“Back when I was growing up, positive trans representation in media simply didn’t exist— there was a complete void in the culture. Any time media featured gender nonconformity it existed as something to either be laughed at, demonized, or often both. The messaging was clear: The discomfort I felt with the gender I was assigned at birth was something to be ashamed of, never vocalized or acted on.”


This was a cute graphic novel anthology of a bunch of trans authors/artists and their life experiences. I think this quote from the beginning really sums it up, everyone has a right to see themselves represented in media as more than just a punchline or a joke.

I got this on Netgalley in exchange for an honest review!

This was a great collection of comics and I love the variety of styles! It really opened my eyes to a lot of artists and their work online too which was pretty cool. The artists were also hella diverse in every way and I loved that combined with their different views on gender and their journey etc. Really shows how different life and gender can be and how we all experience stuff differently but also somewhat the same.

A great collection that I will think about a lot! (also was hella validating)

I loved everything about this comic anthology! It features trans, non-binary, and other gender non-conforming artists telling readers about their experiences coming to terms with their gender identities and learning to feel comfortable in their own bodies. The mix of art styles is really fun and I found myself wanted to follow the artists and check out their other projects. This is a perfect book for people questioning, people who feel comfortable with their identities, and people who want to better understand other people’s points of view.

These kinds of books and anthologies are so important. Everyone's experience coming into their own is different, even if you identify with the same or a similar label. The different art styles also show just how different everyone's experiences are. I think having these kinds of books for people to read and identify with is so important in our society, as we become more accepting of these other labels.

Wow, I did not expect to love this book so much. This anthology has twenty-nine stories about twenty-nine trans and non-binary creators. Trans men, trans women, and non-binary artists from diverse backgrounds tell us about their relationship with gender and being transgender. And honestly, I was hooked from the beginning.

The stories are sad, beautiful, emotional, reflective, and relatable. I loved the different art styles and the different levels. It is so wonderful to see so many transgender people talking about themselves, and being seen. Because we are here, and we will never disappear, even if some people want us to.

If I have one little complaint, it would have been great to have a little more transfem artist.

So yes, this is an important book, that will make you feel a lot of different emotions, but you’ll love it for it.

This was such an amazing book!! I received a copy from netgalley and started reading it immediately! I normally do not like short stories but this was so good! It was awesome seeing so many different lives and truths all in one place. In today’s society this is such a present book and really needs to be out there! I loved how each author had a different style and story! It filled me with such drive to be me and make sure everyone can too! Simply amazing!

I'm amazed by the sheer range of experiences that are collected in this book. There's people from very different cultural backgrounds, different profession, different perspectives. Do they manage to capture every single range of the trans and nonbinary experience? Of course not, that's impossible. But they manage to capture their own unique story to share it with us, and isn't that just marvelous?
I had never read a comic anthology before, and I'm in love with collaborative effort that this must've taken. It manages to stay coherent while respecting each artist's style.
I did have some trouble with the proper reading order in some panels, but that is not uncommon for me, so that's probably just a me thing.
I do hope that this book makes its way to people who might need it (and those who don't as well). I'd love to see it translated to Spanish.
Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for letting me read this fantastic ARC.

I'm writing this review as a cis woman, I feel like that is important to say because this graphic novel isn't about my lived experience, and yet I still thoroughly enjoyed it.

This graphic novel is an anthology of comic from trans and nonbinary artists that explains their experiences with dysphoria, discovery, coming out, confusion, and acceptance of who they are. I found this extremely beautiful and touching. I loved that there was a plethora of gender identities and experiences represented.

Each art style was unique to each author, and that was truly symbolic of how gender is experienced by each person. After reading this, it does make me questions my feelings related to gender and how it effects my life and how people percieve me.

I have to give this book 5 stars because it was a joy to experience.

