New York Times Reviews Helen Joyce's Trans

[EmbarrassingAdmissions]

Helen Joyce's announcement:

Happy U.S. publication day to me! And even though no American publisher was brave enough to pick the book up (the U.K. edition is being distributed in the U.S.), I got reviewed in the NYT. So frankly, American publishers’ loss

twitter.com/HJoyceGender/status/1435208966355685378?s=20

I think Joyce is pleased with the way it was handled recalling her reminder that reviewers need to quibble about something (re: Aaronovitich's review). It's brave of the reviewer to do this at all given the contemporary controversies and the reviewer made a declaration of interest that she knows Joyce and they share some perspectives.

Final paragraph:

In context, though, these are fairly minor shortcomings. “Trans” is a compelling, overdue argument for viewing self-ID more critically. Even those outraged by Joyce’s positions would benefit from understanding them, given that, as she notes, self-ID polls quite poorly when its actual tenets are fully described to Americans and to the British. The present situation, in which liberal institutions not only embrace these ideas unquestioningly but also, increasingly, punish dissidents, is unsustainable. Open conversation about such fraught issues is the only realistic path forward, and Joyce’s book offers a good, impassioned start.

It's free to read but you need to create an account: www.nytimes.com/2021/09/07/books/review/trans-helen-joyce.html

archive version: <a class="break-all" href="https://web.archive.org/web/20210907113407/www.nytimes.com/2021/09/07/books/review/trans-helen-joyce.html" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">web.archive.org/web/20210907113407/www.nytimes.com/2021/09/07/books/review/trans-helen-joyce.html

That reaction is just...bizarre.

And the criticisms so wholly unfounded. Yet Gawker so needed a swift response that they published it.

@BernardBlackMissesLangCleg

crikey the writer of that gawker piece is furious

too furious to make much sense sadly

how very dare people have alternate opinions eh?

but that’s like me saying my dog Mars is “no big loser” when he is actually my only friend and ally.

Well gawker writer, who are we to disagree with you. Next time when they say 'make sure a friend proof reads it for you' give it to someone other than the dog.

Still might not prevent the ceremonial burning of the editor, managing director and all close family members though.

As I was saying - hat tip to Katie Herzog for exhibiting it.

As Katie says - '“This book review is violent” is not a phrase that should come out of anyone’s mouth unless it comes to life and stabs you.'

That book review in Gawker is hilarious.

Sorry, interview review.

Well, the publicity is certainly helping. It’s #1 in Gender Studies and Gender and the law on Amazon.com now (overall ranking around 10,000, up from 30,000 yesterday afternoon) and I am sure it will go a lot further.

‘The book is violent’

Pfft

I have been devastated to see UK papers of record, broadcasters of international reputation, national governments, overall Parliament, healthcare systems and other major bodies running anti-woman programmes and initiatives in the name of progress.

However, if I understand this correctly, that's not a thing that is supposed to perturb anyone.

Thanks for the links, OP.

Fantastic to see this gaining traction in the US.

The more brouhaha they make, the more visibility, the more people made aware of the issues.

So, bring it.

"It’s #1 in Gender Studies and Gender and the law on Amazon.com now..."

Is anyone else thinking of "84 Charing Cross Road" ?

‘The more brouhaha they make, the more visibility, the more people made aware of the issues.’

Indeed.
Visibility is everything with this book. The convinced TRAs aren’t going to buy it anyway. The people who buy it will be either the gender critical or people who are aware there is a controversy and would like a clear explanation of what is going on. TRAs crying bigot won’t stop either of those groups- in fact the more intemperate the language the less likely the unconvinced are to give credence to the people saying not to buy it.

@Jaysmith71

"It’s #1 in Gender Studies and Gender and the law on Amazon.com now..."

Is anyone else thinking of "84 Charing Cross Road" ?

193 reviews already! And almost 5 star (I don't know how much longer that will last as I'm sure there'll be some community action) which is good to see from verified purchases.

I really like Jesse Singal, Blocked and Reported is fast becoming one of my favourite podcasts. He's a Democrat and so moderate and reasonable that it's wild to me he's been "cancelled".

The gawker article - the writer is so cross that nyt published this article that they forgot to set out why helen Joyce's points and singal's appraisal of them are wrong, and what would be better. They retell singal's review so that readers do actually get a fair description of what is said, but then just add snarky angry bits and negative framing, but with no specific criticism of the review (or book). Just the personal insults. Presumably they really believe it's self evident that the opinions are bigoted and wrong. But this means they end up telling readers that beauticians are being forced to wax scrotums when they would rather not, and male murderers and sex offenders have been placed in women's prisons.

Well, with the NYT publishing this review, I think we have just found at that No Debate is over in America too.

@NecessaryScene

Not sure it's worth a separate thread, but worth posting here.

Quillette has published an excerpt from Trans today:

The Truth About Autogynephilia

It's a very telling excerpt, that. Pivotal, in my opinion.

The book is explosive in both informing, and producing explosive reactions.

On AGP:

Bailey knew his book would be criticised by activists who disapproved of Blanchard’s typology. But the level of vitriol shocked him—as it did Blanchard, who felt “survivor’s guilt” at seeing Bailey targeted, and horror at the diatribes that started to be published about Blanchard himself online. “That kind of boiling hatred reminded me of when I was a small kid, brought up in a farming community,” he says. “You would sometimes come across the rotting, stinking corpse of some small dead animal, and it’s like a physical blow.”

Lawrence adds another piece to the puzzle of trans activist rage. She posits that autogynephilia’s inwardly directed nature, and the frustrations attendant on requiring others to validate your cross-sex identity, mean that the condition co-occurs with narcissistic disorders more often than would occur by chance. And narcissists often respond to minor slights with disproportionate rage.

Indeed.