Due to a sudden, unexpected passing in the family a few years ago and another more recently and my subsequent (mental) health issues stemming from that, I was unable to download this book in time to review it before it was archived as I did not visit this site for several years after the bereavements. This meant I didn't read or venture onto netgalley for years as not only did it remind me of that person as they shared my passion for reading, but I also struggled to maintain interest in anything due to overwhelming depression. I was therefore unable to download this title in time and so I couldn't give a review as it wasn't successfully acquired before it was archived. The second issue that has happened with some of my other books is that I had them downloaded to one particular device and said device is now defunct, so I have no access to those books anymore, sadly.

This means I can't leave an accurate reflection of my feelings towards the book as I am unable to read it now and so I am leaving a message of explanation instead. I am now back to reading and reviewing full time as once considerable time had passed I have found that books have been helping me significantly in terms of my mindset and mental health - this was after having no interest in anything for quite a number of years after the passings. Anything requested and approved will be read and a review written and posted to Amazon (where I am a Hall of Famer & Top Reviewer), Goodreads (where I have several thousand friends and the same amount who follow my reviews) and Waterstones (or Barnes & Noble if the publisher is American based). Thank you for the opportunity and apologies for the inconvenience.

This is such a good resource book filled with great stories but also important information. I think this is a new must read.

It took me a while to read this, mainly because I kept having mixed feelings about some of the contributions and finding some of them quite hard to read. As a whole, I appreciate this anthology and as a non-binary person, I loved reading about so many different experiences and perspectives. Where the book shone were the contributions that went into intersecting identities, like disability. But like usually with anthologies like this, there were strong contributions and ones that were less so.

Non-binary identities are still often not understood by the mainstream, and a whole book of stories about real enby people is sure to do a lot of good in bringing awareness, making kids feel represented, and nudging the meter of public knowlege.

I feel that we've definitely reached that point at which we as a people need more trans and nonbinary writings in the world, both in fiction and non-fiction. The difference here is that one ends up more informative and biographical (non-fiction) and the other allows us to delve into the experiences and arcs of these lives (fiction). I've had a hard time find books I really loved on and by nonbinary people's that felt as open and inviting as this book managed to. I felt so compelled and engrossed by this read, and I now have copies in my classroom because I think it gives a lot of tools to those struggling with identity and those who want to support their friends in exploration/new personal identity.

This is such a compelling read! I recommend reading it in pieces as to give each section the attention it's worth.

I also preface my review with stating that while I really enjoy reading through this, my opinion is much less important than the opinions of non-binary and trans people and that their thoughts should be given much more weight.

I am trying to read more books with diverse perspectives and this appealed to me immediately and I must say I am really impressed with it. It does such a fabulous job not only of describing what it means to be non-binary, it also makes sure that the conversation is intersectional and not exclusionary.

This is such a fascinating read and a valuable resource that should be in school libraries and public libraries from this point onward as it gives a wonderful foundation for learning about non-binary people and the issues they face.

As I work through this book I learn more and more and it illuminates that even though I do my best to have a basic knowledge of different genders and sexualities, I have huge gaps in my knowledge that I did not even realise were gaps.

A definite recommendation!

This was a great anthology written by various authors about being non-binary. I really, really enjoyed this collection and I think that not only is it a great read but it is also a great learning tool if you don't to much about non-binary or how it intersects with politics and other aspects of every day life. Overall, I think that this is something that should be read by everyone and I highly recommend it!

I requested this because a good friend of mine identifies as non-binary and I wanted to get more insight into what they were feeling and what they are struggling with. I absolutely loved this book, there were a bunch of things I never thought of, but I really hoped that it wouldn't all be bad. I really wished it would be more good things I guess?

There are a lot of stories in here so it's hard to talk about each one individually but in my opinion they all brought something to the table and one of my favorite parts about this is just how many stories there are. This is a very inclusive and intersectional collection of stories all about non-binary people from all walks of life and is split up into four different sections in an attempt to study every aspect of being non-binary. I really enjoyed the fact that there were stories by people from all over the world and with differing backgrounds and upbringings. In my opinion, that's the only way a book like this could have worked and is what originally drew me to it in the first place. There isn't anything specific that moved me or I found especially profound but I still enjoyed learning about everyone's experiences and what being non-binary meant to them.

If you're looking for more information on what the non-binary experience is like - this is the perfect book for you. However, if you're well-versed in queer ideology some of what is stated might be a little repetitive to you. I still think it's an interesting read however and I definitely recommend it for anyone who's interested.

Thank you For sending me a review copy on Netgalley.

