Bedfordians Gemma and Leo Telford are hoping that their new book, ‘Between’, published today (4 February), will change people’s lives. Collaboratively written, it charts their family’s journey as Leo has transitioned to live as a man.
With mother and son writing a chapter in turn, the book is a unique insight into the thoughts, feelings, fears and triumphs from each point of view and is a must-read for anyone wanting to look beyond the culture wars and understand real experiences of real people.
Through their raw honesty, the most wonderful story and truly deeper understanding emerges beyond the Twitter/X posts and clickbait headlines.
“We want this book to be read by everyone, from trans people to people who aren’t trans and don’t have experience of trans people,” said Gemma.
“There is so much negativity and demonisation around the trans community in the media but we want to show that we’re just ordinary people who certainly don’t have all the answers but want to share our story.”
“Did you decide to be right-handed? Or did you decide to be straight? Or do you just know you ‘are’? Well, that’s what being trans is,” writes Leo in ‘Between’.
In the 2021 census, just 0.5% of the population identified as trans, however, the topic has dominated the media and politics, often with damaging consequences.
“Visibility is key to understanding,” said Leo. “It’s vital to hear positive stories and see trans people living happy, normal lives. I hope this book goes some way to helping others going through what we went through.
“10 years ago there was nowhere for me to turn and very little visibility of trans people. Voices are getting heard more, representation is getting better but there’s still a long way to go to build more understanding.
“We just hope that by sharing our story, we can help in some way.”
‘Between’ by Leo and Gemma Telford is published today and is available to eorder from Waterstones, Foyles and Amazon.
This article was published in the February issue of the Bedford Clanger.
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