Imagine experiencing life not as the gender dictated by birth but as one of your own design. In Trans Figured, Brian Belovitch shares his true story of life as a gender outlier and his dramatic journey through the jungle of gender identity. Brian has the rare distinction of coming out three times: first as a queer teenager; second as a glamorous transgender woman named Tish, and later, Natalia Gervais; and finally as an HIV-positive gay man surviving the AIDS crisis in the 1980s. From growing up in a barely-working-class first-generation immigrant family in Fall River, Massachusetts, to spinning across the disco dance floor of Studio 54 in New York City . . . from falling into military lock-step as the Army wife of a domineering GI in Germany to having a brush with fame as Natalia, high-flying downtown darling of the boozy and druggy pre-Giuliani New York nightclub scene, Brian escaped many near-death experiences. Trans Figured chronicles a life lived on the edge with an unforgettable cast of characters during a dangerous and chaotic era. Rich with drama and excitement, this no-holds-barred memoir tells it all. Most importantly, Brian's candid and poignant story of recovery shines a light on the perseverance of the human spirit.
"It's true that Brian Belovitch has lived life as a man, a woman, and back again, but through it all, he's been-first and foremost-a raconteur. His writing is deliciously shocking one moment, and achingly profound the next. Like a master showman, he guides us through the vexing, giddy, heart-breaking, courageous carnival of his very singular life. His gender may be ephemeral, but his artistry is n
Doug Wright, Pulitzer Prize-winning author, I Am My Own Wife
"Trans Figured is a thrilling read…. One of the most mercilessly candid and outspoken memoirs in years. If Holly Golightly existed, this might have been her true story. I couldn't put it down."
Scott Wittman, Tony and Grammy award-winning lyricist of Hairspray
"I partied with Tish in the '80s and only now-thirty years later-am I learning of Brian's heartbreaking journey to self-actualization. And what a story it is! I couldn't put this book down!"
James St. James, author/screenwriter of Party Monster, Freak Show, and Disco Bloodbath
