This collection of essays feel disjointed and repetitive, making it a frustratingly uneven read. Can’t decide what it wants to be.

The book was very informative! Ultimately I had to DNF, because it was not holding my attention. From what I made through, it was an interesting yet personal look at gender, yet seemed limited in its scope. Of course, that makes sense, but it was not really what I was interested in.

In this unique and interesting book about gender differences and the gender divide in the United States, Jennifer Finney Boylan explores the evolution of the coming-out experience as a trans individual in the twenty-first century and the ways in which gender identity evolves in popular discourse. From Boylan’s own experience transitioning in 2000 to the current wave of anti-trans rhetoric and legislation in the United States and other countries, Boylan grapples with gender identity, masculinity and manhood, womanhood and femininity, and constructions of identity in a deeply relevant yet humorous new book. Boylan’s prose is straightforward and self-aware, and her experiences add great nuance and depth to the questions this powerful book asks of society and of readers. Forcing readers to deal with these questions in the current environment, this book offers a space for discussion and thought in a safe space. The book’s language and structure is very accessible, and Boylan offers necessary context and explanations for the more technical or historical terms so there is no barrier to understanding for the readers. A must-read for gender studies scholars, allies, or people interested in these questions, readers will really enjoy this book by Jennifer Finney Boylan, and this book may be a great gateway into Boylan’s other books.

Why You'll Love Cleavage:
A beautifully honest portrait of life lived in two genders
Heartfelt stories about family, identity, and acceptance
Insightful and relatable reflections on gender, voice, and body
A hopeful, loving tone underscored by wisdom and warmth
In short, Cleavage is a charming and moving exploration of gender and selfhood—poignant, surprising, and utterly human.

Boylan’s prose sparkles with wit and grace, effortlessly weaving humor into deeply personal reflections. The book’s structure—looping through time and themes in a seemingly fragmented way—might feel disjointed at first, but it beautifully captures the fluid, often nonlinear way we remember our lives. In the end, she ties it all together with a storyteller’s warmth and finesse.

This one feels like it had a lot of potential to be an exciting and engaging read, but it just wasn't capturing my attention. A+ cover though!

Jennifer Finley Boylan gives us a sharp, witty, and heartfelt collection that blends personal reflection with cultural critique. Boylan’s voice is both humorous and (as much as I hate using this as a descriptor) relatable, offering insight into identity, transition, and the absurdities of modern life.

Her essays balance vulnerability with satire, making for a compelling and (more than once) laugh-out-loud read. While some pieces resonate more deeply than others, the collection as a whole is smart, engaging, and refreshingly honest. A thoughtful and entertaining read from a truly distinctive voice. My average rating for the stories was 3.75/5 stars.

Cleavage was a super interesting read. I loved the history and it was well-researched. I'd read more from this author.

This was a beautiful memoir, although I expected something a bit different from this book. I'm very happy with what I got anyways. I did not read She's Not There, so I appreciated the bit of recap and familiarizing with Jennifer. Especially in 2025, it is genuinely brave to be so vulnerable about the details of transitioning from all aspects, and what it actually feels like to move on into your life living as a trans woman. Very much recommending this book this pride.

I don't know why I expected a very clearly marked memoir to not be a memoir. This wasn't my all time favorite book, but that's clearly a user error.

Boylan never fails to surprise, and Cleavage is no exception. It’s witty, sharp, and at times playfully subversive. The narrative dives into the politics of body image and identity with both humor and unflinching honesty. I appreciated how Boylan mixed personal anecdotes with broader social commentary, making the experience both enlightening and entertaining.

I’d recommend this to anyone looking for a fresh, bold take on what it means to navigate society’s expectations—and have a few laughs along the way.
Rating: ★★★★☆ (4/5)

This memoir is uncomplicatedly tender and insightful. Boylan's positive perspective on her childhood fascinated me—I'd expected her to show disdain, naturally, at having grown up as an outward boy. Her "nice" (not always, of course) childhood challenged my preconceptions of trans people's experiences, which is a welcome outcome from any read.

Boylan’s memoir is well-written and engaging in her reflections on her life not only pre and post transition, but also from when she wrote her earlier memoir, She’s Not There (2003), and other books. While some moments can be heavy, the overall tone of the book is one of joy and positivity. I think many will enjoy this book.

