SAYFTEE

Target Audience: Parent(s) or those thinking about becoming a parent

SAYFTEE Rating: Full rainbow of hearts! 8/8

Reviewer: Bria Brown-King (she/they), intersex advocate and Director of Engagement at interACT

Why: Raising Rosie is a book that I wish I had access to growing up. I’m an adult with CAH and I never read a book that I related to so closely. This is a story about two parents who challenge the medical establishment in order to protect the agency and autonomy of their child who was born with an intersex variation. It’s also a story about the unconditional love between parent and child. We see endless examples of courage, resilience, and pushing back against a system that tells us that there’s only one way to be normal. I’ve been told that no one can really prepare us for parenthood. But I do know that Raising Rosie provided a great example of how to be the best parent and parent advocate that one can be.

Target Audience: Highschoolers, maybe sophomores through seniors. There is a little bit of drug use (marijuana) and some adult language

SAYFTEE Rating: Full rainbow of hearts! 8/8

Reviewer: Taite (she/they) was an e-bunk counselor for the first time this summer with Camp Aranu'tiq! Taite is nonbinary and gay. They are finishing up college and planning to go to grad school to be a teacher. They hope to teach middle and high school.

Why: With a lot of stories about queer and trans kids, the narrative is when they're struggling to come out and navigating that. One thing I really liked about this book is it starts when Felix already comes out as trans, had top surgery, and is living comfortably in his identity, but he goes through an additional examination of his gender identity (I don't want to give anything away). I liked it because it shows that we can continue to explore gender and it doesn't ever have to be a fixed thing, and that there's always room for change, growth, and exploration.

Target Audience: Estimated ages 12 and up

SAYFTEE Rating: Full rainbow of hearts! 8/8

Reviewer: Helen Staab, LICSW and SAYFTEE clinician

Why: In Seeing Gender, author and illustrator Iris Gottlieb takes a unique approach to engaging and educating her audience. While in many ways a Gender Identity 101 primer, Seeing Gender is also a colorfully illustrated invitation to further explore the many intersecting issues surrounding gender. The book’s format allows for the reader to gain something from the experience whether reading it cover to cover or glancing at a few pages at a time. This is a book one could give to a young person looking for connection, an adult family member seeking a starting point for self education, or for yourself to keep on your coffee table and start some great conversations.

Target Audience: ages 3-8 (but also relatable to anyone who feels different)

SAYFTEE Rating: Full rainbow of hearts! 8/8

Reviewer: Melissa MacNish Nishman, founder and co-director of SAYFTEE

Why: This book is my absolute favorite kids’ book! It’s about a crayon with a red wrapping but it draws the color blue. It can be interpreted in a variety of different ways but the main message is: Some people might not understand you. Some people might put labels on you that don’t fit. Then there are people who will encourage you and support your truth. This book is about bravery, self acceptance, and celebration.

Target Audience: EVERYONE, health professionals, parents

SAYFTEE Rating: Full rainbow of hearts! 8/8

Reviewer: Nic Wildes (they/them), LMHC and co-director of SAYFTEE

Why: I could not put this book down! Anyone who has struggled with the shame of feeling different can resonate with her story. The author offers a moving account of her journey toward self-acceptance as an intersex woman. Her subsequent advocacy and activism for the rights of intersex youth is inspiring. To my fellow members of the LGBTQ+ community, we must do better to include and support our intersex siblings in our quest for equality. To my mental health colleagues, seek out resources and information to begin learning how to better welcome intersex folks into your practice, and support them in their healing.

Target Audience: For mature teens & adults of all ages! A MUST READ for clinicians who work with body image struggles

SAYFTEE Rating: Full rainbow of hearts! 8/8

Reviewer: Megan Tucker, Psy.D. (she/her/hers), Body, Race, & Gender Liberation-Focused Clinician

Why: This book is a transformative journey of radical self-love/compassion and body justice. Sonya Renee helps readers to understand the ways that oppressive systems create and maintain the societal ideals that lead to body shame. Reference my affirmative couch article on being trans & fat…it's really connected to how the book is transformative!