This book is so wonderful, and so beautiful
I truly love seeing the different, artistic styles, the different ways of communicating, the self reflection, and being able to see inside someone’s head in a creative way that gives voice to the struggles, and the very real dangers of the lack of trans, visibility, and care in this country and in the world
This comic book compilation is not only gorgeous, it humanizes trans people in a way that is relatable, and also incredibly emotional. The stories leap off the page.
I would love to have a copy of this in my classroom, especially as a book like this is more accessible to people who are not able to sit down and read a full novel either do to attention issues or anxiety.

Thank you NetGalley for the ARC

Often times anthologies are a bit of a hit-or-miss for me, but this one is all hits. I loved every single comic. Sometimes it's a case of "sometimes a book isn't for you" but this book is ABSOLUTELY for me, as a trans enby comic creator.

This comic anthology is a collection of stories by trans and non-binary comic creators creating short comics exploring their journeys into gender discovery and transition. I felt a connection to a lot of these comics, and a lot of them had me tearing up.

It's quite heavy on the nonbinary and trans masculine side, I would have loved if they'd been able to have a few more trans feminine voices involved, but also trans masc are often invisible or down right erased in queer spaces, so at the same time its refreshing to see so many trans masc stories in one place.

I would definitely love to get hold of a physical copy of this book one day.

It makes me feel a bit pompous to go around saying things like "this is an important book!" but, well... This is an important book. Queer kids need to be seeing these kinds of stories, especially in today's political climate which seems hell-bent on only showing them the opposite.

Put this in your school library, put this into the hands of your school's LGBTQ+ club, put this in your classroom library, and I'm pretty sure you will end up changing the life of at least one kid.

I received this book from NetGalley.

This is the kind of book I would have loved growing up. Even now, I feel like being able to read so many different LGBTQ+ stories of acceptance and pain helped me to gain a deeper understanding and appreciation for what trans and non-binary people go through.

This is a fast read, but there are still some well crafted stories in this collection. And the varied art styles are interesting as well. Definitely a great collection for younger readers, as the themes of longing to belong and trying to find yourself are universal. It may even help to develop empathy, which this world sorely needs.

This is a wonderful collection of stories by various queen authors/artists that is so important to get into the hands of young adults! I'm so glad this exists.

thank you to netgalley for giving me access to the arc in exchange for an honest review!

wonderful and very touching anthology ❤️‍🩹

what a great anthology of queer stories from 29 people! there's even artist's info at the beginning of every comic strip, and i think that's really cool! i would've liked there to be more transfemme and other gender identity stories, but i still enjoyed reading and relating to everyone's journey to discovering their gender identities.

• I received an arc from NetGalley and the publisher •

A big part of this anthology were personal stories about being trans with many people being non-binary. It was a rather mixed bag, there were some interesting stories and interesting authors and some things that I was absolutely not interested in. But it was great fun to see so many trans stories together and see all the different ways they agree or disagree on things.

This is such a great collection for people of all ages who want to understand how different people arrive at their understanding of their own identity. I would equally recommend this book to anyone questioning their identity and anyone who wants to understand what a friend or loved one is experiencing. The wide range of stories includes narratives from authors of different backgrounds. Lovely. I received a copy from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review, and I loved it. I even recognized some of the authors, but had never heard much about their own experiences!

This anthology offers a collection of diverse experiences within the trans and nonbinary community, and its creators are likewise diverse racially and ethnically. As with all anthologies, readers will likely have sections they favor more than others, but each story is unique and emotional in its own way. Collectively, this anthology offers much needed positivity and sense of community for queer folks.

Okay. The cover is way too misleading.
I thought it's all in this cute and cartoon style.
But no. It mixed a lot of stories and styles.
I'm surprised, but not actually disappointed.
I'm glad to see so many artists tell different stories.
I won't say you'll love all of them, but you can always find some great pieces.

*I received an ARC via Netgalley in exchange for an honest review. Thanks for the free comic anthology.*

"The Out Side" is a comic about trans & non-binary people, their struggles, their coming out, their healing. Most comics are extremely short & it was a bit hard for me to read several in a row as the comic style & storytelling modes differed greatly. I enjoyed and saw myself in many of them, but somehow I wished the entire anthology was be longer...

4 Stars