2008-03-22 Both Necessary and Brilliant

Kate Bornstein's book: Hello Cruel World:101 Alternatives to Suicide for Teens, Freaks & Other Outlaws is another gem from the Outlaw who has not only been there and done that, but also ethically sourced and designed the T-Shirt, only to give it away to someone she thought would look cute in it. Her other books, Gender Outlaw and My Gender Workbook gave me the space and courage to grow from a frightened outlaw child into the powerful, thoughtful, free person that I am today and I know they have done so for a great many others. This book will do the same and more.

It is urgently needed. The corporate, conformist culture that we are labouring under has few places for Outlaws and so things can seem pretty bleak. Add to that the otherness of being adolescent and you have a recipe for disaster. Kate's masterstroke is in showing with the wit and plain, even harsh, speaking that she is loved for, that there are places for people like us; that we can carve out our own spaces and move our minds away from self destruction while making the world a better place for everyone in the doing.

Most of the suggestions in the book such 60: Bake a cake, and 53: Be cute or dashing, would be acceptable to everyone. But with the overriding rule of "Don't be mean" (to yourself or others) Kate suggests and allows pretty much anything if it will keep you alive. 78: Make it bleed and 79: Take drugs. No, really. Take drugs; are things that will have mainstream `therapists' frothing at the mouth. But it is for exactly this reason the book is so valuable. This is edge writing, edge advice, for when you are literally a hair's breadth from the abyss. Social niceties and mores are idiotic in those situations (but remember the rule) and that is why this book will actually do what it says on the tin.

We all get down. Most of us want to kill ourselves at some time or other, especially us Outlaws (We also get loads of really cool fun and sex, but don't tell too many people or everyone will want to be one and then we'll have to be Right Wing, just to be Outlaws again and my brain will pop.) This book will help not just teens, but people of all ages, genders and identities to live, and live well.

To paraphrase Terry Pratchett; Outlaws don't have leaders and Kate is one of the best leaders we don't have. I'm an adult now and have been for some time. I'm proud of who I am, in part through following Kate's wisdom. I should imagine I'll follow it until I die, and that day is quite some time off...