"Trans and Disabled: An Anthology of Identities and Experiences" edited by Alex Iantaffi is a profound and moving collection that brings together stories, poems, plays, drawings, and personal essays. This anthology explores the intersectional identities of people who are both trans and disabled, offering a deeply personal and insightful look into their lives.

What makes this anthology truly special is its ability to capture the diverse experiences and challenges faced by its contributors. From invisible conditions like PTSD and chronic fatigue to visible disabilities and various trans identities, the anthology showcases a wide range of perspectives. The stories are filled with vulnerability, resilience, and love, making it a powerful read for anyone seeking to understand the complexities of living with these identities.

The anthology is divided into three sections—identity, treatment, and compassion—each highlighting different aspects of the contributors' experiences. The clear and honest messaging throughout the book is both enlightening and inspiring. This anthology is not just a collection of stories; it is a celebration of resilience, community, and the power of shared experiences.

I really enjoyed the way this book focussed on lots of trans elder experiences - its so healing and hopegiving to see older trans and disabled people. I loved the variety of perspectives.

I enjoyed this anthology, especially as I related to a lot of the experiences. It was thoughtful and thought provoking.

Thank you to Jessica Kingsley Publishers and NetGalley for this e-ARC for review. I quite enjoyed this very timely anthology, and connected personally to several of the stories. Definitely recommend.

This was a good collection, but I think I needed more. I needed a deeper analysis of some of these pieces; they felt too light or not deep enough to connect.

This anthology gets to the root of much of the overlapping experiences of being marginalized for being trans and being marginalized for being disabled - in a political moment where we know all oppression leads to disability, and transness can be pathologized as disability on a whim. Incredibly important work right now.

This was a fantastic collection of stories/essays from a variety of trans and disabled folks that really pull back the lens on a neglected group of people and the ways disability, accessibility and identity differs when looked at through a trans or multi-identity lens. I found it very educational and enlightening and enjoyed it very much. Many thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for an early digital copy in exchange for my honest thoughts. This was a great collection and one I will definitely recommend my library purchase!

Thank you so much for the opportunity to read this book to NetGalley and the publisher. I really enjoyed the varied prose and poems from such variety of individuals. I really recommend this book to anyone who wants to learn more or even if you fall into the trans and/or disabled community to feel less alone.

I quite liked this! Really glad Netgalley allowed me to read an ARC of this!
Would highly recommend if you're looking for a book about this specific topic!

A timely title for the present era. This book compiles poems and essays on the topic of the intersection transgender identities and disability. Entries range from the academic to the personal, which can render the pacing a little stiff, but there is a lot of highly varied material, so there is likely to be something that will resonate with curious readers or those experiencing this intersection of identities.

Trans and disabled was a wonderful collection of short stories and snippets of everyday life living at the intersection of multiple identities. Plurality is a central theme here that sheds light on all the ways we exist and love in spite of harassment and discrimination. An informative read for anyone looking to learn more about their own and others lived experience, creating a slice of visibility of nuanced everyday lives. I highly recommend checking this book out!

This was kind of like being in those introduction classes at college where you’re all in a circle and you speak a little about yourself and your experiences. Maybe more like a support group. It covered a diverse range of experiences of what it means to be both trans and disabled. Some people chose to say a short poem, while others opted for more lengthy essays.

My only criticism is that I think it just needed a little more editing.

3.75 Rounded up for me. It's how any anthology goes for me, some parts I love and others I don't vibe with. The beginning was rough for me, reading like a textbook, but once I got to the more personal stories I connected more with the authors. I'm not much for poetry so I would lose a bit there again but I did find more often than not I was making an emotional connection with what these authors were bringing to the anthology. In particular:
- I am transgender & my disability is not a cautionary tale by Finlay Games
- What I Remember by Colletti von Raven
- Bathroom Buzzcut by Liz Moore
- Covid 19, Self Revelations, and the Resilience of Intersectional Online Community by Jac of GenderMeowster
- I Can't Keep Meeting Me Like This - Coltan J. Schoenike
- Deeply Plussed by T Boris-Schacter
- Mimicry - by Jonathan Eden
- What Are We Worth? by Lee K. Hulme
- Bender by H. Howitt
- Who Fights For Us by Lio Effinger-Weintraub

