Amateur

A Reckoning With Gender, Identity and Masculinity

De: Thomas Page McBee

Narrado por: Thomas Page McBee

In this ground-breaking new book, Thomas Page McBee, a trans man, trains to fight in a charity match at Madison Square Garden while struggling to untangle the vexed relationship between masculinity and violence. Through his experience of boxing - learning to get hit, and to hit back; wrestling with the camaraderie of the gym; confronting the betrayals and strength of his own body - McBee examines the weight of male violence, the pervasiveness of gender stereotypes and the limitations of conventional masculinity. A wide-ranging exploration of gender in our society, Amateur is ultimately a story of hope, as McBee traces a way forward: a new masculinity, inside the ring and out of it. A graceful and uncompromising exploration of living, fighting and healing, in Amateur we gain insight into the stereotypes and shifting realities of masculinity today through the eyes of a new man.

Reseñas de la Crítica

A brilliant work of art. I bow down to McBee - his humility, his sense of humour, his insightfulness, his structural deftness, his ability to put into words what is often said but rarely, with such visceral clarity and beauty, communicated (HEIDI JULAVITS, author of The Vanishers)

Empathy is McBee's objective, the most important part of becoming real in one's own eyes . . . we are born human; with hard work, we achieve humanity

Like sitting with someone uncurling his hands, then holding them out to you, open, so that you can behold all the hard-won strength, insight, agility, and love to be found there (MAGGIE NELSON, author of The Argonauts)

A vitally important book. McBee's story harnesses the power of self-inquiry, of generosity, of a transformation powerful enough to address even the fallout from child abuse

By turns despairing and hopeful, exceptional and relatable. To read it is to witness the birth of a fuller, truer self (ANN FRIEDMAN)

Exquisitely written and bristling with emotion, this important book reminds us of how much vulnerability and violence inheres to any identity. A real achievement of form and narrative (JACK HALBERSTAM, author of The Queer Art of Failure)

Well aware that memory and identity rarely follow a linear path, Thomas Page McBee attempts to answer the question, "What does it really mean to be a man?" Weaving past and present to do so, the book's journey connects violence, masculinity and forgiveness. McBee has an intelligent heart, and it beats in every sentence of this gorgeous book (SAEED JONES, author of Prelude to Bruise)

A story about patience, forgiveness, kindness and bravery . . . With this book, Thomas Page McBee has done exactly what we should all strive for: to tell our stories in ways that humanise rather than sensationalise (LAUREN MORELLI, writer, Orange Is the New Black)

McBee's beautifully written story is engrossing and brave, and rings with triumph

A sweet, tender hurt of a memoir . . . McBee shows us what it takes to become a man who is gloriously, gloriously alive (ROXANE GAY, author of Bad Feminist)

An exploration of modern masculinity by the first transgender man to box at Madison Square Garden

interesting, but very specific

I bought the book because of the unusual perspective it had to offer, and the book does deliver that in spades. There were many moments in which a poetic observation or an idea caught me off guard and I was extremely delighted to make the choice to listen.

The parts I didn't very much care for are the political parts that strongly tilt twords the idea that masculinity is almost always on the verge of toxic. While I understand this is one person's point of view and it is what he really thinks I found it a little tiresome after a while. To be fair, this is the first book by a trans person I have read and what sparked my interest was this unique perspective of someone who chose to change their form into that of a male body dealing with what does it mean to be a man. So once again, the perspective is true and valid, even if the delivery can be a little annoying at times.

All an all the book would be a good choice for anyone interested in 🥊 gender relations and large cultural issues. You get a very limited peek into one human life and leave richer for it.