None of the Above

Reflections on Life Beyond the Gender Binary

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Pub Date 6 Jul 2023 | Archive Date 6 Jul 2023

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Description

SHORTLISTED FOR THE JHALAK PRIZE 2023
A WATERSTONES BEST BOOK OF 2022: POLITICS


‘No memoir like it’ Independent
‘Travis Alabanza writes with such generosity and ease even the most provocative suggestions start to seem obvious . . . Profound and funny’ SHON FAYE
‘Will challenge, empower and move your soul’ Glamour
‘Lucid and glorious’ YRSA DALEY-WARD
__________

In None of the Above, Travis Alabanza examines seven phrases people have directed at them as a Black, mixed race, non-binary person. Some are deceptively innocuous, some deliberately loaded or offensive, some celebratory; sentences that have impacted them for better and for worse; sentences that speak to the broader issues raised by a world that insists that gender must be a binary.

Through these seven phrases, Travis Alabanza turns a mirror back on society, giving us reason to question the very framework in which we live and the ways we treat each other.

SHORTLISTED FOR THE JHALAK PRIZE 2023
A WATERSTONES BEST BOOK OF 2022: POLITICS


‘No memoir like it’ Independent
‘Travis Alabanza writes with such generosity and ease even the most provocative...


Advance Praise

‘A breath of fresh air . . . Anyone expecting a hand-holding guidebook will be disappointed by the candour, complexity and subjectivity of None of the Above. There's no memoir like it published in the UK . . . Alabanza's memoir offers welcome nuance to those willing to listen’
Independent        

‘Travis Alabanza writes about gender and its possibilities with such generosity and ease even the most provocative suggestions start to seem obvious, despite their challenges to society at large. This anti-memoir, which is at times both profound and funny, will make anyone question the stories we tell about ourselves, how we tell them and even who the telling is for’
SHON FAYE, author of THE TRANSGENDER ISSUE        

‘A change-maker shaping the culture of tomorrow’
BERNARDINE EVARISTO        

‘[Travis Alabanza is] a big voice in multiple intersecting communities . . . This is a book that is supposed to make other people feel seen, heard and help them understand themselves. It's brilliant’
JAMEELA JAMIL        

‘Travis is an incredible thinker, philosopher and human being’
VICKY FEATHERSTONE, Guardian        

‘Flips the well thumbed script that casts oppressed people as lead in the tale of their mistreatment, boldly interrogating the faults of a society that allows such mistreatment to occur . . . Alabanza’s lyrical style and theatrical grounding is the book’s lifeblood’
Gay Times        

‘Lucid and glorious. Truth that goes on and on making room for itself’
YRSA DALEY-WARD        

‘One of those times you are so profoundly grateful that someone has cracked open their head and allowed you to look around at the beautiful, sad and remarkable parts that make them who they are. A gloriously specific, funny and smart body of work’
CANDICE CARTY-WILLIAMS        

‘Travis’ words have power. An essential read for everyone’
SAM SMITH        

‘Brilliant . . . This is a book which everyone can learn from, whether you’re a cis person who hasn’t yet interrogated how your options are shut down or any flavour of trans person pushed towards trying to be less visible but maybe less of yourself for having the options stolen away’
CHRISTINE BURNS        

None of The Above is a stunning and powerful memoir, it is so beautifully written and so moving. Travis Alabanza generously shares moments of bravery, honesty, humanity, empathy, courage, wit, wisdom and joy in these pages, I absolutely loved it and will ask everyone to read it’
Salena Godden, author of MRS DEATH MISSES DEATH        
‘Truly transformative, exquisite, thoughtful writing’
MICHAEL CHAKRAVERTY

‘Absolutely stunning . . . Travis is one of the sharpest writers out there and everyone should read this book’ IONE GAMBLE

‘[Alabanza] can evoke great emotion in the words they speak . . . Moving’
Independent        

