Stone Butch Blues: A Novel

Stone Butch Blues: A Novel
by Leslie Feinberg

Stone Butch Blues: A Novel
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Book Summary Information

Author: Leslie Feinberg
Edition: Paperback
Audio: English (Unknown); English (Original Language); English (Published)
Published: 2004-04-01
ISBN: 1555838537
Number of pages: 320
Publisher: Alyson Books

Book Reviews of Stone Butch Blues: A Novel

Book Review: Raw
Summary: 5 Stars

Stone Butch Blues resonates as one of the best novels I've ever read. As I read the first chapter, which is a love letter from protagonist Jess Goldberg to her ex-girlfriend Teresa (which you will only understand the significance of, once you reach the end of the novel), I was mesmerised by Leslie's intense, intimate prose, which left me with a feeling of almost tasting Jess' tears. The rest of the novel takes the reader on Jess' journey, from her awkward first dabblings with gender-transgression as a child, and the bullying which she receives on account of people's confusion over whether she is male or female. The bullying culminates in a brutal rape, which is just one of several harrowing events that the reader must bear witness to, and be involved in, throughout the course of the novel. However, the novel is also lavish with tender moments -- and when they come around, they are so worthwhile and precious. Leslie's writing is one of the strongest aspects of the novel. Some may dismiss the writing as corny on account of its "pageturner" style, but this is only because Leslie calls a spade a spade, and does not try to awe the reader with unnecessarily decorative language. The focus is more on honesty.

When Jess finds the means, she starts experimenting surgically with gender: prompting torment about which identity to assume; that of a male or a female (this has great consequences when using public bathrooms.) Jess is an introspective and sensitive person, and the first person device provides an unsettling sense of authenticity: this stuff is so real, and the truth of the injustices Jess experiences make this novel not just a brilliant piece of art, but an effective reminder of why we should act politically to end all forms of discrimination.

Ultimately, one of the things I loved most about this book was how satisfying it was. The character of Ruth (a feminine, transgender home-maker) warmed my heart, and radiates as one of the most loveable characters I've ever experienced in a novel. The affinity Jess and Ruth find with each other proves to Jess how inconsequential gender is, after all. Though satisfying, and ultimately life-affirming, the novel ends on a haunting note: Jess has lost Teresa, whom she carries in her heart the whole novel through. There is some ambiguity about Ruth. What of Jess' future? What about the rest of the trans-gender people among us?

Highly recommended for butch lesbians, but really this book is so good that everyone should read it.

Summary of Stone Butch Blues: A Novel

Published in 1993, this brave, original novel is considered to be the finest account ever written of the complexities of a transgendered existence.

Woman or man? That?s the question that rages like a storm around Jess Goldberg, clouding her life and her identity. Growing up differently gendered in a blue--collar town in the 1950?s, coming out as a butch in the bars and factories of the prefeminist ?60s, deciding to pass as a man in order to survive when she is left without work or a community in the early ?70s. This powerful, provocative and deeply moving novel sees Jess coming full circle, she learns to accept the complexities of being a transgendered person in a world demanding simple explanations: a he-she emerging whole, weathering the turbulence.

Leslie Feinberg is also the author of Trans Liberation, Trans Gender Warriors and Transgender Liberation, and is a noted activist and speaker on transgender issues.

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