Target Audience: 18+

SAYFTEE Rating: Full rainbow of hearts! 8/8

Reviewer: Helen Staab, LICSW and SAYFTEE Clinician

Why: I first became familiar with Saeed Jones through his poetry, and then through his Twitter (he’s very funny and has a great dog). In his memoir, How We Fight For Our Lives, Jones applies both his humor and his way with words to tell stories of his childhood and coming of age as a Black gay man from the South. The narrative brings the reader through experiences of joy, rejection, grief and transcendence. Please note that this book is decidedly for mature readers in terms of both themes and content.

Target Audience: Early childhood, grades 1-2

SAYFTEE Rating: Full rainbow of hearts! 8/8

Reviewer: Meg Price, LMHC of Aurora Counseling Assoc. in Natick, MA

Why: This book makes my heart sing! A little boy named Julian finds inspiration on the subway with his Nana in the form of 3 beautifully bedecked women. He begins to create his own look at home, unsure of how Nana will react. This book is tender, joyful, and visually stunning, and leaves me feeling like I got a hug from Nana myself. I hope you enjoy it as much as I do!

Target Audience: 16+ (CW: homophobia, transphobia)

SAYFTEE Rating: 6/8 hearts

Reviewer: Nic Wildes (they/them), LMHC and Co-director of SAYFTEE

Why: Tobia gives the reader a first hand account of their experiences as a genderqueer person growing up in the 90s in North Carolina. Their story helps illustrate the painful ways binary ideas about gender and sexuality impact us all. “Sissy guarantees that you’ll never think about gender-both other people’s and your own-the same way again.”

Target Audience: Ages 12+

SAYFTEE Rating: Full rainbow of hearts! 8/8

Reviewer: Helen Staab, LICSW and SAYFTEE Clinician

Why: Lily and Dunkin follows the lives and friendship of two middle schoolers. One protagonist lives with bipolar disorder and the other is handling coming out as trans in an unaccepting home. At its heart, this is a story about the power of being seen for who we truly are and being loved for it - not just in spite of it.

Target Audience: Children (maybe ages 7-13 depending on the context being used)

Content Warnings: Trauma, violence, death

SAYFTEE Rating: 6.5/8

Reviewer: Maurice Newman (he/him), Associate Ministry Director of LGBT Asylum Task Force

Why: In this book, Hassan is a child from Somalia and attending a new school in a new country.

Hassan understands very little English and so in his class, the teacher gave him a task to paint. He understood he was to paint because the teacher gave him a paper, a brush and showed him the colours. He has never painted before. He painted a picture of what happened to him in Somalia; his real reality. His mother asked him at the end of the school day to show her his picture, but he did not. Instead, the next day he drew a happier picture where everything was nice and ‘ok’ and showed that to his mother.

I chose this book because like Hassan, asylum seekers come from everywhere where norms, cultures and traditions are very different. When they get here a lot of things become new and they have to figure out on their own how to do them. Most importantly though, like Hassan who drew his reality on the first day but chose to show his mom a happier picture instead, asylum seekers have all experienced incomparable trauma one way or another, but they choose to wear a smile and look happy, not really reflecting the constant struggle they face emotionally, psychologically, socially and sometimes spiritually.

Because we know of all these issues, we continue to fight everyday to help these individuals as best as we can with help of people and organizations like yours.

Target Audience: Adult readers

SAYFTEE Rating: Full rainbow of hearts! 8/8

Reviewer: Jessica Kant (she/her/hers), LICSW at SAYFTEE

Why:

Milstein’s anthology Rebellious Mourning includes authors from the past several decades of organizing within marginalized communities. With a special emphasis on centering LGBTQ+ and BIPOC voices, this gorgeous collection of essays comes from a wide variety of writers tackling issues critical to our time. Milstein begins the anthology by challenging the idea that pain and loss should be private affairs:

“One of the cruelest affronts, though, was the expectation that pain should be hidden away, buried, privatized-- a lie manufactured so as to mask and uphold the social order that produces our many, unnecessary losses."

