#Jordy Rosenberg

[lgbtqreads]

Fave Five: Trans Historical Fiction

The Companion by EE Ottoman Confessions of the Fox by Jordy Rosenberg All the White Spaces by Ally Wilkes Wrath Goddess Sing by Maya Deane A Lady for a Duke by Alexis Hall Bonus: These are all Adult, but in YA, check out The Spirit Bares its Teeth by Andrew Joseph White Double Bonus: Coming in 2024, The Woods All Black by Lee Mandelo

[contracat25]

Alright, some more recommendations for the end of #TransRightsReadathon! Here are some standalones by trans authors I've enjoyed.  These books mostly fall under the sff umbrella except for Confessions of the Fox which is meta-historical fiction.

They are beautiful, heartfelt, creative explorations of humanity, of our drive for connection, self-understanding, love, and survival. So many of these books look at history, personal, and community, aaaand they are filled with complicated, lovable, engaging characters. All of these books gave me something from a soft place to rest to a new way of viewing the world we live in. 

Many of these have trans characters as well, but not all of them. Most of these authors have other books that are also wonderful. Annnd as always there are so many other fabulous books by and about people who are trans.

One Last Stop by Casey McQuistion

An Unkindess of Ghosts by Rivers Solomon

Freshwater by Akwaeke Emezi

Confessions of the Fox by Jordy Rosenberg

All the Birds in the Sky by Charlie Jane Anders

Magic for Liars by Sarah Gailey

Summer Sons by Lee Mandelo

Light from Uncommon Stars by Ryka Aoki

ID: a stack of 8 books on a teal background 

[haveyoureadthistransbook]

Confessions of the Fox by Jordy Rosenberg

goodreads

Recently jilted and increasingly unhinged, Dr. Voth throws himself into his work, obsessively researching the life of Jack Sheppard, a legendary eighteenth century thief. No one knows Jack’s true story—his confessions have never been found. That is, until Dr. Voth discovers a mysterious stack of papers titled Confessions of the Fox. Dated 1724, the manuscript tells the story of an orphan named P. Sold into servitude at twelve, P struggles for years with her desire to live as “Jack.” When P falls dizzyingly in love with Bess, a sex worker looking for freedom of her own, P begins to imagine a different life. Bess brings P into the London underworld where scamps and rogues clash with London’s newly established police force, queer subcultures thrive, and ominous threats of an oncoming plague abound. At last, P becomes Jack Sheppard, one of the most notorious—and most wanted—thieves in history. Back in the present, Dr. Voth works feverishly day and night to authenticate the manuscript. But he’s not the only one who wants Jack’s story—and some people will do whatever it takes to get it. As both Jack and Voth are drawn into corruption and conspiracy, it becomes clear that their fates are intertwined—and only a miracle will save them both.

Mod opinion: I've heard of this book before and it sounds interesting.

[transbookoftheday]

Confessions of the Fox by Jordy Rosenberg

Set in the eighteenth century London underworld, this bawdy, genre-bending novel reimagines the life of thief and jailbreaker Jack Sheppard to tell a profound story about gender, love, and liberation.

Recently jilted and increasingly unhinged, Dr. Voth throws himself into his work, obsessively researching the life of Jack Sheppard, a legendary eighteenth century thief. No one knows Jack’s true story—his confessions have never been found. That is, until Dr. Voth discovers a mysterious stack of papers titled Confessions of the Fox.

Dated 1724, the manuscript tells the story of an orphan named P. Sold into servitude at twelve, P struggles for years with her desire to live as “Jack.” When P falls dizzyingly in love with Bess, a sex worker looking for freedom of her own, P begins to imagine a different life. Bess brings P into the London underworld where scamps and rogues clash with London’s newly established police force, queer subcultures thrive, and ominous threats of an oncoming plague abound. At last, P becomes Jack Sheppard, one of the most notorious—and most wanted—thieves in history.

Back in the present, Dr. Voth works feverishly day and night to authenticate the manuscript. But he’s not the only one who wants Jack’s story—and some people will do whatever it takes to get it. As both Jack and Voth are drawn into corruption and conspiracy, it becomes clear that their fates are intertwined—and only a miracle will save them both.

