There has been a diversity of opinions about Ms Townsend's Hidden In Plain Sight.
Now let's get to meat and potatoes as to why many may not understand the depth of this amazing piece.
I am a therapist by training. I also happen to know Leslie and have had the honour and privilege of watching not only her physical beauty decorate the world but the love that comes from within. I have tremendous respect for her, not only as a woman, a woman of trans experience, but as a human being. With that said I can still be a little objective.
I think that any person that might have an issue with a book discussing the journey of a trans woman in the sex industry, or her journey with her obsession with her beauty, or her desire for male attention, would only be a person that has not had the opportunity to connect to any of these issues in their own personal life.
In my role as a therapist I have counseled 1000s of trans women and have seen so many trans people fighting amongst themselves in order to be 'legitimized' in a society that does not, to this day, legitimize the trans experience.
Leslie's story is a huge success and to attempt to shame those successes is an attempt to delegitimize another in the hope that one's own issues can be acknowledged.
Leslie lived. She has lived and she continues to live. Although the sex industry, physical beauty, or male attention might be viewed as unsavory, superficial, or objectification, let's consider it sex positive behavior and quality marketing strategies shall we?
I have counseled many in the sex industry and Leslie has left that industry untainted. I know for a fact as she 'worked a room'or a city and town she left each town a gift of either volunteer services or a donation to a local charity ie; a woman's facility, an aspca, or a children's ward.
Leslie can laugh she can cry she can love and she can feel. And I have met too many folks along the trans continuum that have lost that ability. It's a shame!
I think we need to see the gift of this book. There are many trans academic books, many about the LGBT political discourse, or the privileged transitioning after the fact. This is about a young person living her dream within her youth and the challenges to dare challenge the constructs of gender without a formal eduction or an army background or a pension is an amazing feat.
Let us celebrate the diversity of our amazing trans communities and not try to demean anything we truly do not understand or have not lived or the subliminal jealousy we feel since we can not obtain the life that a beautiful woman can obtain. Yes, it is a shame that we are still judged by the shape and color of our skin in the year 2004. But don't knock someone who obtains that false privilege and uses it to the best of their ability.
If a social scientist comes up with an amazing hypothesis we celebrate them. Why cant we do the same if a young person identified as a boy comes up with an amazing journey as they have conquered and celebrated life utilizing their physical attributes and still stay loving to all that surrounds them.
Ms. Townsend's 'Hidden in Plain Sight' is a plain and simple book about one womans journey. Whether you believe that journey to be respectable or not it is a journey of many young trans people that have the balls to challenge the gender construct and divide at an earlier age. You go girl!
Rosalyne Blumenstein LMSW
Author BRANDED T
WWW.BRANDED-T.COM
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Customer reviews
3.5 out of 5
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19 global ratings
Reviews with images
Things are Seldom What they Seem
What do transgenders, drag queens, crossdressers, etc. all have in common besides their choice of apparel? Like so many of us, they too often fail to perceive reality for what it actually is. And frequently behind the scenes are an extremely daunting challenge and a protective state of denial and self deception. Still, Ward Cleaver in one episode of 'Leave it to Beaver' explained to the Beaver, "If you live your life in dreams, you will wake up someday to discover that you have nothing that is real."Admittedly, the book is poorly written in places at no more than eighth grade level, which might indicate a lack of motivation to get an education that could be extremely helpful during Leslie’s adult years. So, whatever truth might be contained therein, there is some doubt in my mind that the reader will discover it between the covers of this self-published work.I could not find many sympathetic displays of caring for others who have come from horribly unsupportive and sometimes sexually abusive family situations or who, likewise, barely clung to the very bottom most rung of the prostitution ladder, too often addicted to drugs and/or alcohol. Certainly, those were confusing and difficult times because so little was known about a predisposition that was kept buried in deep shadows and cut off many from even a modest level of family support. Too often, such was a journey into a sub-culture from which few survived either physically, mentally, or both, and if they do survive, they rarely escape unscathed. Still, for me to put such a review in perspective this needed to be said. However, one could reasonably and fairly conclude that Leslie’s book is really not about them, but about her difficult journey.Clearly, one could question whether her many talks to college students and other audiences were motivated by a genuine desire to help others in similar circumstances, to try to somehow generate greater acceptance of transgender women (like herself), or to present herself and her new altered image to glean admiration of her physical appearance. Perhaps some combination of more than one, but in the final analysis, I wonder if even she really knows, herself. I certainly do not, but if I had to bet on it, I suspect the former would be considerably closer