I picked this up expecting something lighter—maybe pop culture, maybe essays with a cheeky twist—but it turned out to be a thoughtful and often moving memoir. Jennifer Finney Boylan reflects on her life with honesty, humor, and a sense of grace that grew on me the further I read.

It’s not a tightly structured memoir, more like a series of reflections that wander across time, but there’s something meaningful in that looseness. While I didn’t always connect with the tone, I appreciated the perspective and walked away with a deeper sense of who she is and what she’s lived through. Not what I expected, but still glad I read it.

Title and cover made me laugh so I wanted to read this. It was so vastly interesting. While I've never personally struggled with gender in a real way, I found myself relating and understanding as I read. Really it all boils down to a search for self, and who isn't doing that in some manner? It just manifests differently for different people. I'm still searching, but I find it so comforting reading books like this, about someone who found herself. It lets me know it's possible, even if my journey is less laden by society's judgement. The writing isn't preachy, it's not a lecture. It feels more like a conversation, albeit one-sided. =)

Cleavage is a very misleading memoir by Jennifer Finney Boylan. The cover and title made me think it was a book with pop culture essays, so I honestly didn’t pay much attention to the description. I’m not upset, just kind of disappointed. It took me longer to read than I anticipated, and it wasn’t even that long. It was very interesting to read about Boylan’s journey and perspective as a transgender woman in the spotlight for over 20 years. Her work is important. But I dunno, I just didn’t love her style or her personality, which made it more of a chore to read. 3 stars for me, 4 stars for the writing.

Thank you to NetGalley and Celadon Books for providing this arc in exchange for my honest review.

Thanks to NetGalley and Macmillan Audio for the ARC. It hasn't affected the contents of my review.

I do think that the titling of this book is a little misleading, as it frames itself as a collection of essays surrounding topics of gender and sexual identity. That being said, this book was still worth the read as a memoir from a woman who had come out 20 years prior and how the cultural sphere has changed since then. The reflection that Boylan shared were insightful and showed much growing she has done since her first book.

There are books that explain things, and then there are books that make you feel them. Cleavage by Jennifer Finney Boylan is the latter.

Told through a collection of personal essays, Boylan explores gender, identity, love, parenting, and the often unspoken space that exists between people—between who we are and how we’re seen, between expectation and reality. Her writing is sharp and honest, sometimes funny, sometimes aching, and always deeply human.

What makes this collection so impactful is how it balances the deeply personal with the universally relatable. Whether she’s talking about life before and after her gender transition, her role as a spouse and parent, or the awkward, beautiful mess of being human, every essay carries weight.

This isn’t just a book about gender. It’s about connection. About navigating change, holding onto joy, and making peace with all the contradictions we carry.

Thanks to Netgalley and the publishers for sending a digital ARC in exchange for an honest review.

I enjoy the occasional autobiographical read, and I came to Cleavage after Mad Honey - you know when you want to read more by an author and find out a bit more about them as a person?

I wasn’t sure what to expect… Cleavage takes the form of lifestyle essays on different subjects and different times from Jennifer’s life. It’s entertaining, with some style and humor. My favourite memoirs suck you in so you feel like you’ve been chatting with with the subject and really got to know them, I didn’t quite get that feeling from this book but I’m very glad I read it.

Thanks to Netgalley and Celadon Books

Full disclosure, I am wildly guilty of choosing books by their covers (and titles) while completely skipping the book blurb… and I absolutely found myself surprised by this one. The cover and title do not really match the content.

That aside, I did enjoy this memoir by trans author Jennifer Finney Boylan. Other than co-authoring Mad Honey with Jodi Picoult, I was not aware of her previous works or activism, and this book provided an interesting view into the reflections of Jennifer’s life. She gives the reader insight into her experiences, her youth, and the relationships with important people in her life - her friends, her wife, and her children. My chief compliant was the stories in this book are not linear and bounce around quite a bit, making it challenging to follow a timeline and tie events together. All in all, I enjoyed this memoir and found it enlightening.

Thank you to NetGalley and Celadon Books for the ARC in exchange for an honest review.

This one was maybe closer to 3.5 stars and might have been even more but based on the title and description I wanted something that had more of a sociology/commentary with some memoir mixed in and it turned out to be almost entirely memoir with a little bit of sociology added in here and there. If I had known this going in I likely would have liked it more but it wasn't what I was looking for right now.