‘Potent, profound, sassy and deeply satisfying. A triumph!’
Attitude        

‘Will challenge, empower and move your soul’
Glamour        

‘Utterly absorbing’
Garbage   
   
‘None of the Above is a well-crafted and considered work of literature . . . [Alabanza's] analysis of how gender is experienced in the world is nuanced, ambiguous and often unexpected in its conclusions. The book is also very funny’
AnOther Magazine        

‘Educational, illuminating and hilarious. Not only an empowering and enriching read for those that are treated like outsiders on this confusing and cluttered planet but a book that leaves readers with a far better understanding of issues that are faced’
Buzz Magazine        

‘Insightful and thought provoking’
Cosmopolitan        

‘Travis' book will challenge the reader to reflect on the ways we treat each other, pushing for a brighter future where gender structures aren't being weaponised in the ways they currently are’
Gay Times        

‘Alabanza makes a real mark with their book. Pick up your copy’
i-D  
     
‘Challenges the status quo and calls for change’
British Blacklist        

‘This stunning anti-memoir holds a mirror up to society’
Diva Magazine        

‘An emotionally-honest book’
Pink News

‘A breath of fresh air . . . Anyone expecting a hand-holding guidebook will be disappointed by the candour, complexity and subjectivity of None of the Above. There's no memoir like it published in...


Available Editions

EDITION Paperback
ISBN 9781838854317
PRICE £10.99 (GBP)
PAGES 224

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Average rating from 23 members


Featured Reviews

"A vivid reminder that, to be neither, within a binary world, is to sacrifice both state and sometimes community protection."

Alabanza's memoir is separated into seven chapters, each with a phrase that has been directed at them throughout their life. As a gender-nonconforming, mixed-race person, Travis talks about their life and struggles from living in an estate town to being who they truly are in a binary-focused world.

The writing in this memoir is truly remarkable and life-changing. Travis gives us room to question the society we live in where gender has been so structured up to the point that it is difficult to navigate a safe and comfortable world if you don't identify as 'male' or 'female'.

The memoir challenges the binary world to look beyond its borders and demand change before it gets any worse. The world cannot stay binary for much longer.

This is a deeply personal memoir that truly connected with me and makes me want to do whatever I can to make the world we live in more acceptable and kind to everyone no matter their gender, race, identity...etc. I have struggled with my identity all of my life and there was one particular quote that hit so close to home that I had to consider who I was trying to satisfy with my answer, myself or the people around me who won't stray from the binary.

"I think of some of the people I have met who say 'My pronouns are she/they,' and when you ask which they prefer, they say, 'Always they, I actually only want they, I just want to be less difficult.'"

But this memoir made me realise that I want to be difficult. I want people to use my correct pronouns, not just the ones that they gave me at birth. I want to fight, to be heard, to be seen, not as difficult, but as a human being wanting to live their life to its fullest.

So, thank you Travis Alabanza for writing this memoir and providing me with this discovery. It was a true pleasure to read (and also listen to you read this through audiobook) and I would highly recommend that people pick it up.

Listen to it. Read it. Learn from it. Share it with your friends, your family, your teachers, your community.

It's time for people to understand and accept people of all genders and identities.

Let them live their lives. Kiss who they want. Fuck who they want. BE who they want.

What gives you the right to decide how someone else lives their life?

Nothing.

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this book so elegantly and messily and precisely navigates so many truths about queer identity and stifling gender politics, particularly in the uk. operating on both personal and socio-political levels, intersecting with race and class. it's deft in it's articulation and stark in it's honesty. resists a lot of pigeon holing, which i suppose is a good thing. a right thing. travis' theatre work is some of the most stirring, immediate, urgent stuff i've ever seen and this is no exception.

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A very powerful and gripping story that is difficult to read in some parts but worth sticking with. This is a first for me by the author and one I enjoyed and I would read more of their work. The book cover is eye-catching and appealing and would spark my interest if in a bookshop. Thank you very much to the author, publisher and Netgalley for this ARC.

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