A Lifeline that Understands

by | Mar 31, 2008 | 0 comments

Hello Cruel World: 101 Alternatives to Suicide for Teens, Freaks, & Other Outlaws by Kate Bornstein

Kate Bornstein wants to keep you alive for one more minute. For one more hour. For one more day. In Hello Cruel World: 101 Alternatives to Suicide for Teens, Freaks, & Other Outlaws, her goal is to help the reader realize that there are other means of dealing with pain. She offers instant, temporary distractions intended to help the reader deal with the pain until help can be found. Recommendations include many safe activities such as dancing and making longer range plans. Several, however, are radical, such as #78: Make It Bleed. She’s referring to cutting but acknowledges the danger and that it is not an acceptable long-term solution. She has it labeled as “If You Must.” While I understand her logic, such possibilities make me squirm.

Bornstein intends this. She’s rejected her transgendered status and lives her life beyond sexual labels. In the opening she critiques our need to label people through either/or questions. “They (either/or questions) are designed to make you not want to be the complex person that you are.”

Division of the arts
Ballet - Timeless - 300x300

I was slightly surprised to find this book in the teen section. The writing is certainly aimed at teens and twenty-somethings. I will add that, even at my advanced age, I both enjoyed and benefited from the challenges it presents. As a teacher, I can’t imagine recommending it to a student. As an ersatz uncle, I am going to leave my copy where my 15-year-old niece will find it. I want her to grow beyond the limits placed on her by many of those who surround her. I also think it is the sort of book that will be taken more seriously without the endorsement of an adult. It needs to be a stolen pleasure. It needs to be a quest taken up voluntarily, not only by teens but by us all.

Article Tags

Ballet - Timeless - Banner
Advert 77
MGHA tournament

0 Comments

Submit a Comment

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Advert 77
MGHA tournament
Ballet - Timeless - Banner

Latest News

TRACE Your Transition

TRACE Your Transition

Madison-born Taylor Greene (he/him) has created the world’s first mobile application for transgender and non-binary individuals. TRACE is an acronym representing the app’s purpose: Transition, recording, and community engagement.

Camp & Glamp Adventures

Camp & Glamp Adventures

Like so many, Nichie Bendt and Terri “Zeke” Zeman survived the isolation and disruption of Covid by finding ways to stay connected to their community (and to sanity) by getting outside and finding peace and joy through camping and outdoor adventures. They have now started a Brooklyn, Wisconsin-based hospitality business rooted in luxury camping accommodations and the creation of memorable experiences.

LGBTQ-owned madison Restaurant Harvest to Remain Closed

LGBTQ-owned madison Restaurant Harvest to Remain Closed

The pandemic and subsequent hardships with inflation, changing consumer habits, and difficulty keeping staff have caused the closure of Madison institution: Harvest. The fine dining establishment on the Capitol Square had been a staple for 20 years. The owner, Tami...

A Year of Crucial Elections

A Year of Crucial Elections

It’s 2024, and Americans are bracing for a contentious, ugly election year. The ugliness at the national level is well covered, but many LGBTQ+ Wisconsinites are bracing for their own key elections as state and local officials go head to head, many citing recent anti-gay and trans rhetoric and legislation as a reason to fear the outcomes, should right-wing candidates win.

Project celebrates the legacy of the Gay Rights State

Project celebrates the legacy of the Gay Rights State

Madison, WI - Did you know? Sunday, February 25th is the 42nd anniversary of Wisconsin becoming the first Gay Rights State in the nation. On February 25, 1982, Governor Lee Dreyfus passed Assembly Bill 70 into law, banning discrimination against gays and lesbians in...

Latest News

VIEW ALL LATEST NEWS

Ballet - Timeless - 300x300
Division of the arts

Events

SUBMIT AN EVENT

VIEW ALL EVENTS

Jobs

SUBMIT A JOB POSTING

VIEW ALL JOBS

Popular Tags

Pin It on Pinterest