I went into this book hoping to learn more about the experience of living as a non-binary individual, and I definitely got that out of this book.
These collections of essays were incredibly insightful, and taught me a lot about the effects that being non-binary and other minority intersections has on ones life.
It reminds you never to take people for face value and make assumptions.
Will definitely be making more of effort to read about non binary lives.
I will be recommending this book to the people in my community service course, as I think everyone that reads this will take something valuable away from it.

<b>Confronting my cis-gender privilege</b>

First things first: I don't feel I could ever rate someone's life story, hence I won't that. My review is based on the book's structure and how it made me feel while reading. All the testimonies in the book are real people's accounts and they are equally valid.

The book editing is excellent. The introduction includes an abundant explanation of terms used in the book and cultural context to all of them. The testimonies itself are divided into sections by themes like 'The Life Course' or 'Communities' to better grab the context. The editors have done an awesome job in explaining what being non-binary really means with all its various shades. Each of the narrations is different, some of them are more lyric and some more down-to-earth or including two or more people. The title consists of thirty distinct narrations overall and, like many short stories, I liked to read them separately with some time to reflect on each.

Non-binary is somehow new to me, I was raised in a country that doesn't even have its own word for being non-cis-gender (or cis-gender for that matter). As a consequence, my gender privilege was unbeknown to me for a long time. Many of the testimonies contained in 'Non-Binary Lives' described similar uprising but without that gender privilege. They are histories of solitude, fear, confusion, and struggle to belong somewhere. These are not feel-good stories by any means, even if they ended happy-ish. But these are stories that should be read to learn about life in all its forms as the narration often went way beyond gender and sexuality because being non-binary means different things to different people.

<i>Many thanks to Netgalley and Jessica Kingsley Publishers for this digital copy.</i>

You’d think the pandemic would mean I have more time to read rather than less, right? But for some reason my reading speed has decreased rather than increased. I’m making more of a comeback, but it still took me a long time to read and review Non-Binary Lives: An Anthology of Intersecting Identities. That shouldn’t reflect on the quality of this book. Similarly, I’m going to explain later that I’m kind of over these massive anthologies on subjects like this, but that isn’t a problem with this book specifically. This is a great anthology if indeed you want an anthology of this kind.

If you had asked me why I requested this from NetGalley and Jessica Kingsley Publishers, I would have said at the time, “Because it’s everyone’s responsibility to learn more about the diversity of gender identity, but it’s especially the responsibility of us cisgender people.” Haha. Oops. Since then I’ve realized that transgender better fits me as a label, and I’ve transitioned … yet I still think this was a good and important read. In particular, I identify firmly with a binary label of trans woman. Therefore, while I can definitely identify with some of the experiences of the contributors to this book, I really don’t know what it’s like to be a non-binary person. So this book was helpful both in terms of educating me about that experience and also in terms of helping me explore my quickly evolving gender identity.

This book has a lengthy roster of contributors and chapters, so I can’t possibly review them all. The editors in their foreword claim they’ve tried to bring in voices from around the world but correctly identify an overall bias towards UK writers. I don’t see that as a negative, but it’s something to be aware of. The editors also warn the reader that they’ve tried not to be too prescriptive in the language and ideas that their contributors use to discuss their experiences, so we might encounter languages or ideas that we find uncomfortable. Honestly, I didn’t see much of that—maybe my reading wasn’t as thorough as it could have been? But it definitely didn’t make me grimace the way To My Trans Sisters did with regards to the inclusion of certain contributors.

Non-Binary Lives lives up to its subtitle: it definitely focuses stories about intersections of identity. I was most fascinated by the chapters where people discuss how being non-binary related to their religion. I’m an atheist, so I haven’t had to consider my transition within the scope of any organized religious beliefs. While I didn’t naively believe that religions are always closed to trans and gender-noncomforming people, I’m glad that this book helped me understand the complexity of this experience. Some religious communities are very progressive and open-minded; others are predictably less so. The struggles that some of these contributors relate, and the joys that they or other contributors eventually reaped, make this book worthwhile for trans and cis readers alike.

I struggled with this book for so long less because of the quality of book and more because of my own waning interest in massive anthologies of trans voices. I see the appeal, the logic behind wanting to boost more than one voice, especially from people who don’t have the desire or platform to publish an entire book of their own. Nevertheless, I think what this book helped me discover is that I’m burnt out on these soundbite-style explorations of identity. I crave meaty memoirs of trans experiences, even if that means I’ll be self-selecting for trans people who have the education and opportunity and desire to write such things. I need the deep dive rather than the survey of the field. For now.

Creative Commons BY-NC License

NON-BINARY LIVES is a unique collection of personal narratives by non-binary people. It’s also a mix of things I don’t normally pick up—anthology, essay, and nonfiction. What drew me to this book was the idea that I could read a collection of experiences by people who had something in common with me.

