Left Hander In London A Field Guide To Transgenders Lesbians Gays And Bisexuals In The Family On The Job And In The Pew PDF Download

Joe Gufreda was a loving husband and father, successful businessman and faithful Catholic in the Midwest. But Joe had a secret that he was afraid to tell anyone. After years of confusion and anxiety, he realized he was not living his true gender and worked up the courage toward becoming a woman, JJ Marie. Left-Hander in London: A Field Guide to Transgenders, Lesbians, Gays and Bisexuals-In the Family, On the Job and In the Pew is the candid, funny and sometimes surprising story of that transition. Joe/JJ Marie's sheer ordinariness is what makes this first-hand account so powerful. This could be your neighbor, coworker, cousin, brother or spouse. Raised in a Sicilian-American household in Cleveland, Joe Gufreda had a "normal" childhood playing sports, scrapping on the playground, serving as an altar boy and, as he grew older, dating girls. But from early on he knew he was different from the other boys: In secret he liked to dress in women's clothes. Thanks to a lack of information about transgenders in that era, he was confused about what his leanings meant. Was he one of a kind? A transvestite? It wasn't until he discovered a book about transgenders in a college library that he began the journey to change genders. The title Left-Hander in London refers to realizing you are different from most people, but uncertain how to get to that seemingly far-away place where you will be happy. The book traces Gufreda's journey, from sharing his secret with his wife to dressing as a woman at home and a man everywhere else to telling his family, friends and business associates that he was becoming a woman. Some of their reactions to this earth-shaking news were a pleasant surprise. Others were painful, bigoted and lacking in "Christian" love. For anyone hiding and suppressing an important secret, Left- Hander in London offers a roadmap on how to go public and what reactions to expect. For friends, family and business associates, JJ Marie's first-hand account will give you helpful tips on how to respond to the coming out of a transgender, lesbian, gay or bisexual. Left-Hander in London is a powerful, amusing and informative book about embracing your true inner self and moving beyond tolerance and acceptance to enjoying diversity.