Summary

Jackson Bird begins this book with a glossary of terms related to gender and the transgender experience. This defines much of the language that is used recurrently. Jackson also makes a couple of notes on how to discuss transgender people respectfully, particularly in reference to the terms "transgender" and "transsexual," which have different social histories and implications. Transgender is the currently accepted term for trans people, but some older trans people continue to identify with the term "transsexual." As a nonoffensive default, Jackson recommends using the abbreviation "trans."

In the introduction, Jackson writes about the origins of this book, which began as a zine. Jackson notes that he has changed names and identifying characteristics to protect the privacy of other people in this book and that he has used his extensive journals to fact-check his memories. He emphasizes that...