Book Review: “Cherry Single”

Cherry Single: A Transvestite Coming of Age is a book by Valory Gravois. It was published in 1997 and is available on Amazon.com if you really are an Amazon addict, or for free on its own website.

You can guess what this book is about by the title, right? Well, sort of. I haven’t figured out what “Cherry Single” means, and I’ve read the book! Still, as the title says, it is book about a transvestite, and what goes through his head as his life rolls along.

The book focuses on David. We really get no concrete idea of his age, but a strong guess would be mid to late 20s. He is a Midwesterner transplanted to San Francisco where he works as a clerk for the VA and takes photos for an underground newspaper on the side. He is also a transvestite, and this is the central conflict of his life and the book. The book follows David through relationships, discovering more and more about his feminine self (Natalie), and explores many issues that Transpeople feel and face. In his struggle, he tries various psychiatric fads and interactions with many types of TGs. We also are introduced to the stock “military dad and understanding mom” which really don’t add much but are used as a possible reason for why David dresses.

A lot of what David thinks and feels is hauntingly familiar. He wrestles with his fem side, thinking it “sinful” (a term he applies a tad too much for my tastes), and we learn when he began (guess) and how he expresses himself as Natalie. We feel his guilt, revel in his successes as a woman, and feel his fears about being discovered. Fortunately for him, his is in San Fran, which is very tolerant.

So, is David’s anguish the best part of this book? Actually, no. Valory Gravois (hereafter “the author”) provides several very well drawn supporting characters. In fact in many ways they are more dynamic than the lead character. Diane is a photographer who is down to earth, and has some quirks of her own. Gene Gatzo is a co-worker with perfect posture, thick glasses, a stutter and problems relating to people. Then there’s Pat, who David picks up at a big San Fran celebration. She . . . well, she’s wearing a tux when they meet and likes T-Girls. Their quirks are real — they are real.

And like real people, they drift into and out of David’s life. At first I found this annoying, but then I realized that this is the strong suit of the book. We see how David’s dressing affects his relationships and how he reacts to others.

There are cliché characters as well. I already mentioned Mom and Dad. There’s the boss with the bad mustache. The coworker nicknamed “The Jock.” The hippie editor of the underground paper. Do I even need say more about them? But there are stock TG characters as well. There’s the rich person transitioning. There’s the “political types” who want to change their TG organization because they can. The “Genderf*ckers” that wear dresses with their mustaches. We all know these people as well. Fortunately, with the exception of the parents, the author doesn’t linger on them. They are place holders: filling chairs or filling David with dread.

So, we have characters. Where do they live? This is problem number one. We know they live in San Francisco, but it wasn’t until a third of the way through the book that we get a time period: 1972. The author never says this — he mentions a historical event that happened at that time. The characters have no relation to the time they occupy until then. Oh and by the way, that’s when we learn that David is a Vietnam vet. More on that later. Remember Diane? David meets her at an anti-war protest. She lived in Haight Ashbury for a while. Do we tap into the anger or power of that time? Nope.

Later, the author mentions a Time magazine and the event that has the cover. That magazine didn’t exist (which is fine, this is fiction) but the event did– in 1978. So the times get jumbled a bit. Does he ever give a date? No. Maybe it’s me, but I really think he could’ve added a lot to the story by adding some more time period color to it. In any case, we learn this important piece — David is a transvestite before the Internet, which was a whole different world. Just ask anyone who lived it.

While I’m nit-picking, I have another issue. Okay, maybe it’s not nit-picking. David loves to masturbate. We hear about it a LOT. In fact, it seems his dressing is at times merely a masturbatory exercise. That’s right folks: Autogynephilia. And his other fantasy? S&M. Yes he has more fetishes than a Witch Doctor. So the question becomes, is the author trying to include EVERYONE in his transgender portrait? I don’t think so. He writes about these bits with passion. He’s more into these fantasies than his plot at times. That’s his prerogative, this being his book and all, but it doesn’t add to the story. In fact sometimes it grinds the story to a screeching halt.

We are introduced to the fetishes very early and they stay with him most of the way through until they vanish like a supporting character. Am I missing an important point? Or is this novel following his real life?

As mentioned, David is a Vietnam vet. He barely touches upon this, but we know now that many TGs enter the military to “prove their manhood.” I would’ve liked a little more exploration of this side of him. It’s no secret how war changes people, but it seems to be just a blip in his background.

One of the things this book explores is David’s early dressing days, and he reflects on possible causes. It’s interesting as David ruminates on the “why” of his “sinning.” Haven’t we all? Research has made leaps forward since this book was published. Some of the things he guesses have since been proven wrong, and others as possibilities.

I must say that the author knows his craft. He has a way with words and the book reads quickly (except as noted.) Occasionally, he even stuns with a turn of phrase. He describes a medical building with a “slow elevator transport[ing] white-skinned old patients with empty eyes.” Describing a boring group meeting where people argue Robert’s Rules, he calls it “Politburo in drag.” Strong meat.

So, is this book worth your time?

Yes.

There is enough here to grab the TG reader and keep them for the duration. There are memorable characters that will stay with the reader after the book is finished. There are even parts that make the TG reader reflect upon themselves.

Is this something to show the NON-TG reader? NO. No way. The autogynephilia and S&M elements pander too much to the negative stereotypes already associated with the TG community, and the one redeeming bit for a spouse isn’t worth the search. Hell, it’s one sentence: “Her husband’s special hobby, she was fond of saying, was no more unusual than other men’s model train layouts or gun collections.”

So, go out and read Cherry Single from the website for free. Or help a sister out and get hard copy from her from the website for a couple bucks. I did. See if you agree with me.

Cherry Single
Alchemist/Light Pub., 1997
Free on the author’s website.
Various prices on Amazon.com

Tags: book review, featured, TG fiction

Category: Product Review