Conundrum: An Extraordinary Narrative of Transsexualism [Paperback]

Jan Morris (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: October 1987

A second revised edition of this account of Jan Morris’ transexuality and change of sex, with a new introduction and an additional chapter.

Editorial Reviews

Review

“A very good writer telling a profoundly poetic story...In fact, it is the author's extreme subjectivity that makes the book as good as it is...After reading this most charming of all Cinderella stories, one feels that sex is just as much a conundrum as ever, which is to say, according to the American Heritage Dictionary, 'a riddle in which a fanciful question is answered by a pun,' or 'a problem admitting of no satisfactory solution.'” —The New York Times

“Certainly the best first-hand account ever written by a traveler across the boundaries of sex. That journey is perhaps the ultimate adventure for a human being, but although it has been the subject of myth and speculation since ancient times, it is an authentically modern experience...What Jan Morris does offer, through her life and her work, is a window on the wondrous possibilities of humankind.” —Newsweek

“This book is a very well-written account of some of the emotional factors which eventually led the author, by then in his forties, to submit to expensive surgery in Casablanca.” —The Washington Post Book World

"This is a beautiful book. I found it to be melancholic, courageous, and wise. That it's subject matter is Jan Morris's transsexual journey almost seems secondary to her incredible prose and the clarity of her honesty and introspection. Beyond the issue of gender, she searches for an answer to that most elusive of questions: who am I?" —Jonathan Ames

“The finest descriptive writer in our time, of the watercolor kind.” —Rebecca West

“If there is anything typical about Miss Morris's experience, however, she has successfully disguised it.” —The Times Literary Supplement --This text refers to an alternate Paperback edition.

From the Inside Flap

"This is a beautiful book.  I found it to be melancholic, courageous, and wise.  That it's subject matter is Jan Morris's transsexual journey almost seems secondary to her incredible prose and the clarity of her honesty and introspection.  Beyond the issue of gender, she searches for an answer to that most elusive of questions: who am I?" -- Jonathan Ames --This text refers to an alternate Paperback edition.

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Product Details

• Paperback: 176 pages
• Publisher: Henry Holt & Co (P) (October 1987)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0805003614
• ISBN-13: 978-0805003611
• Product Dimensions: 8.1 x 5.5 x 0.6 inches
• Shipping Weight: 6.4 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 4.1 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (10 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #3,136,272 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

29 of 31 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars MAN ENOUGH TO BE A WOMAN..., April 9, 2004

By 

Lawyeraau (Balmoral Castle) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Conundrum: From James to Jan - An Extraordinary Personal Narrative of Transsexualism (Hardcover)

This is an intriguing memoir, beautifully written by an author who has written numerous other non-fiction books. Jan Morris, formerly known as James Morris, was the correspondent for the London Times assigned to cover England's historic summit of Everest. The author actually accompanied the expedition to the Himalayas and did on site dispatches of the historic event. It would be as James Morris that she would write the wonderful book, "Coronation Everest", which chronicles the events leading to the historic summit of Everest by Edmund Hillary and Tenzing Norgay on the eve of the coronation of Queen Elizabeth II. The author would eventually become a celebrated writer of many travel books, journeying the world over.

This very personal book is an autobiographical narrative of the author's own gender dysphoria, as she, a biological male at birth, had always felt that she had been born into the wrong body. Elegantly written, it is not a book for those who are seeking tabloid sensationalism. Rather, it is, at times, somewhat anachronistic in feel, as it was written by someone who lived through a time when actual gender changes were still in the nascent stages. Passing historical references are made to those transsexuals who paved the way for others.

The author's account of her early life is fascinating, as much of it was spent in traditional male pursuits of the time. A stint in the army as a member of the 9th Queen's Royal Lancers, years as a well-known foreign correspondent, as well as husband and father, were all roles in which the author found some satisfaction but never total fulfillment, as her gender dysphoria continually intruded upon her happiness, a dark cloud hovering over all that she did and all that she was.

The author's recollection of her lifelong, personal conundrum over gender is graced with self-deprecating wit and humor. It is a first rate autobiographical account of the author's journey across the shivering sands of gender dysphoria. Born in 1927, the author, with the support of Elizabeth, her wife and best friend, crossed the gender frontier at the age of forty five, after having spent thirty-five years as a male and ten additional years in androgynous transition as a hormonal chimera.

It was with her surgery in a clinic in Casablanca in 1972 that the author felt that she finally was able to live her life as she was meant to live it. Her account of her surgery, however, is enough to make one take pause at the sheer desperation to reconcile one's inner self with one's outer self. Still, notwithstanding the seemingly primitive approach of the clinic to such a complex surgery, James Morris crossed the gender frontier and surgically metamorphosed into the woman that she had always felt herself to be, surmounting the last hurdle to self-realization. Thus, Jan Morris was born.

This is an extremely literate account of a very personal journey by a gender dysphoric individual. It is a beautifully realized book that is sure to become a classic in its genre. Bravo!

17 of 17 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars A candid commentary of a man's quest for his female self, August 16, 1998

By A Customer

This review is from: Conundrum: An Extraordinary Narrative of Transsexualism (Paperback)

Born into the English upper-class with a boarding school education , a succesful 2nd WW army officer's experience, a journalist with private means,The Times Correspondent with Hillary's 1952 team first climbing of Mt. Everest,a husband and father with a (still)understanding wife. Jan Morris made a succesful transfer of Gender retaining her family and career. Not a book for people intersted in tabloid sensationalism.. but a nicely presented book that might make the 'rites of passage' for others easier. Few Autobiographies can ever have been as honest as this

13 of 13 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Sensitive and full of feeling, April 10, 1999

By A Customer

This review is from: Conundrum: An Extraordinary Narrative of Transsexualism (Paperback)

It was after the Guardian review when the book was first published that I bought the book and as a transitioning transsexual I can identify quite closely with what Ms. Morris writes. Her style is very lucid as one would expect from the author of Venice and gives a realistic description of the transsexual condition, though each human experience is unique.