“For my children. May they learn life’s hardest lessons from books” – The Controversy Surrounding The Man Who Would Be Queen.

I have just finished reading Alice D. Dreger’s extremely thorough account of the historical events that led to the brutal controversy of J. Michael Bailey’s book ‘The Man Who Would Be Queen: The Science of Gender-Bending and Transsexualism. I do own a copy myself, but it was one of those books I got half way through, misplaced and then forgot to pick back up – despite how interesting I found its contents. This essay by Dreger has reignited my interest in the book and added a considerable layer of context surrounding it’s backlash. I have now revived my copy and look forward to finishing it with a better understanding of its historical and societal context.