An imaginative retelling of Brecht’s Threepenny Opera, Confessions of the Fox blends high-spirited adventure, subversive history, and provocative wit to animate forgotten histories and the extraordinary characters hidden within.

[onlylivinglizzy]

She meant that she saw something about the quality of my desire: that I could feel her even before I touched her. And that this was part of what it meant to be—or to have been, before my tits became the property of the California Municipal Waste Department—a lesbian. That a woman moving in your line of sight could have an effect that was total, atmospheric. That you could even be hesitant, incapable and not particularly interested in establishing a line between touching and seeing. That you would indulge a dead love, dead in the eyes of the world, and valueless. A love that choked and burdened the mind, that might even be the very foundation of melancholy and despair. But, oh Reader, looking at a woman you really get a feel for the way that fire is a phenomenon of touch. And my point is, if you have ever been a lesbian, you will not even have to touch a woman to know that.   

Jordy Rosenberg, Confessions of the Fox

[quotation--marks]

I would have killed anything for her, but that wasn’t helpful. She didn’t need anything killed. She needed things brought to life, protected, preserved from death. I would press myself against her at night. I am here. This did not soothe her. But you’re kind of a killer, she said. That’s what you are.

Jordy Rosenberg, Confessions of the Fox

[fragbot]

The split part of her was still there. Floating in front of her, staring at her, still unlinking. She look'd it in the eye. She forced herself not to look away. She welcom'd the split part back, coax'd it like a deer at the fenshore with a handful of uncooked oats.

- from Confessions of the Fox, Jordy Rosenberg

[age-of-moonknight]

“Memory of a Killer,” Moon Knight: City of the Dead (Vol. 1/2023), #1.

Writer: David Pepose; Penciler: Marcelo Ferreira; Inker: Jay Leisten; Colorist: Rachelle Rosenberg; Letterer: Cory Petit

[aloneholy]

just finished confessions of the fox…. what a book. archives, queer dentity as an archive, queer identity as fragments - the Collective queer identity in community. AND how none of that can ever be at peace w colonialism. which is endlessly topical

[spohkh]

reading a YA book in between adult fiction books like eating a cracker in between tasting wines

[graphicpolicy]

Marvel Voices: Wakanda Forever is an excellent set of stories

Marvel Voices: Wakanda Forever is an excellent set of stories #comics #comics #comicbooks #blackpanther #wakandaforever

When Black Panther: Wakanda Forever debuted last year, we all waited with baited breath to see how they would address Chadwick Boseman’s passing. As the story addressed it, to showing how those left behind, stayed affected. As it created divisions amongst the nation, where none laid before. I was probably the most realistic depiction of grief , that had not ever been seen. The film also talked…

[lgbtqreads]

Hi there! Do you know any t4t historical fiction stories or at least have recs for ones with a trans male lead?

I do! Basically, you’re gonna wanna become best friends with EE Ottoman’s whole collection, almost all of which is historical fiction starring trans men and at least one of which is t4t4t. For a couple of others with trans male leads, try Most Ardently by Gabe Cole Novoa in YA and Confessions of the Fox by Jordy Rosenberg, and keep an eye on the upcoming A Shore Thing by Joanna Lowell.

[thepoisonroom]

hello sorry if you've been asked this recently but could you recommend some good adult trans books 👉👈 no worries if you don't!!

there are lots of good ones and i've fallen out of the loop since i left my bookstore job! there's sometimes this attitude that trans writers can only be successful in some genres but there are great trans writers in lots of genres! so have tried to include a mix of genres here to highlight some of that abundance, and because i don't know what you like so want to include many things that i think might spark your curiosity.

