March Book Club
We are so happy to announce our March Book Club choices!
March celebrates International Women's Day (March 8th) and International Transgender Day of Visibility (March 31st)!
Fiction: I Who Have Never Known Men by Jacqueline Harpman
Deep underground, thirty-nine women live imprisoned in a cage. Watched over by guards, the women have no memory of how they got there, no notion of time, and only a vague recollection of their lives before.
As the burn of electric light merges day into night and numberless years pass, a young girl—the fortieth prisoner—sits alone and outcast in the corner. Soon she will show herself to be the key to the others' escape and survival in the strange world that awaits them above ground.
Jacqueline Harpman was born in Etterbeek, Belgium, in 1929, and fled to Casablanca with her family during WWII. Informed by her background as a psychoanalyst and her youth in exile, I Who Have Never Known Men is a haunting, heartbreaking post-apocalyptic novel of female friendship and intimacy, and the lengths people will go to maintain their humanity in the face of devastation. Back in print for the first time since 1997, Harpman’s modern classic is an important addition to the growing canon of feminist speculative literature.
Non-Fiction: Whipping Girl: A Transsexual Woman on Sexism and the Scapegoating of Femininity
A provocative manifesto, Whipping Girl tells the powerful story of Julia Serano, a transsexual woman whose supremely intelligent writing reflects her diverse background as a lesbian transgender activist and professional biologist. Serano shares her experiences and observations—both pre- and post-transition—to reveal the ways in which fear, suspicion, and dismissiveness toward femininity shape our societal attitudes toward trans women, as well as gender and sexuality as a whole.
Serano's well-honed arguments stem from her ability to bridge the gap between the often-disparate biological and social perspectives on gender. She exposes how deep-rooted the cultural belief is that femininity is frivolous, weak, and passive, and how this “feminine” weakness exists only to attract and appease male desire.
In addition to debunking popular misconceptions about transsexuality, Serano makes the case that today's feminists and transgender activist must work to embrace and empower femininity—in all of its wondrous forms.
Content warnings:
I Who Have Never Known Men: Gender-based Violence, suicide, death, torture, confinement
Whipping Girl: Hate crime, Homophobia, Mental illness, Sexism, Sexual assault, Transphobia, and Violence
Once you receive your confirmation email, join our Instagram group chat for the book you signed up for :)
Because there are only 10 spots available in each discussion, please ensure you can attend and will be able to read the book by the designated date and time!
Location to be announced.