Logo image
  • BookDragon
  • About
  • The Blogger
  • Review Policy
  • Smithsonian APAC
 
41324
post-template-default,single,single-post,postid-41324,single-format-standard,stardust-core-1.1,stardust-child-theme-ver-1.0.0,stardust-theme-ver-3.1,ajax_updown_fade,page_not_loaded,smooth_scroll

BookDragon Blog

07 Sep / Being Jazz: My Life as a (Transgender) Teen by Jazz Jennings [in School Library Journal]

Being Jazz by Jazz Jennings on BookDragon via SLJAs today’s most prominent transgender teen, Jennings stepped into the national spotlight in 2007 at the age of 6 in a televised interview with Barbara Walters. In the almost-decade since, the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders (DSM) – psychology/psychiatry’s bible for identifying mental disorders – has revised the entry for Gender Identity Disorder, replacing GID with “gender dysphoria,” explaining that “gender nonconformity is not in itself a mental disorder.”

Being transgender is not an illness, as Jennings shows in her memoir of her first 15 years. She voiced her gender identity at 2, began transitioning – with the unwavering support of her family – at 5, and has since become an activist, YouTube personality, reality TV star, and was named one of Time magazine’s “25 Most Influential Teens” of 2014.

Already the co-author of a picture book – I Am Jazz (2015) co-written with Jessica Herthel – Jennings has matured literally on the page with this next installment of her young life. Jennings, of course, is the obvious narrator for her own story, enhancing the recording with excitement, impatience, tenacity, and plenty of bubbly charm.

Verdict: With the increasing public awareness of transgender rights, every library should acquire all versions of Jazz as a crucial PSA.

Review: modified from “Multimedia,” School Library Journal, September 1, 2016

Readers: Middle Grade, Young Adult

Published: 2016

By Smithsonian Asian Pacific American Center in Audio, Memoir, Middle Grade Readers, Nonethnic-specific, Nonfiction, Repost, Young Adult Readers Tags > Being Jazz, BookDragon, Coming-of-age, Family, Friendship, Identity, Jazz Jennings, LGBTQIA+, Parent/child relationship, School challenges, School Library Journal, Siblings
1 Comment
  • Pingback:A Trans* and Gender Nonconforming Reading List for All Ages [in The Booklist Reader] | BookDragon Reply

Post a Comment
Cancel Reply

Smithsonian Institution
Asian Pacific American Center

Capital Gallery, Suite 7065
600 Maryland Avenue, SW
Washington, DC 20024

202.633.2691 | APAC@si.edu

Additional contact info

Mailing Address
Capital Gallery
Suite 7065, MRC: 516
P.O. Box 37012
Washington, DC 20013-7012

Fax: 202.633.2699

  • Facebook
  • Twitter
  • Instagram

SmithsonianAPA brings Asian Pacific American history, art, and culture to you through innovative museum experiences and digital initiatives.

About BookDragon

Welcome to BookDragon, filled with titles for the diverse reader. BookDragon is a new media initiative of the Smithsonian Asian Pacific American Center (APAC), and serves as a forum for those interested in learning more about the Asian Pacific American experience through literature. BookDragon is inhabited by Terry Hong.

Learn More

Contact BookDragon

Please email us at SIBookDragon@gmail.com

Follow BookDragon!
  • Twitter
  • Facebook

Looking for Something Else …?

or