Psychologists Diane Ehrensaft (The Gender Creative Child) and Michelle Jurkiewicz team up for this excellent introduction to the concepts of gender creativity and gender-affirming care. Gender Explained dispels myths about younger generations' ease with gender creativity and about approaches taken by physical and mental health professionals in the field, providing a clear picture of the truth, along with anecdotes, exercises, and pointers to help readers understand and act on this information.
In the first part of the book, Ehrensaft and Jurkiewicz focus on "what" and "why." What does gender creativity mean? What is gender-affirming care? Why do so many children and teenagers seem to be exploring their gender identities, and why are so many adults anxious about it? After laying this strong foundation, the authors turn to the misinformation surrounding gender creativity, including the mistaken assertions that it is more prevalent in young people who are designated female at birth because of internalized misogyny, and that transgender and gender-creative youth pose impossible challenges in spaces such as classrooms, school sports, and pediatric medicine. The final chapter, "Gender Evolution to Revolution: What's Next?," eagerly looks ahead to a future when--as the authors do throughout--adults listen to the voices of children and teens to the benefit of all.
The authors acknowledge that adults, whether they have children or not, might open Gender Explained with a sense of wariness. But readers will close it with a sense of excitement about the possibilities that gender creativity opens to everyone. --Dainy Bernstein, freelance reviewer