is a very open, honest, and straightforward memoir, and I'm glad I got the chance to read it. I enjoyed getting to know Maia over the course of the book, and I appreciated learning about eir journey (and hopefully, I learned how to use eir pronouns correctly). I loved all the nerdiness, I wanted to give em a comforting hug, I wanted to steal those cool floral pants e was wearing at the end! This is a great book to read if you want to better understand genders other than cis, told in a way that feels like a friend relating it to you; there are awkward moments, painful moments, funny moments, triumphant moments, and you'll laugh, cry, cringe along with Maia (this feels like a perfect time for the "The More You Know" star and rainbow to show up ;) ). Definitely recommended!

Thank to NetGalley for the ARC. This well written and illustrated memoir is timely, important and personal. It is the story of one person's journey to identify who they are. In this case the "who" is gender. Luckily Maia had a supportive family who was there for them. This engaging tale should be required reading. I highly recommend it.

This was an eye opening read. I learned terms for things I didn't know had names, things I didn't know other people experienced. This is going to be a great resource for questioning people and allies. If it helps even one person gain a better understanding of another perspective on life that's a good thing.

Thank you to the publisher and NetGalley for this ARC!

Maia Kobabe, who uses e/em/eir pronouns (which are nonbinary, as opposed to the binary pronouns he/him/his or she/her/hers), writes and illustrates this graphic memoir with remarkable openness and heart. Eir vulnerable exploration of eir lifelong struggle with hetero-normative culture and the gender and sexuality expectations placed on em by family, friends, and teachers is accessible to anyone. This is a great starting place for someone who wonders what’s up with all these new pronouns and is curious about terms like “nonbinary” and “gender queer.” I wish every high school would assign this memoir! Maia is very talented at writing and illustrating both a fantastic educational tool and an engaging, deeply vulnerable memoir of identity and self-expression. E is not perfect – no one is – but e shares eir own experience of gender and sexuality well. The world will be better place if we all read this memoir!

4/5 stars.

This was a deeply personal and poignant book about the author's exploration of eir gender and sexuality. The art was beautiful and was a great medium for the story.

I enjoyed Maia Kobabe's Gender Queer quite a bit. I read a lot of graphic novels and frequently read titles that explore LGBTQIA issues. Kobabe's work was slightly different than what I've seen before. Eir exploration of gender is sweet, nuanced, and at times, heartbreaking. I would definitely recommend this to those that have interest in the LGBTQIA community, or those that could benefit from learning more.