There are a lot of layers going on in this book, so many
that I suspect I’m not educated enough to even notice. It’s a story within a
story; it’s a wild adventure story and also a statement about how people of
color, the queer and the trans people have been erased from history. It also
mentions colonialism, privacy issues, Marxism, women’s rights, and I’m sure
lots of other things that I missed.
The first narrative is that of Dr. R. Voth, a transman in
academia who comes across an old manuscript at the university library’s used
book sale. When he reads it, he discovers it’s the biography of Jack Sheppard,
who was a real historical person who attained legendary status. The date on the
manuscript is 1724, and as Voth reads and transcribes it, he puts numerous
footnotes in it. Some are just to let us know what the antique slang means, but
as the story goes on, the footnotes take on a more autobiographical status and
tells us Voth’s own story, which is even more convoluted and much more
depressing. They also become very political in nature.
Jack’s story starts with him as P, a young girl sold into
slavery to a furniture maker. Shackled to their bed at night, Jack learns to
pick locks with ease, and by his teens is using his nights to explore London.
Wearing male clothing and tightly binding his breasts, he escapes his owner and
lands in the room- and the arms- of Bess Khan, an Asian sex worker. His
adventures include running from both the police and the local crime boss,
avoiding the plague, and a truly horrifying gender confirmation surgery.
Despite the odds against them, Jack and Bess determine to be together. Despite
all the other reviewers calling Jack ‘trans’, I swear he is intersex,
identifying as male. This group of people seem even less understood than trans
people.
There are so many characters that at times I couldn’t keep
track of who was who- this wasn’t helped by having the two narratives weaving
in and out of each other. Did I enjoy the book? Yes, a great deal. But a lot of
the political references seemed grafted crudely on, rather than being a smooth
part of the story, and that made them rather jolting- and not in the
mind-opening, good way. It felt at times like I was reading an early draft,
rather than a polished product. Because of that, I can only give it four stars.
The above is an affiliate link. If you click through and buy something- anything- from Amazon, they will give me a few cents.
I received this book free from the Amazon Vine program in return for an unbiased review.
Neither of these things influenced my review.
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