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Trans is not trauma, no more than surfing is trauma or life, or families. Trauma is the mark left by the rocks hit or thrown. Our body responds, heals and grows with it. It does what it can to stop you from hitting the same rock again.
When Kaya Wilson came out to his parents as transgender, a year after a near-death surfing accident and just weeks before his father's death, he was met with a startling family history of concealed queerness and shame.
As Beautiful As Any Other weaves this legacy together with intimate examinations of the forces that have shaped Wilson's life, and his body: vulnerability and power, grief and trauma, science and narrative.
In this powerful and lyrical memoir, Wilson makes a case for the strength we find when we confront the complexities of our identity with compassion. As Beautiful As Any Other is a trailblazing debut of remarkable beauty, insight and candour.
Author: Kaya Wilson
Paperback Published 27 April 2021
'Transformative, sentimental, witty, and wonderfully authoritative. An intimate and stirring account of experiences at once universal and unique, from a perspective that's crucial to our understanding of ourselves, our relationships and our culture.'- Amy Middleton, editor of Archer.
'There is so much more to this book than meets the eye. Wilson is able to do that rare thing, fuse the personal with universal, the scientific with the emotional, without losing the impact of either. Instead, they are enhanced. An intimate portrait of family, transition and trauma, with fascinating digressions to marine science and climate change, crossing continents and themes with ease.'- Fiona McGregor