Love and Money, Sex and Death: A Memoir

McKenzie Wark, a trans woman, has a midlife crisis and comes out as a trans woman. She writes letters to her past selves, addressing love, money, sex, death, and trans sisters, exploring the political, aesthetic, and numinous dimensions of trans life. She confronts difficult memories and finds joy in Brooklyn's trans and raver communities.

Format: Hardback
Length: 176 pages
Publication date: 26 September 2023
Publisher: Verso Books

After a remarkable career, a fulfilling twenty-year marriage, and the joy of raising two children, McKenzie Wark finds herself at a pivotal juncture in her life—a profound midlife crisis that leads her to embrace her true identity as a trans woman. This transformative journey not only reshapes her social role and physical form but also recalibrates her relationship with the world around her. The process of transition alters her memories, both in terms of what she remembers and how she interprets those memories. Through the act of writing, McKenzie reclaims a fresh perspective on her past and the broader history of humanity.

In a series of letters addressed to her younger self, her mother, sister, and past lovers, she weaves a narrative that serves as a roadmap for her present existence. These letters expand to encompass trans sisters who have been lost and found, as well as the ancient goddess Cybele, who represents the trans woman's journey. McKenzie delves into the political, aesthetic, and spiritual dimensions of trans life, exploring how they shape her sense of self and her past experiences.

She confronts challenging memories that intertwine her mother's early death with her compulsion to write, her socialist beliefs, her move to New York, the bittersweet reality of her late transition, and the profound joy she finds within Brooklyn's vibrant trans and raver communities. Through her introspection and storytelling, McKenzie offers a poignant and introspective exploration of identity, resilience, and the pursuit of happiness.

Weight: 274g
Dimension: 147 x 219 x 18 (mm)
ISBN-13: 9781804292617