Jess
- Publisher
- Magenta
- Initial publish date
- Apr 2022
- Category
- Feminist, Psychological, Political
-
eBook
- ISBN
- 9781926891972
- Publish Date
- Apr 2022
- List Price
- $4.99
-
Paperback / softback
- ISBN
- 9781926891958
- Publish Date
- Apr 2022
- List Price
- $14.99
Classroom Resources
Where to buy it
Description
Jess used to be a man. Then he found himself in a female body. It wasn't funny. Why would anyone even think it was?
"There's a scene in Tootsie (1982) that is surely one of the most unacclaimed scenes of all time: Dustin Hoffman's character, Michael, as 'Dorothy', makes a suggestion on the set, and the director dismisses it out of hand. As I remember it, the look on Hoffman's face—conveying surprise, confusion, indignation—shows perfectly Michael's reaction to the absence of (and, just maybe, awareness of) male privilege/advantage. The entire movie should've been about that. Just that. It wasn't. And so I wrote Jess."
*
"[Jess'] perspective on being a girl and woman while having memories of being a man offers an understanding I’d never thought of. Really interesting book." poolays, LibraryThing
"Very interesting book. ... Definitely worth reading." Dan, Goodreads
About the author
Peg Tittle, feminist, writer, philosopher, is the author of What If...Collected Thought Experiments in Philosophy (2004) and Critical Thinking: An Appeal to Reason (2011). She is also the editor of Should Parents be Licensed? Debating the Issues (2004). Her articles and essays have been published in a number of North American magazines and journals and she has been a columnist for the Institute for Ethics and Emerging Technologies, The Philosophers' Magazine, and Philosophy Now. She is also the author of six screenplays. What Happened to Tom? is her first novel. She lives in Sundridge, Ontario.
Excerpt: Jess (by (author) Peg Tittle)
He cried. He screamed. No one came running to attend to his needs, let alone his wants.
This isn’t right, he thought. Improbable as that was for a newborn.
They just smiled at him and told him to Shhh.
They smiled at him a lot. More often. In fact, the mobile above his crib had happy faces. It used to have Lego bricks.
They also made eye contact more often. Spoke to him more often. Sang to him more often. In softer voices. It was nice.
Eventually, he smiled back.
But oh, was he handled! Being held, and cuddled, it made him feel … secure, it enabled him to relax in the world. But the gratuitous touching— Sometimes he just wanted to be left alone. Didn’t matter. It was as if his body was considered communal property. Common property.
And he was fussed over to no end.
“Such soft skin!”
“What lovely hair!”
No one told him how big he was.
No one told him how strong he was.
His mother put ribbons in his near-non-existent hair, which he pulled out angrily. She put him in frilly dresses, with too much … everything. She got so upset when he spilled something on them. But what did she expect? And at the beach, he had to wear a top that kept riding up his chest or slipping down over his shoulders, pinning his arms to his side—what was that all about?
They all praised his first steps, but then wouldn’t let him go very far. “Honeybun, no, you’ll hurt yourself!” It was infuriating. Why did they call him a toddler if they didn’t let him toddle about?
Suffice to say, it wasn’t like before.
Editorial Reviews
"[Jess'] perspective on being a girl and woman while having memories of being a man offers an understanding I’d never thought of. Really interesting book." poolays, LibraryThing
"Very interesting book. ... Definitely worth reading." Dan, Goodreads
*
Praise for previous work by Peg Tittle:
“A gripping read …” Katya, Goodreads, about Gender Fraud: a fiction
"Edgy, insightful, terrific writing, propelled by rage against rape. Tittle writes in a fast-paced, dialogue-driven style that hurtles the reader from one confrontation to the next. Chock full of painful social observations …. " Hank Pellissier, Director of Humanist Global Charity, about Impact
"… a powerful and introspective dystopia …. It Wasn't Enough is a book I truly recommend for a book club as the discussions could be endless …. " Mesca Elin, Psychochromatic Redemption
“I read [What Happened to Tom] in one sitting, less than two hours, couldn't put it down. Fantastic allegorical examination of the gendered aspects of unwanted pregnancy. A must-read for everyone, IMO.” Jessica, Goodreads
"[Exile] is an interesting novella … Thought-provoking stuff, as usual from Peg Tittle." James M. Fisher, The Miramichi Reader
"Woh. [Sexist Shit that Pisses Me Off] is freaking awesome and I demand a sequel." Anonymous, barnesandnoble.com