Topics include, but are not limited to: police brutality, homophobia, transphobia, disability rights, and the AIDS crisis. In a time where we must face so much uncertainty and loss, Milstein’s anthology offers a history of hope and resistance that reminds us that we’ve survived this before, and that there’s power in collective grief.

Target Audience: Preschool aged kids, good read-aloud book

SAYFTEE Rating: 8/8 (a full rainbow of hearts!)

Reviewer: Nic Wildes, LMHC (they/them/theirs), co-director of SAYFTEE

Why: I’m a big fan of this book because of the wide range of representation of queer and trans people. Consider sharing it with ALL the kiddos in your life, and check out @FlamingoRampant on Instagram for more feminist, racially-diverse and LGBTQ-positive children’s books!

Target Audience: Anyone who likes history and wants a more expansive look at the history of trans people. It is part memoir and part historical deep dive. It is fairly accessible, but sometimes challenging.

SAYFTEE Rating: 8/8 (a full rainbow of hearts!)

Reviewer: Matisse DuPont (they/them), Consultant and Activist with Trans Emergency Fund

Why: This book was a huge eye-opener for me when it comes to how vast and expansive we can be with how we define the trans community. This book is part memoir and part history text; it follows iconic trans activist Leslie Feinberg as they pretend to be a student to sneak into museums and libraries to learn about hidden trans histories. With work rooted in anti-racism and working-class politics, Feinberg explores many corners of what is means or has meant to be a Transgender Warrior.

Target Audience: New or experienced clinicians working with transgender and gender diverse communities and would like a basic understanding of the intersections of these identities with body image and/or disordered eating

SAYFTEE Rating: 6/8 hearts

Reviewer: Melissa MacNish Nishman (she/her/hers), co-director and founder of SAYFTEE

Why: Written by two clinicians who specialize in disordered eating, this book provides a basic 101 for working with transgender and gender diverse communities while also weaving in information about body image and disordered eating. The book provides case studies, reflective questions and useful tips to support gender diverse clients with body image issues and/or disordered eating.

Target Audience: Teens and adults (contains some swears and explanations of kink basics with related comics)

SAYFTEE Rating: A full rainbow of hearts! 8/8

Reviewer: Haeden Peaslee, LMHC (they/them)

Why: A whimsical exploration of “Alphabet Soup Land”! Tab is a comic artist who has been writing stories about lgbtq+ folks for quite some time and Minority Monsters is a great intro to many identities with a related mythical creature, facts, a comic, and myths for each identity. It also looks into some of the history of lgbtq+ identities and gender non-conformance. Many of the comics can be accessed on http://www.discordcomics.com/minoritymonsters/ and the book expands on those!

Target Audience: Age 16+

Content Warnings: Human and hippo violence

SAYFTEE Rating: A full rainbow of hearts! 8/8

Reviewer: Helen Staab, LICSW (she/her/hers), SAYFTEE Clinician

Why:

“American Hippo” is a collection of novellas and short stories by Sarah Gailey. The stories take the formula of old Westerns and replace cows with hippos - which is at once as silly and as terrifying as you might imagine. Obviously this kind of speculative fiction isn’t going to be for everyone, but if the concept sparks your interest I highly recommend it.

I love “American Hippo” for the unique story but also for the way that the author seamlessly weaves queer, nonbinary, and gender nonconforming characters into the story. It may be the best demonstration of allowing characters to be more than just their identity that I’ve encountered. I particularly appreciated having a well developed non binary character who is never made to explain their identity or talk about the gender they were assigned at birth.