Thank you to the publisher and Net Galley for the e-arc of this title.
Just to be completely transparent... I am both trans and disabled and that is what attracted me to this title. As much as I knew it was a collection of essays, I did not expect it to be quite as academically written. At first, this threw me a little. Maybe it's just that I need to read more essay collections in order to get used to the academic style. However, I did feel, at first, that while the goal (I think) of the book is to show up the unique challenges and exclusionary treatment (especially in medical and political spheres) trans and disabled people deal with, that due to the academic style it would be exclusionary of whole groups of people that would benefit and would want to access these essays.
This lessened over the book and especially in the second half of the collection, it was written in much more of an accessible style. Not only this, but I felt seen and really connected to the experiences being talked about. I really appreciated this collection overall and would recommend those who are interested in the topics talked about here to go ahead and check it out. I really hope to see more from these essayists and also the editor of this work. I also really appreciated the sources that were provided for further information.
This is ideal for readers who enjoy essay collections, are interested in people's experiences with references that can be checked out for further research. I think this will also suit readers that are looking to increase their understanding of the world we live in and how medical and political systems in particular leave trans and disabled people to suffer unnecessarily just to keep it's own prejudices in tact. You will be emotionally affected by these essays and it will make you want to change the world.

"To be trans and disabled is to have experienced being ques- tioned about our status. It means having questioned ourselves whether we are "enough" of one or the other or both identities."
~
"It means to have our trans status questioned because of our disabilities and to have our disabilities "blamed" on our trans status. To be trans and disabled sometimes means experi- encing ableism within our trans communities and transphobia within our disabled communities."
~
With this being an anthology that included different formats as well as different people who had their own perspectives on transness and its intersectionality with disability, not everything in it was applicable to me. That being said though, I did find it interesting to read other people's perspectives about things.
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Thank you to NetGalley for sending me an ARC copy of this book.

I approached this book with some minor reservations, mainly because the story presented an idea that I found complex to execute. And indeed, I believe the author only partially succeeded.

I greatly appreciated the concept of bringing together a very wide range of voices, each with different backgrounds but all revolving around the themes of disability and gender. In my opinion, the book offers many thought-provoking insights and a deeper understanding of the challenges faced by someone who is disabled/neurodivergent and trans. However, I was somewhat hesitant about the overall cohesiveness of the book: some stories struck deeper emotional chords, while others felt more detached.

That said, it is a well-rounded, well-written book that successfully combines various styles and tones of narration, which blend together quite well.

✨ Book Review! ✨

📕Book: Trans and Disabled: An Anthology of Identities and Experiences

📘 Genre: Non-Fiction

📖 Synopsis: Trans and Disabled is an anthology of poems, plays, drawings, stories, and essays about what it means to be trans and disabled, the intersections of these (and many other) identities, and individual experiences of these identities.

📚 Review: Trans and Disabled covered a huge range of topics in a variety of formats. Like any anthology, some pieces were stronger than others, and I resonated with some, but not all of these contributions. I found some to be insightful and have their own voice, while some felt dry and kind of unfocused. Some were casual and accessible, while some were very academic. While there was diversity in the stories told, there was a surprising lack of trans women represented in this anthology, which was disappointing.
I do think this was a valuable book that discussed important topics such as: trans broken arm syndrome; access in gender affirming care; systemic issues in trans health care (like not being able to check off both “male” and “pregnancy test” on a form), medical mistreatment, and isolation.
I think overall, this was a good anthology that demonstrated how there is no one way to be trans or disabled.

Some quotes that resonated with me are below:

”Here we’re inspired by Travis Alabanza (2022) who asks what everyone might learn from trans people, viewing us as a gift rather than any kind of problem to be fixed.” - John-Barker

“Despite all of the struggle, there is still such beauty in knowing who you are. In finding the words that slide over you and perfectly click. The labels that fill every nook and cranny, eliminating the void of being unknown to yourself. When we find ourselves, in language and in community, it feels like coming home.” - Kattari

”I still think gender is suspect, just like I knew at six years old. I just have more words to explain why now.” - Iantaffi

“I didn’t take testosterone and have surgery to get a particular kind of life; I did those things to keep my life, to stop life being so painful that all I wanted to do was end it.” - Games

“I think this is what they mean by gender euphoria…. The nod of recognition I give when I see another queer person, and they see me.” - Moore

“An ER is a place a trans person goes reluctantly. I can't forget the range of medical encounters as a queer and trans young adult. Being refused treatment, being ignored, being regarded as less than human, being called disgusting, and, more than 20 years later, still being dismissed and misdiagnosed.” - VonRaven

💫 Rating: 3.75/5

It was interesting to get an insight into these people's minds, how they think and feel about themselves and their condition.

Trans and Disabled: An Anthology of Identities and Experiences, edited by Alex Iantaffi, reads like being in a room surrounded by countless vulnerable conversations, each distinct from the next yet bound by the realities of life within an intersectional identity so often suppressed by the world. This anthology will no doubt change - and likely save - lives. I feel so grateful to have had the opportunity to read, review and share my love for it.
‘If you’re reading this as a trans and disabled person, I hope you find pieces of you in these pages, no matter how small, and if you feel lonely or isolated, maybe these pages might help you feel a little less so’ (from the introduction).

