Emma Grove

Over 900 pages, and probably more than 700 of them are spent with the author and her various therapists sitting in chairs talking. And talking. And talking. Covering the same ground over and over, from different angles sometimes, but still the same stuff. And most of the sessions are with a truly terrible therapist named Toby who acts nowhere close to professional as he gets emotionally vested and twisted and constantly breaks up and makes up with his patient like they're in a bad romantic relationship or are eighth grade BFFs.

The therapy is intended to provide clearance so Grove can begin hormone therapy for the next stage of gender transition. But diagnosis of a previously masked disorder derails everything and Grove needs to do some healing before her life can truly begin. And the journey is quite interesting at times, but then becomes lost as page piles upon page upon page upon page, almost all of them adhering religiously to a monotonous eight-panel grid. And having sat through all the ups and downs of the therapy sessions, the revelation of the core trauma feels anticlimactic, leaving me with a feeling that something is being withheld, condensed, or skimmed over for the sake of wrapping everything up with a neat bow.

Side note: The sheer bulkiness of the book becomes a distraction, too heavy to hold in one hand, and too awkward to read unless you're sitting or holding it on your chest while lying down. The gutter is so tight and the book so thick that even when the book is wide open, the panels in the middle are curved or can only be viewed at an angle unless you constantly shift the book's position or break the spine. I recommend reading this in a digital format if at all possible.… (meer)