I’m non-binary, and I don’t usually get to see myself in books, no matter what the genre. I’ve worried on many occasions that I’m faking my gender, that I’m as confused as some people say, and that I don’t really fit anywhere because of my gender and the expression I choose for it. NON-BINARY LIVES is an incredibly affirming collection of essays from people who are like me, but also people who are very different from me. The book includes intersectional identities of gender, sexuality, race, class, disability, and more. While there are too many perspectives in the world to encompass in a single book, NON-BINARY LIVES is self-aware in knowing that the creators did their best to include as many of these identities as possible while acknowledging that there are more experiences they were not able to include, even within the same communities.

These essays are validating for non-binary people like myself, and the spectrum of gender identity they encompass is vast and inclusive. The message is that no non-binary gender expression is wrong, that you can be non-binary in your own way. In other words, this is a message that all people—not just the non-binary people who need this validation, but those who insist we are confused, that we must conform to the gender binary, and those who simply haven’t heard of us—need to hear.

Each contributor to this collection wrote thoughtfully and powerfully about their experiences. From narratives depicting struggles with getting healthcare and accessibility to being able to enter or even stay included in certain spaces, each essay in every section showed challenges that we don’t always think about if we haven’t experienced them. And if we have experienced them, it helps us feel seen and heard.

NON-BINARY LIVES is an important step in creating a world that not only recognizes but includes our identities. I love how much thought and care went into writing, editing, and putting this book out into the world. Thank you so much for making it available and for putting it into the hands of people who need it.

Non-Binary Lives - An Anthology of Intersecting Identities is a thoughtfully curated, boundary crossing collection of essays from non-binary authors. As a person who is also non-binary and who is interested more and more in what gender looks like on an individual level outside the binary, this collection both personally resonated with my own narrative and shed light on areas outside the realm of my own experience.

I feel people with a base level of understanding of the LGBTQIA+ community would benefit the most from the perspectives offered within this anthology. While every story contained within offers an informative and important lens through which to view the meaning of non-binary, I wouldn’t suggest it as a starting point for someone who is only beginning their exploration and understanding of what being non-binary means. But, if that understanding is already present, I would consider this a must read for those who wish to deepen that knowledge. I know I will be purchasing this book for my own collection and adding it to my go-to recommendation list as well.

Thank you to NetGalley and Jessica Kingsley Publishers for an advance copy in exchange for an honest review. All opinions are my own.

This collection of experiences of non-binary people is crucial now more than ever. Not only are these stories varied in the backgrounds of their authors, but in their individual journeys, experiences, and how their gender identity intersects with every other aspect of their lives. These stories are real and relatable, but also educational. Above all, these stories show us that nothing operates within a binary when it comes to personhood, and no matter one's familiarity with non-binary gender identity, they likely will be able to relate to the fluidity that operates within many other aspects of their humanity. An excellent read to gain familiarity with what it can mean to be non-binary, a previously generally unknown expression of gender identity.

What an important book! Non-Binary Lives is an anthology of essays divided into sections of larger topics that impact the non-binary community. Each author is candid, passionate, and graceful in sharing their lived experiences being non-binary, whether that focuses on the relationship to themselves, to others, to their language, their appearance, their self-identity, etc. The scope of this anthology is quite diverse and it's clear the editors had a commitment to global, racial, lingual, and spiritual diversity within the non-binary scope. I understand that it can be difficult to give a voice to every aspect of non-binary lives, but the commitment to include a diverse cast is recognized and appreciated.

Based on other reviews it seems like because many of the book’s authors are academics, this title may be inaccessible to some readers. Something to keep in mind when recommending this title for reader’s advisory. I could see essays from this anthology selected for a university gender studies class, just to give you an idea of the tone of the anthology. Some readers may choose to skip these and read less verbose essays, but I do believe there is at least a few essays in here all readers can connect to.

Additionally, some reviewers have bemoaned the fact that the book focuses on politics as heavily as it does. This is a fair critique, however, at this point in time being trans and NB is still very much a political statement, whether the individual wants it to be or not. Granted, there may be more accessible, less academic NB titles to choose from, but please consider that the lived experiences of trans people are still political, and that it can be hard to avoid talking about politics when just living and existing as a trans person for that reason.

I highly recommend this book to anyone who doesn’t understand what non-binary means, or doesn’t believe in its existence as an identity and experience. Or, more simply, read this if you are cisgender! It’s so important to hear stories from people with different experiences than your own.

Overall, I really enjoyed this title.