As a non-binary disabled person, I certainly found small pieces of myself scattered throughout these pages, particularly within reflections on a neuro(queer) identity and on the central theme of the cruciality of community. Within many essays, I undeniably saw traces of others in my community and, beyond that, I found myself learning so much from the range of experiences and identities so vastly different from my own.

Within this collection, you will find reflections on plurality and liminality, all the way through to rejection and defying binaries. Though this is undoubtedly a difficult and heart-wrenching read at times, I cannot recommend it widely enough. Collections such as this are how we grow and learn individually, yes, but more importantly, together. Essays such as these are a vital part of how we come together to build a safer, freer future for all.

I will end with a quote from Shanna Katz Kattari that perfectly encapsulates this book.
‘Despite all of the struggle, there is still such beauty in knowing who you are. In finding the words that slide over you and perfectly click. The labels that fill every nook and cranny, eliminating the void of being unknown to yourself. When we find ourselves, in language and in community, it feels like coming home’.

Thank you to NetGalley and Jessica Kingsley Publishers for the e-ARC. All opinions are my own.

CWs/TWs:
Graphic: Child abuse
Moderate: Ableism, Mental illness, and Pandemic/Epidemic
Minor: Racism, Self harm, Suicide, Transphobia, and Medical content

“Personhood is conditional; monstrosity is a bed you sleep in for eternity.”

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for the eARC! This collection releases on January 21st, 2025 in the US from Jessica Kingsley Publishers.

There is a raw, undeniable power in Trans and Disabled: An Anthology of Identities and Experiences, edited by Alex Iantaffi. This collection of essays offers a deeply personal and politically urgent exploration of what it means to exist at the intersection of transness and disability, a space where visibility is both necessary and dangerous, where care is often conditional, and where survival itself is an act of defiance. Through lyrical prose, philosophical musings, and candid reflections, the contributors dismantle binaries, reject imposed hierarchies, and carve out space for identities that refuse to be neatly categorized.

One of the most striking themes of the anthology is the pervasive sense of unbelonging—both in medical settings and within broader social structures. Many of the authors grapple with the ways cisgenderism and ableism work in tandem to deny them adequate care, understanding, and legitimacy. The essays expose the exhausting reality of having to “prove” one’s gender and disability to systems that fundamentally distrust lived experience. Impostor syndrome, the burden of masking, and the relentless pressure to conform to normative expectations weave through the narratives, illustrating how trans disabled people are often made to feel as though they are fabricating their own realities.

Yet, amidst this struggle, there is also a profound celebration of fluidity. These essays embrace the shapeshifting nature of identity—of gender, of ability, of self-perception. The authors resist the pathologization of their existence, instead offering a vision of transness and disability as sites of expansive possibility rather than limitation. Through metaphors of galaxies, bending light, and the tension between structure and movement, they articulate the beauty of liminality, of being in constant conversation with oneself and the world.

H Howitt’s essay stood out to me in particular, offering a deeply resonant meditation on the relationship between queerness, neurodivergence, and Ehlers-Danlos Syndrome (EDS). As someone who shares those intersections, I found their exploration of hypermobility as both a physical and existential state profoundly moving. The way they frame EDS as a neuro(queer) identity—one that resists rigidity while still yearning for stability—perfectly encapsulates the paradox of existing in a bodymind that is simultaneously boundless and fragile.

Trans and Disabled is not just an anthology—it is an offering, an act of defiance, and a testament to the resilience of those who live at the crossroads of transness and disability. It is a necessary read for anyone seeking to understand, and more importantly, to affirm and uplift these voices. In a world that so often insists on erasure, this collection insists on presence. And that, in itself, is revolutionary.

📖 Recommended For: Readers who appreciate introspective, lyrical prose; those interested in the intersection of transness and disability; anyone who values personal narratives on identity, community, and resilience; fans of Eli Clare and Leah Lakshmi Piepzna-Samarasinha.

🔑 Key Themes: Medical Neglect and Institutional Barriers, Masking and Impostor Syndrome, Fluidity of Identity, Community and Mutual Aid, Resistance to Binaries and Hierarchies.

Content / Trigger Warnings: Medical Trauma (minor), Pandemic (minor), Mental Illness (minor), Racism (minor), Child Abuse (severe), Suicidal Thoughts (minor), Sexual Violence (minor), Transphobia (minor), Self Harm (minor), Medical Content (minor), Suicide Attempt (minor).