Target Audience: YA and up

SAYFTEE Rating: A full rainbow of hearts! 8/8

Reviewer: Jessica Kant (she/her/hers), LICSW and SAYFTEE Clinician

Why:

It is true that coming out and starting transition is often the loneliest time. It certainly was for me. At a time where the future feels unclear and the payoff feels uncertain. Craggs’ anthology contains over 80 letters from trans women and transfemme people around the world written in a variety of styles, aimed at speaking directly to trans people starting their journeys. Part love letter, part diary, each letter is from a different famous voice such as Isis King, Shea Diamond and Juno Dawson. Each are designed to remind you that you are not alone.

Fun fact: ever used the trans flag emoji? Thank Charlie Craggs.

Target Audience: Mature adolescents and adults

Content Warnings: Sexual abuse, homophobia, islamophobia

SAYFTEE Rating: 6/8 hearts

Reviewer: Nic Wildes (they/them/theirs), LMHC and co-director of SAYFTEE

Why: In her account of self discovery as a queer Muslim woman, the author reminds us of the importance of being seen and embraced for all of who we are.

Target Audience: Ages 8-12 (but also helpful for parents to help navigate conversations)

SAYFTEE Rating: A full rainbow of hearts! 8/8

Reviewer: Melissa MacNish Nishman (she/her/hers), SAYFTEE Co-director and Founder

Why: This book is exactly what I have been looking for to recommend to parents of young LGBTQ+ children (and all children) to help them understand themselves, their bodies and relationships. It covers: puberty, hormones, pregnancy, consent, sex, relationship & families while using language that is inclusive of everyone. I also really enjoyed the illustrations by the Boston-based illustrator, Noah Grigni.

Target Audience: Anyone looking for wonderful portraits and stories from 50+ year old trans folks

Content Warnings: Suicide attempts

SAYFTEE Rating: A full rainbow of hearts! 8/8

Reviewer: Haeden Peaslee (they/them), LMHC at SAYFTEE

Why: Jess is one of my favorite photographers of trans and queer folks, and I was so excited when this series was started (Jess also used to be local and went to MassArt!). Jess worked with partner Vanessa, a social worker, to create a collection of images and interviews of trans and GNC older adults from across the United States. Being able to sit with this large red book and take in the images as well as written stories is a striking experience, and I imagine catching an exhibition of To Survive On This Shore in person someday would be even more so!

Target Audience: Adult and mature readers

SAYFTEE Rating: A full rainbow of hearts! 8/8

Reviewer: Helen Staab (she/her/hers), LICSW and SAYFTEE clinician

Why: This is not the first time that Alok Vaid-Menon’s work has been on SAYFTEE Reads. Femme in Public is a chapbook of their poetry, beginning with the question “what feminine part of yourself did you have to destroy in order to survive in order to survive in this world?” Menon’s work is intensely personal in a way that draws the reader in and creates a space to reflect on our own hurt, outrage, and radical hope.

Target Audience: Mature adolescents and adults

Content Warnings: Sexual assault, slurs, homophobia, racism, and anti-blackness

SAYFTEE Rating: 6/8 hearts

Reviewer: Nic Wildes (they/them/theirs), LMHC and Co-director of SAYFTEE

Why: Johnson gives the reader an intimate look into his experience growing up as a Black queer man, and his journey to understanding that “there was a version of manhood, a version of ‘manly’ that looked like me...I wanted to become the person that future Black queer folks could look to and know that their masculinity could be defined on their own terms.”

Target Audience: Mature teens and adults

Content Warnings: All myths and tales are based off of the originals and some do have sensitive themes. Each individual story has a content warning if it is needed

SAYFTEE Rating: 6/8 hearts

Reviewer: Haeden Peaslee (they/them/theirs), LMHC at SAYFTEE

Why: I was really excited to get these books and see how the author had interpreted different myths, tales, and fairy tales! Each story has some background from the author and her point of view of how asexuality fits within the tale. I sometimes wished for more overt re-tellings but overall really appreciated these books. Mythology has wonderful ways of helping us tell our stories and these collections are a great addition for asexual representation and story telling.