I absolutely loved this book. The essays varied widely in content and topic and each one showcased a different way of being nonbinary. The editors managed to pull together the essays with common threads and weave a tapestry that shows many (not all) ways of being nonbinary. Throughout, despite all the differences, I felt a profound kinship with each author and found moments in each essay where I felt seen and loved. I have struggled all my life with being too weird, too different, too everything, and have always felt set apart from those around me. Recognizing myself in these essays, over and over, was such an affirming and empowering feeling. I feel much more secure in my nonbinary identity after reading, and I would recommend this essay collection to everyone, so that they might begin to understand what it's like to be nonbinary.

Review posted on my blog here: https://whimsicaldragonette.tumblr.com/post/613216920456626176/arc-review-non-binary-lives-an-anthology-of

I will publish this review on Amazon and B&N on its publising date (April 21)

I tend to have a hard time reviewing books that are about real people's lives because these are personal stories and how do you decide if you like them or not. I focus a lot more on the style of the book and its structure to decide how I feel rather than the content when it comes to these types of writings.

I felt that the opening to the book read much more like a textbook than the rest of the book and that put me off. I skimmed through most of that section of the book and put it aside for a while because it wasn't what I was expecting. Something that I did enjoy about the beginning of the book once I went back and read it after finishing the book was the disclaimer to the lack of diversity in the stories included. I felt that it was important to include that disclaimer because as I was reading often times I was discouraged and disappointed that I found very few people who represented my experience as a non-binary queer Latinx person in the U.S.

As I decided to skip the introduction and read that once I was done with all the stories I was thrilled to get a chance to read this book. I really appreciated each individual's vulnerability in putting their story on paper for others to see. I thought it was important that each story was unique and that they were all told in different manners.

There were quite a few pieces that I was able to relate to and I found myself re-reading those pieces as I found a little bit of myself in them. Something that I really enjoyed was the way this book was separated into four different sections that discussed different ways that people see a non-binary identity. Each section discussed what non-binary means in relation to different intersecting identities and I thought that piece was important to include.

Something that did throw me off was that it was written in a way that isn't accessible to everyone. It's written in a way that is meant for individuals who have access to education. I think this is important to note especially for a book that others may recommend to people who are new to understanding what non-binary means. I don't think this is a book that can be used to help educate others on non-binary matters as there were parts that I didn't understand.

This was a great collection of personal stories by non-binary writers who describe how being non-binary has impacted their lives and relationships with family and friends. A great collection for anyone that is looking to learn more about what it means to be non-binary as well as anyone who is currently dealing with the struggles that often comes with living in the world as who you are meant to be.

"What does it mean to be non-binary in the 21st century?" is the first question on the back of the book, and it tries to answer this by sharing the stories of non-binary people all over the world. By doing so, there are more than 20 essays in this book that contain insight, eye-opening events, and stories from non-binary people and how it interacts with different aspects of their lives.

The reason I picked this book was because it was the first time I heard of it. Of course, there are non-fiction books looking at gender and gender rolls in der general, as well as non-fiction books about what non-binary is. However, a book that shares different stories from non-binary people all over the world? Nope.

This is why I feel that this book is important and I am glad to be able to write that "Non-Binary Lives" keeps its promise. The stories are split into four sections: cultural context, communities, the life course, and bodies, health and wellbeing. In each section various people tell stories how their non-binary identity interacts with that aspect, this ranges to a Jewish NB person who struggles with some part of their family but has found an accepting place in religion, to a disabled person who gets repeatedly mis-gendered during medical emergencies and when their health is more important they don't have "time" for their gender and the struggle this creates.

Almost every story that you can imagine is in this book, autistic NB folks, fat NB folks, NB who know their privilege of "passing" and move on, to people struggling for acceptance within their own family. At the same time, there is no "normal" story, which shows that the non-binary community is very diverse and even within it, gender means something different to every person. It is hard to define and place a finger on.

So I began to wonder, if it would be able to relate for someone who is non-binary as well. Some aspects are relatable while at the same time, there are parts I could simply not follow at all. One person discovers their gender via sexual freedom, as someone who is asexual that was a big "day and night" moment for me. The same way an AMAB person is not going to relate to the story of someone giving birth either, but the more the merrier! It really depends on the person you are and your own experience of gender.

Though I must admit that what I found lacking was the voice of the "quiet" non-binary person. Every author is special in their own regard and do something great and amazing. This made it a somewhat intimidating read because someone who is non-binary or genderqueer and just goes about their daily business and maybe to pride when they have time, does not find a story that reflects them.

Nevertheless, "Non-Binary Lives" feels like a must read for everyone in the queer community who wants to learn more about what it means to be non-binary and how it interacts with different aspects of your life. It gives more insight than any piece of literature I had read before and shares stories from all over the world.