to the truth.Why, I ask myself, are we as human beings forced or compelled to make the most important decisions of our lives at an age when we are least capable of making them. Like a spacecraft intended to go to the moon, even a single misguided decision based upon a lack of objective information can be like a miscalculated mid-course correction that could send us irrevocably on a trajectory that is far off from the one we could have taken – one that might have resulted in a successful and more gratifying mission.In my opinion, Leslie should not be viewed as a role model for confused or otherwise aspiring transgender women nor the guru up on the mountain who has infinite wisdom and answers because every person, every case, is different just as one shoe size will not fit everyone. More recent scientific investigation tells us that there are greater than fifty different gender determinant genes on the male 'Y' chromosome, and the number of on/off combinations is mathematically mind boggling, suggesting a wide variation in gender expression.With all that said, I should mention that I value and respect Leslie as a personal friend. I also know for a fact that she possesses many positive qualities and I am confident that she will persevere in playing the hand she has been dealt. How and when we first met is immaterial to this review, but I am certainly glad to have been in her life at a time when she needed some genuine outside support. Whether or not that support has made a positive difference and, if so, how much is certainly open to legitimate questioning.In similar cases, do we hear, 'Gee! I guess I shouldn't have done that." Or, do we hear, "WHAT THE HELL WAS I THINKING?" The former is symptomatic of a narcissist; the latter of a realist. That being said, unlike many other transgender women, Leslie is a very capable survivor and currently lives a relatively quiet. private life with her two companion dogs and works online for a non-profit foundation from her secluded off-beach home in Northern California. But only time will tell. Simply put, Leslie's book is what it is. Nothing more; nothing less.Yes, 'Things are seldom what they seem. Skim milk masquerades as cream'. ~ Gilbert & SullivanBut under the right circumstances, even skim milk can be quite conducive to a healthy, satisfying life, and as a friend, I respect her privacy and wish her all the best!
Top reviews from the United States
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Reviewed in the United States on October 17, 2004
Reviewed in the United States on July 16, 2021
What do transgenders, drag queens, crossdressers, etc. all have in common besides their choice of apparel? Like so many of us, they too often fail to perceive reality for what it actually is. And frequently behind the scenes are an extremely daunting challenge and a protective state of denial and self deception. Still, Ward Cleaver in one episode of 'Leave it to Beaver' explained to the Beaver, "If you live your life in dreams, you will wake up someday to discover that you have nothing that is real."
Admittedly, the book is poorly written in places at no more than eighth grade level, which might indicate a lack of motivation to get an education that could be extremely helpful during Leslie’s adult years. So, whatever truth might be contained therein, there is some doubt in my mind that the reader will discover it between the covers of this self-published work.
I could not find many sympathetic displays of caring for others who have come from horribly unsupportive and sometimes sexually abusive family situations or who, likewise, barely clung to the very bottom most rung of the prostitution ladder, too often addicted to drugs and/or alcohol. Certainly, those were confusing and difficult times because so little was known about a predisposition that was kept buried in deep shadows and cut off many from even a modest level of family support. Too often, such was a journey into a sub-culture from which few survived either physically, mentally, or both, and if they do survive, they rarely escape unscathed. Still, for me to put such a review in perspective this needed to be said. However, one could reasonably and fairly conclude that Leslie’s book is really not about them, but about her difficult journey.
Clearly, one could question whether her many talks to college students and other audiences were motivated by a genuine desire to help others in similar circumstances, to try to somehow generate greater acceptance of transgender women (like herself), or to present herself and her new altered image to glean admiration of her physical appearance. Perhaps some combination of more than one, but in the final analysis, I wonder if even she really knows, herself. I certainly do not, but if I had to bet on it, I suspect the former would be considerably closer to the truth.
Why, I ask myself, are we as human beings forced or compelled to make the most important decisions of our lives at an age when we are least capable of making them. Like a spacecraft intended to go to the moon, even a single misguided decision based upon a lack of objective information can be like a miscalculated mid-course correction that could send us irrevocably on a trajectory that is far off from the one we could have taken – one that might have resulted in a successful and more gratifying mission.
In my opinion, Leslie should not be viewed as a role model for confused or otherwise aspiring transgender women nor the guru up on the mountain who has infinite wisdom and answers because every person, every case, is different just as one shoe size will not fit everyone. More recent scientific investigation tells us that there are greater than fifty different gender determinant genes on the male 'Y' chromosome, and the number of on/off combinations is mathematically mind boggling, suggesting a wide variation in gender expression.
