I was really excited to receive a copy of S. Bear Bergman's new book, The Nearest Exit May Be Behind You.
Bergman's writing style is witty, razor sharp and super smart. Ze* also writes about gender with a sensitivity that is hard to find. Bergman tackles the difficult intricacies of the terrain of gender with grace and humor.
I highly recommend this collection of essays. It provides insight into Bergman's own experience with gender as a self-identified "gender-jammer" and activist. Ze also sheds light onto the world of gender around us and all of our gentle and often challenging attempts to navigate it.
A favorite passage:
When we live in a world that leaves only the tiniest sliver of room for the least complicated among us, it's difficult to find a place for all our complexities. I am afraid that it pushes us to leave our genders unexplored, and I am pretty sure that it does not allow us to express them in all the ways we would prefer. As it goes with many things, it's easy to be afraid of genders that seem dangerous, unusual or even merely new.
You can purchase the book here, and you can learn more about S. Bear Bergman's work here.
*Ze is a gender neutral pronoun. A quick description of two of the gender neutral pronouns can be found here.
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I can't wait to read this book!
Awesome!!!
So...
I met Bear at gay camp. And I'm really glad I did. Ze's so cool. :3
Ah! I had the luck of seeing S. Bear Bergman speak in person several years ago at Charis bookstore in ATL. Ze is a wonderful, wonderful speaker. Wonderful.