Review: “Misery Loves Company”
A book review by Gina Vizavi
It wasn’t until I got most of the way through the book and saw a picture of Christine Beatty that it dawned on me that I had read some of her writing right here on TG Forum. I found the book to be riveting to say the least! Reading Christine’s poetry and prose was reminiscent of William S. Burrough’s Naked Lunch or Hunter S. Thompson’s Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas, but from the point of view of a transsexual. The imagery and descriptions certainly took me back to reading some of the Beat poets many years ago. Having said that, I found the book captivating, even if the author describes some of her adventures as “a vacation you cannot afford to take.”
I was incredulous when a friend of mine graduated from college, then ran away to join the circus; but that pales in comparison to Christine Beatty graduating from college with honors to work the streets of San Francisco’s Tenderloin. The fact that someone can live through, survive and then cathartically write about time spent as a transsexual prostitute, imbibing just about every drug known to man is the most unbelievable part of the story.
The book consists mostly of one to two page vignettes which bring her characters vividly to life. Her descriptions are incredibly colorful, as in the chapter “Angel of Pain” about her electrolysist. She was in a TS band called Rubbermaid and the book contains lyrics from two of her songs: Transsexual Nightmare and Little Miss Heroin. She writes about the people she loved and cared about as well as the ones who made her ride through hell even worse. Despite the edginess of such an existence, Christine’s stories are not without humor.
It is a story of an incredibly strong woman who could not handle the hypocrisy of a world that couldn’t accept “gender outlaws,” who had the courage to literally “take it to the streets” to find her own path and to be true to herself. She likens it to boot camp; an experience she would not care to repeat, but one she wouldn’t trade away for a million dollars, as it was instrumental in shaping her into the person she is today.
The good news is that Christine went through treatment in 1988 and got a job as a software engineer. She also began writing and played in a working, recording heavy metal band from 1995-2003. She said this book was inspired by Dogs in Lingerie, written by a friend and contemporary, Danielle Willis, who also lived The Life in San Francisco. Her writing has appeared in Spectator Magazine, Bay Area Reporter, San Francisco Bay Times, Tapestry and TransSisters and her work has been featured in several anthologies including Beyond Definition and Herotica 4.
Misery Loves Company, by Christine Beatty
Glamazon Press, Sherman Oaks, CA
Copyright 1993, 2010 Christine Beatty
Version 2 published as an eBook in 2010.
Category: Product Review, Transgender Fun & Entertainment
About the Author (Author Profile)
Part-time T-gurl who discovered Angelas Laptop Lounge a number of years ago and found a new means of self-expression giving a long neglected facet of her personality fresh air and sunshine! Enjoys meeting and socializing others exploring their own horizons.Subscribe
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