With all that said, I should mention that I value and respect Leslie as a personal friend. I also know for a fact that she possesses many positive qualities and I am confident that she will persevere in playing the hand she has been dealt. How and when we first met is immaterial to this review, but I am certainly glad to have been in her life at a time when she needed some genuine outside support. Whether or not that support has made a positive difference and, if so, how much is certainly open to legitimate questioning.
In similar cases, do we hear, 'Gee! I guess I shouldn't have done that." Or, do we hear, "WHAT THE HELL WAS I THINKING?" The former is symptomatic of a narcissist; the latter of a realist. That being said, unlike many other transgender women, Leslie is a very capable survivor and currently lives a relatively quiet. private life with her two companion dogs and works online for a non-profit foundation from her secluded off-beach home in Northern California. But only time will tell. Simply put, Leslie's book is what it is. Nothing more; nothing less.
Yes, 'Things are seldom what they seem. Skim milk masquerades as cream'. ~ Gilbert & Sullivan
But under the right circumstances, even skim milk can be quite conducive to a healthy, satisfying life, and as a friend, I respect her privacy and wish her all the best!
Admittedly, the book is poorly written in places at no more than eighth grade level, which might indicate a lack of motivation to get an education that could be extremely helpful during Leslie’s adult years. So, whatever truth might be contained therein, there is some doubt in my mind that the reader will discover it between the covers of this self-published work.
I could not find many sympathetic displays of caring for others who have come from horribly unsupportive and sometimes sexually abusive family situations or who, likewise, barely clung to the very bottom most rung of the prostitution ladder, too often addicted to drugs and/or alcohol. Certainly, those were confusing and difficult times because so little was known about a predisposition that was kept buried in deep shadows and cut off many from even a modest level of family support. Too often, such was a journey into a sub-culture from which few survived either physically, mentally, or both, and if they do survive, they rarely escape unscathed. Still, for me to put such a review in perspective this needed to be said. However, one could reasonably and fairly conclude that Leslie’s book is really not about them, but about her difficult journey.
Clearly, one could question whether her many talks to college students and other audiences were motivated by a genuine desire to help others in similar circumstances, to try to somehow generate greater acceptance of transgender women (like herself), or to present herself and her new altered image to glean admiration of her physical appearance. Perhaps some combination of more than one, but in the final analysis, I wonder if even she really knows, herself. I certainly do not, but if I had to bet on it, I suspect the former would be considerably closer to the truth.
Why, I ask myself, are we as human beings forced or compelled to make the most important decisions of our lives at an age when we are least capable of making them. Like a spacecraft intended to go to the moon, even a single misguided decision based upon a lack of objective information can be like a miscalculated mid-course correction that could send us irrevocably on a trajectory that is far off from the one we could have taken – one that might have resulted in a successful and more gratifying mission.
In my opinion, Leslie should not be viewed as a role model for confused or otherwise aspiring transgender women nor the guru up on the mountain who has infinite wisdom and answers because every person, every case, is different just as one shoe size will not fit everyone. More recent scientific investigation tells us that there are greater than fifty different gender determinant genes on the male 'Y' chromosome, and the number of on/off combinations is mathematically mind boggling, suggesting a wide variation in gender expression.
With all that said, I should mention that I value and respect Leslie as a personal friend. I also know for a fact that she possesses many positive qualities and I am confident that she will persevere in playing the hand she has been dealt. How and when we first met is immaterial to this review, but I am certainly glad to have been in her life at a time when she needed some genuine outside support. Whether or not that support has made a positive difference and, if so, how much is certainly open to legitimate questioning.
In similar cases, do we hear, 'Gee! I guess I shouldn't have done that." Or, do we hear, "WHAT THE HELL WAS I THINKING?" The former is symptomatic of a narcissist; the latter of a realist. That being said, unlike many other transgender women, Leslie is a very capable survivor and currently lives a relatively quiet. private life with her two companion dogs and works online for a non-profit foundation from her secluded off-beach home in Northern California. But only time will tell. Simply put, Leslie's book is what it is. Nothing more; nothing less.
Yes, 'Things are seldom what they seem. Skim milk masquerades as cream'. ~ Gilbert & Sullivan
But under the right circumstances, even skim milk can be quite conducive to a healthy, satisfying life, and as a friend, I respect her privacy and wish her all the best!
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