Target Audience: Therapists & Counselors

SAYFTEE Rating: 7/8 hearts

Reviewer: Helen Staab (she/her/hers), LICSW at SAYFTEE

Why: This is a comprehensive resource that serves as a good starting point for clinicians wanting to learn more about gender affirming therapy. Each chapter ends with questions both for the clinician to use with their client as well as for the clinician’s own self reflection.

Target Audience: 13+

SAYFTEE Rating: A full rating - 8/8 hearts!

Reviewer: Nic Wildes (they/them/theirs), LMHC and Co-director of SAYFTEE

Why: This comic strip style diary of Kaye’s early transition experiences resonates with some of my own experiences and echoes the fears and joys I hear day in and day out from other trans and nonbinary people.

Target Audience: Ivan specifically released this collection for queer youth but it is a wonderful read for adults too!

SAYFTEE Rating: A full rating - 8/8 hearts!

Reviewer: Haeden Peaslee (they/them/theirs), LMHC at SAYFTEE

Why: I was introduced to Ivan when a client asked me to read the short story “Imagine a Pair of Boots,” a story that is included in this book and provides a striking metaphor for pronouns. This was my first time reading a full collection of Ivan’s stories and I can’t wait to read more! Ivan is a wonderful storyteller and this book shares many of Ivan’s earlier memories as well as stories as a person travelling to speak at different highschools as an adult.

Target Audience: Clinicians

SAYFTEE Rating: A full rating - 8/8 hearts!

Reviewer: Jessica Kant (she/her/hers), LICSW and MPH at SAYFTEE

Why:

Among the absolute mess of homonormative and cis-centric therapy texts, Tilsen’s Therapeutic Conversations is an absolute revelation. First offering a rich introduction to Post-Structural theory and Narrative practice, Tilsen moves on to explore the worlds of those who traditional LGBT organizations most-often leave out of the conversation. Instead of simply relying on her own queer identity, Tilsen draws on the expert local knowledge of “The Q-Squad”, five queer youth who serve as cultural consultants for the book. As an act of truly embodied Narrative practice, Tilsen invites Q-squad members to reflect on each chapter, to share their stories and offer insights and nuance.

Absolutely prescient during today’s anti-trans assaults, Tilsen’s analysis of the role of assimilationist discourse in LGBT movement history offers a true roadmap for understanding the schisms that exist in the community today, and the complicity these harmful narratives have in upholding anti-queer hegemony.

For years I have been searching for a text for my family therapy students wishing to work with LGBT/queer youth, and this is the first text on actual clinical practice that I can enthusiastically and wholeheartedly recommend. Therapists, especially therapists who identify not as community members but as allies: read this book. A follow-up, Queering your Therapy Practice (2021) will be out soon and is available for pre-order.

Bonus: have you been looking for a way to name, deconstruct and challenge the oppressive messages in Harry Potter (let alone the racist, sexist and transphobic views of its author)? Read page 91.

Target Audience: Ages 4 and up

SAYFTEE Rating: A full rating - 8/8 hearts!

Reviewer: Helen Staab (she/her/hers), LICSW at SAYFTEE

Why: The Boy & the Bindi is a beautifully illustrated and joyful story about a boy learning the significance of his mother’s bindi. In terms accessible to young readers, the story touches upon aspects of cultural identity, spirituality, and gender expansiveness.

Target Audience: Adults and mature teens who love fantasy fiction

Content Warnings: Murder of young child

SAYFTEE Rating: A full rainbow - 8/8 hearts!

Reviewer: Haeden Peaslee (they/them/theirs), LMHC at SAYFTEE

Why: One of my favorite fantasy series I have read in my adult life, this is the first in a trilogy following the main characters through the end of their world after a significant loss. N.K. Jemisin does a wonderful job of weaving in lgbtq+ characters throughout the story (there is at least one trans character as well as lgb characters and polyamory).