Rating: 
Summary: You'll never love the same way again
Review: This is one powerful novel - again by Chris Bohjalian. The sheer power blows away his previous works, however. He seemlessly develops characters like string puppets. This story is about a relationship being strained because the character, Dana, is convinced he is a woman born into the wrong body and is intent on getting surgery.The story itself is an interest twist, but it goes much much deeper. It raises very deep issues. This touches on human nature to love, sexuality, as well as issues raised in society by gender and sexuality/relationships. He gives an amazing insight for us of the transsexual community, and it will give you a totally different perspectic on them. For myself, it showed they are people, too, they fall in love just the same way, and I can now finally grasp why they'd go all the way with such an amazing surgery. The emotions running throughout the novel from cover to cover is very real and convincing. Anyone passing over this read is missing out. It is a pretty simple read, you'll plow right through it. Simple but very thought provoking. For a different perspective on life, this is it.
Rating:
Summary: Living One's Truth
Review: Trans-sister Radio is about living one's truth even as one's understanding and acceptance of it may change. Transsexuality is a journey, as are most things in life. As a married postoperative transsexual, I can directly relate to almost every situation and, definitely, to every emotion in this excellent portrayal of transsexual impact on self and others. From the pre-divorce intimacy with my ex-wife, through the loneliness, the rejection, the joy of matching body and mind, to the unexpected involvement with a man, now my husband, my life experience echoes that of Dana. My ex-wife and children's experiences have run the gamut of those experienced by Allison and her daughter. This story rings true, and the author has performed a wonderful service of education in showing that transsexuals are not deviant, perverted freaks. We are merely people who were handed a difficult life situation and have struggled to integrate psyches and bodies. As have those in the book, I have had gains and losses. I mourned the losses and moved on with the joy of being whole and at peace with myself and my God. Thank you, Chris Bohjalian, for helping.
Rating: 
Summary: Just awful
Review: I thought Midwives was great. I even enjoyed The Law of Similars. But this was the most ineptly written book I've read in years. The characters are so incredibly one-dimensional that you can't remember a single point of their lives. The plot, though, is the bigger problem. What could have been a fascinating story about a subject most people have never encountered is instead turned into a series of awkward speeches. It reads more like an educational treatise on tolerance than a novel. A huge waste of time -- not even enjoyable as mindless reading.
Rating:
Summary: Emotive, Exquisite, Painful and Necessary
Review: I read Mr. Bohjalian's wonderful prose while recoverying from my own sexual reassignment surgery so perhaps I am biased. Having endured many indigities in my own life, yet now living a life that is both exceptionally normal and amazingly wonderful, I indentified with Dana and her struggles for self and dignity. I believe Mr. Bohjalian is masterful as he captures the spectrum of reactions and responses both to transsexualism as well as it's collateral effects on those who date, marry or are the parents, siblings and friends of those seeking to resolve their transsexualism and recapture their birthright as women or men, as the case may be. While it is true that perhaps the author places a bit too much stock in sexual reassignment surgery, and does not mention the more cathartic possibilities of facial feminization surgery, it is a minor issue; I simply imagined Dana is one of those rare women who happen to be very pretty naturally, and for whom facial work isn't necessary. Mr. Bohjalian captures prefectly the ignorance and fear we often face as we attempt to do nothing more than seek treatment for what is, pure and simple, nothing more than a recognized medical condition. And not unlike cancer, transsexuality has been around forever, yet the repreives availble through medical advances have and are changing to afford us increasingly higher qualities of life. I think this notion comes across in his work also. Thank you Mr. Bohjalian for humanizing the efforts of myself and everone else in the world like me.
Rating: 
Summary: Bartlett, Vermont
Review: Trans-sister radio is a profound novel about the intricacies of gender and sexual orientation. The topics are unusual for a novel, yet Bohjalian explores them with style and grace. Allison Banks is a typical Vermont divorcee - she lives with her daughter Carly, has dinner with her ex-husband Will, and teaches sixth grade at the local elementary school. Her life changes deeply, however, when she falls in love with a local professor, Dana. Her passion cannot be extinguished even when Dana drops a huge bombshell - he has been preparing for sexual reassignment surgery, and is travelling to Colorado to have the procedure done in just a few weeks. Allison travels with Dana and continues to love the new woman, even as they are harassed by town members. The novel does an excellent job of portraying all of the characters in a sympathetic manner and of enabling the reader to get at the depths of the emotions. The story is told in the context of an NPR interview, and through this format the author is able to plumb the depths of each character. The ending is perhaps a bit too tidy, and distracts from the rest of the story. Despite this, the book is an incredibly compelling read and is strongly recommended.
