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Overview
Published in 2019, Gender Queer: A Memoir is a graphic memoir written and drawn by Maia Kobabe, in which Kobabe (who uses e/em/eir pronouns) is author as well as subject, both observer and object of observation
. Gender Queer is an intensely cathartic autobiographical coming-of-age narrative that recounts the author’s self-discovery of eir nonbinary gender identity and expression. Poised at the intersection of memoir, graphic novel, and creative nonfiction, the book is a beautifully illustrated and candid account of navigating and questioning a culture of strict gender binaries in the process of uncovering the true self. In a deeply personal way, Gender Queer itself serves as Kobabe’s ultimate act of coming out.In 2020, Gender Queer won the American Library Association’s Alex Award, which is given to books written for adults that appeal to teens, emphasizing how graphic memoirs, which often explore themes around coming of age and coming out, are a bridge between young readers and the older artists who model how to make sense of one’s queer identity.
Read the full book summary & analysis, descriptions of the main ideas, and explanations of important quotes from Gender Queer.
