Gender Explained

A Finalist for the 2025 Lambda Literary Award for LGBTQ+ Nonfiction

Now in paperback: A world-leading expert and clinical psychologist team up to explain everything you may not know about gender: what it is, where it came from, and why it’s changingGender is everywhere. Politicians argue over it, educational systems strugg 

Gender is everywhere. Politicians argue over it, educational systems struggle to define it, and our friends, neighbors, and children explore it. More than ever before, young people are questioning their gender identities and redefining the role of gender in their lives. How should our society—and we as individuals—respond?

In Gender Explained, Diane Ehrensaft, PhD, and Michelle Jurkiewicz, PsyD, separate medical fact from fear-mongering falsehoods and answer these questions: What should parents do when their child starts experiencing gender dysphoria? Which sports teams should transgender youth play on? How should schools teach young people about gender? And most important: What is gender-affirming care, and when should an individual have access to it?

With clear, expert guidance, this book is a safeguard against political vitriol and offers urgent protection for those among us who are transgender and/or nonbinary. Far more than an introduction to gender creativity, it is an invitation to develop compassion for everyone along the gender continuum.