i'm leaving a lot of classics off that i'm sure you've heard of or have been told to read, as well as some stuff i read that i didn't love and don't feel i can vouch for. there's also lots of good stuff for younger readers (have esp heard good things about sisters of dorley hall and when the angels left the old country) which is really heartening when i remember furtively reading the one trans novel for teens at my library when i was little! and i like that there are trans characters for younger readers now who don't have tragic endings. but anyway:

i really like anything by casey plett, particularly her novel little fish! i loved ivan coyote's rebent sinner for kind of autobiographical vignettes as well as gender failure which they wrote with rae spoon. gretchen felker-martin and alison rumfitt are big faves if you like horror, they're both so smart and unsparing. your body is not your body if you want a good taste of lots of different trans horror authors. the seep by chana porter for meditative sci-fi. the fifth wound by aurora mattia which is hard to describe but v gorgeous. paul takes the form of a mortal girl if you want something kind of carefree and horny and fun and not devastating or upsetting. summer fun by jeanne thornton if you've ever been like what if velvet goldmine were based on the beach boys. i like confessions of the fox by jordy rosenberg but i think the ideal audience for this book is like transmasc grad students who are horny in a neurotic way so it's not for everyone. stone fruit by lee lai was my favorite graphic novel of 2022 and it's a really beautiful examination of breakups and caring for children as a queer person and also forgiving your family. gaylord phoenix if you like your graphic novels weird.

books from my own to-read list that i've heard good things about from people i trust (have included author names only where the title alone isn't specific enough to find the right book):

wrath goddess sing (if you like mythology remixes)

a natural history of transition (magical realist short stories)

manywhere: stories (unsettling also magical realist short stories)

chromatic fantasy (graphic novel, trans guy nun has sex with the devil and has a romance with a robin hood-type trans guy bandit)

finna (gay trans multiverse travel in an IKEA)

X by davey davis (bdsm psychological thriller)

idlewild (transmasc fujoshi tumblrinas have a toxic bestieship)

girlfriends by emily zhou (slice of life short stories)

boys weekend (graphic novel, bachelorx weekend turns into a cult murder mystery)

the boy with the bird in his chest (magical realist coming of age)

the call-out (gossipy novel in verse)

nettleblack (victorian transmasc hijinks)

the story of silence (medieval n magical french trans hijinks based on the historical poem)

unfortunate elements of my anatomy (horror short stories)

bad girls by camila sosa villada (magical realist coming of age epic)

apsara engine (south asian graphic vignettes)

future feeling (funny bizarre sci-fi)

everyone on the moon is essential personnel (cyberpunk body horror weirdness)

[transnovelsbracket]

This is the randomly-generated bracket for adult (i.e. non-YA) novels by trans authors! The books are as follows (in order of when I thought of them). Please boost this post! The first round will begin tomorrow, or as soon as I get at least a couple of reblogs on this.

Fierce Femmes and Notorious Liars, Kai Cheng Thom

Little Fish, Casey Plett

Small Beauty, jia qing wilson-yang

She Who Became The Sun, Shelley Parker-Chan

An Unkindness of Ghosts, Rivers Solomon

Future Feeling, Joss Lake

Confessions of the Fox, Jordy Rosenberg

Light From Uncommon Stars, Ryka Aoki

In The Watchful City, S. Qiouyi Lu

Detransition, Baby, Torrey Peters

Nevada, Imogen Binnie

Freshwater, Akwaeke Emezi

Summer Fun, Jeanne Thornton

Paul Takes the Form of a Mortal Girl, Andrea Lawlor

Yemaya's Daughters, Dane Figueroa Edidi

Manhunt, Gretchen Felker-Martin

The Thirty Names of Night, Zeyn Joukhadar

Machineries of Empire series, Yoon Ha Lee

The Tensorate series, Neon Yang

Sea Witch, Never Angeline Nørth

The Subtweet, Vivek Shraya

The Story of Silence, Alex Myers

Wrath Goddess Sing, Maya Deane

Everyone on the Moon is Essential Personnel, Julian K. Jarboe

Upright Women Wanted, Sarah Gailey

Darryl, Jackie Ess

The Four Profound Weaves RB Lemberg

Little Blue Encyclopedia, Hazel Jane Plante

Otros Valles, Jamie Berrout

the earthquake room, Davey Davis

The City in the Middle of the Night, Charlie Jane Anders

Running Down, Al Hess