Sorted: Growing Up, Coming Out, and Finding My Place: A Transgender Memoir, by Jackson Bird

[sophia_sol]

I've been following Jackson Bird on youtube for years, since the days when his channel was mostly Will It Waffle, a series about putting weird things in waffle irons to see what happens. These days his channel is mostly about being trans. This book is his memoir!

This is the second time now I've read a nonfiction book by a youtuber I've watched a lot of (previously: Caitlin Doughty) and I think what I've learned is that the audience for books like these is actually NOT the people who are big fans of the author's online presence. Because once again I was familiar enough with the broad strokes of the story, from having watched almost every Jackson Bird youtube video, that the book was kind of...boring? (I'm sorry!) And it didn't help that this book is also giving a bunch of earnest educational Trans 101 content. Which I'm sure many people would find useful, but seriously, I know that stuff already.

And like, yeah, there were new details about Jackson's story in the book, for sure, including some great stuff -- but not actually enough new content overall to really grab me. Which means I'm no use in judging whether other people might like this book! I think so? But like. *vague shrug*

Anyway I hope the book does very well for Jackson's sake regardless of whether it was the right book for me. Because I'm definitely a fan of his youtube work! Even if I do miss the days of Will It Waffle. And some of his videos these days are also a little too LGBTQ 101 education for me. Ah well. I know the Will It Waffle content wasn't as popular as what he's doing now. The heart wants what it wants, but I recognise I am not actually the sole audience for his videos.

Comments

[pauraque]

There is a certain small heartbreak when a creative person stops making the stuff that made you a fan of theirs. Even when it's totally understandable and even a positive thing for them (e.g. they're now focusing on something that they're more passionate about, or that they can rely on financially) it is a sad moment to realize you're no longer a part of their intended audience.

[sophia_sol]

I apparently had like, a waking dream today or something, that Jackson Bird had just released a new Will It Waffle video and I saved it in my rss feed, and was going to go home from work and watch it before responding to your comment to say that hey, at least sometimes people do keep doing their old thing at least occasionally! But uh. I just went and checked his youtube channel and that absolutely did not happen.

Anyway it's not that I dislike Jackson's new content, I do keep watching him after all! And maybe if he'd kept doing Will It Waffle I'd be bored of it by now. But yeah, I'm no longer quite the intended audience anymore.