Detransition, Baby is utterly messy and chaotic. It is also terribly good. This book has the best Trans representation so far if I say so. It has everything. Characters, Transgender sex, identity politics, misconceptions, stereotypes and all that.


With all these concepts swirling around the pages, the concept of motherhood just hits home. After transitioning, Ames found that his boss/lover is pregnant with his child. But he is unsure of being a father and wants to co-parent with his ex Reese. This book documents how they explore this pregnancy in pure wit.


I love this book. I love how funny and honest this book is. Though I don't agree with a few things in this book, it is such a breath of fresh air. I also love how all the characters are unapologetically real. They are flawed, chaotic, messy and also so real. I read this book in instalments to process what I read and also to research them. Though the writing is fluid and the story is good, I couldn't bond with this book with my whole heart.


As I read how Reese and Ames are struggling with everything (transition and detransition), I am constantly reminded of Trans people in my own country. It's a known fact that in India, Trans rights are not established properly. If you are from where I am, Transgender people are always discriminated against and faces a lot of violence and abuse. And all these happen to the people who are only identified as Trans woman or hijras (it consists of transgender persons who are biologically male but identify as women or “neither man nor woman” nor “not man.”)


We are taught at a tender age to fear them, despise them and admonish them. And I am constantly reminded of how it is for them while reading this book. I love this book. But I can't enjoy it fully because of my thoughts. Maybe I should read this book another time just for the sheer joy of reading.