Crossing: A Memoir

Crossing

University of Chicago Press, 228 pp., $25

Crossing: A Memoir chronicles the transition of Donald McCloskey, a married father of two and respected professor of economics, into Deirdre McCloskey, still a professor, but one who also travels and lectures on her experiences as a transgender. When Donald makes the decision to live full-time as Deirdre, enduring two years of painful operations to change her face, voice, and genitals, his wife files for divorce, his children disown him, and his sister attempts to have him committed. The account of Deirdre's transition is fascinating, but there are troubling aspects. McCloskey presents her experiences in the third person, but is not a neutral narrator. At times, her opinions serve only to perpetuate stereotypes of men and women and their nature, which is ironic considering how hard she works to dispel those about transgenders. Crossing is a moving account that could have been much stronger with more first-person accounts of Deirdre's journey.