Rating:
Summary: A beautiful love story
Review: I thought this was one of the prettiest love stories I've ever read. Yes, there is a transsexual involved, but these otherwise these people could be my neighbors! I cared about all the adults in the triangle, and savored every minute I spent with this book. A terrific experience.
Rating:
Summary: Excellent Insight Into Another World
Review: This book felt very authentic and was very sensitive to a very controversial life path. It is a definite eye opener at many levels and is an excellent education and first step towards being open to someone who has felt destined for this walk of life. I consider myself to be conservative on most levels, but open. This reading took the fear out of something very strange to me and replaced it with compassion. I highly recommend it.
Rating:
Summary: An Engaging Read
Review: Echoing another reviewer's thought, I don't know when I've read an entire book in nearly one sitting; I thoroughly enjoyed Trans-sister. While I thought I knew the story from reading reviews, etc., there were plenty of nuances and character developments which were not noted in the reviews I read. Unlike some of the other people posting reviews, I found the characters' voices to be distinctive, and their "chapters" easily distinguishable. I also thought the ending a fine one, even if telegraphed earlier on. I was also impressed with the author's obviously exhaustive research. Long a fan of Bohjalian's work, I believe I may consider this his finest book so far.
Rating:
Summary: Surpassed all expectations
Review: This novel reads more like the best non-fiction first person accounts. It deals with difficult issues of gender and sexual orientation in a powerful way that would promote compassion and understanding for anyone struggling with with issues related to transsexuality. A single mom, Allison, is a 6th grade teacher who lives with her college-bound daughter Carly in northern Vermont. They have a very respectful relationship. Carly's father Will is remarried and general manager of the public radio station; he also has a great relationship with his daughter. Allison takes a summer film course at a college and is attracted to her male professor, Dana. They date and become emotionally involved by September, when Dana tells her s/he is a pre-op transsexual scheduled for surgery in January. Dana identifies as a lesbian. Dana is calm and clear; Allison's reactions and roller coaster thoughts about her own sexual orientation as it relates to Dana's are beautifully written and ring true. [very mild spoilers follow] The point of view switches between Allison, Dana, Will, and Carly throughout the book. After Dana's surgery, things heat up when the local fundamentalists try to get Allison fired for living with a deviant. Some very interesting quotes here from people who are gay-friendly, but trans-phobic and trying to justify it. Dana is one of the most interesting narrators, explaining what it's like to grow up female in a male body, and finally be able to correct the birth defect. Dana is calm, kind, and attractive, and able to be supportive to everyone around her. Allison continues to struggle with feeling like she is straight, and hating being censured for who she lives with. Carly goes off to Bennington, and continues to find constructive ways to deal with all the adults in her life while exploring her own sexuality. Will is the most surprising character. At first he seems narrow-minded and controlling, but he eventually uses public radio to make a documentary about the way Dana and Allison are being treated, although he does not report the story himself in the interests of fairness. This would be a very accessible way for someone struggling with these issues to gain compassion for each of the points of view in the story. And there is a surprise ending.
Rating: 
Summary: is gender just a fashion statement?
Review: Chris Bohjalian's Vermonters are tony suburbanites: savvy, sophisticated, affluent, narcissistic. Bohjalian's world -- to some extent in Midwives, more so in The Law of Similars and very much so here --is peopled with characters who benefit from the status quo and only object to it when they seek an exemption from it. I think Allison got tired of being ostracized by the people who had power in her town and bought back in by dumping Dana. Not that Dana wouldn't have done the same to her. On the last page, Carly neatly sums up the moral of the story, and its one of the few things she says that isn't tongue in cheek. "Let's face it: In reality, it's all just about muscle spasms that feel really good." John Cheever and John Updike, whose work chronicles a previous generation of privileged, self-absorbed suburbanites, have the ironic detachment necessary to illumine the pathos of those who use and subtly abuse each other. Bohjalian's characters are well-drawn and he's expert at rendering the flashy surface of things, yet his work, like his characters, though slick, is shallow. He's an intelligent and supremely gifted writer. I'd like to see him achieve a depth of substance to match his breadth of style.
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