Trans Rights Readathon 2025 #2

I have no time for conservatives or TERFs. I unfortunately had to turn off comments from non-friends due to other reviews, but please feel free to see yourself out if you "don't believe in LGBTQ+." Thanks.

I actually wasn't familiar with Dylan before this book, but I enjoyed the epistolary style on audio. It's giving middle school diary, which I obviously had.

I get having conservative parents. I get disagreeing with them while still loving them. I hate that Dylan deals with so much hatred. I hate the current administration. I don't think the last one did much better, but that's neither here nor there.

Anyway, read this for a little queer joy. And obviously, trans lives matter.

tw: misgendering, suicidal ideation, transphobia

🎧 Thank you to NetGalley and Recorded Books

thank you Dylan, NetGalley, and Abrams for this advanced reader audiobook copy in exchange for an honest review.

i knew very little of dylan before this book. i have just seen her with chris olsen while scrolling my fyp a few times. this story was so informative and vulnerable and i can't thank her enough for that. i know she will get hate for this story, but i hope she see's how many LGBTQIA+ she will be helping. so much personality and love in these pages!

I remember watching Dylan’s first 100 days of girlhood on TikTok, and being aware of the backlash she received for living and thriving in a world that continues to barely allows transgender people to survive.

Paper Doll: Notes from a late bloomer was a bittersweet anecdotal memoir, with Dylan narrating her story of coming out, parental relationships, accessing gender affirming care, and of course: going viral on TikTok throughout her early days of girlhood.

I enjoyed listening to Dylan, and listened to her whole book in one day!

Dylan Mulvaney's Paper Doll was an amazing listen that I recommend everybody listen to. It is imformative and captivating from start to end.

I followed Dylan's transition into womanhood day by day and loved that she was open to showing her transition to the world so that everybody who was willing to watch could follow along for the journey. Hearing everything she went through, including the whole Beer-gate debacle and how those who are unwilling to open their minds to the possibilty that not everybody is a "one-size" fits all gender, she is somebody that the trans community should look up to because she advocates for everybody. I have always considered myself an advocate for the LGBTQ+ community, with my sister having come out to me when they were a teenager, to gage how it would be taken by our parents. They are now proudly out and proud and I love that for them because they can live their authentic life, how they want to, other people's opinions be damned.

While I can see why Dyaln wouldn't want to be the face of the Trans community, especially when there are plenty of others to come before her. She has helped guide the way to show that she is who she always has been, except for who she was on the outside and she decided to do something about it to look exaclty how she felt. I loved the humor and emotion that she shared with the world .

Thank you to Netgalley and the publisher for the free audiobook copy of Paper Doll by Dyaln Mulvaney.

"Paper Doll" adds another voice to the growing collection of Trans stories in literature, which is always valuable. However, the book itself feels more like a surface-level reflection rather than a deep, introspective memoir. The writing comes across as simplistic, almost like a children's book, despite being aimed at an adult audience. While all experiences are valid, the issues Dylan highlights mostly reflect a life of privilege, making it difficult to connect with on a broader level—especially considering the challenges many Trans people are currently facing.

Thank you Dylan Mulvaney, RB Media and Netgalley for the ARC of this book.

WOW, I'm not even sure where to begin with this review.

In Paper Doll, we gain a deep and personal insight into Dylan's diary during the early days of her Being a Girl series, as well as reflections from Dylan herself, looking back on these moments.

I've followed Dylan since Day One in this series, and it feels as though I've been on this journey with her. Seeing behind the scenes of these pivotal moments was both fascinating and heartbreaking. As a cis woman, this book provided me with a raw and unapologetic look into the challenges of being trans in today's society. It really highlighted how quickly Dylan became a figurehead for the trans community while still in the process of understanding her own identity.

We are currently living in such an inreresting time, where influencers who are suddenly thrust into the spotlight are held to the same standards as seasoned celebrities. Dylan’s honesty in navigating brand deals and her rise to fame was incredibly admirable, and it gave me a much clearer perspective on how difficult that life can be to manage.

As an atheist, I also found Dylan’s struggle with her faith to be an interesting part of this book. And I have to say, I'm completely obsessed with how much Dylan loves musical theatre. Same girl, same!

This book is truly beautiful, and I wish we could somehow force every TERF in Dylan’s comments to read it and see the person they are so cruelly targeting.

The ending, in particular, was heartbreaking, especially considering that this book was written before Trump came into power. It’s a poignant reminder of how much has changed in such a short space of time.

It was lovely hearing Dylan, the author and narrator, narrate this. You can tell that she knows how to entertain and use her voice. She had me hooked from the first minute! This book was funny, powerful, and touching.

When I listened to the audiobook, it felt like I was Face-timing her or listening to the voice notes of a close friend. I love how honest this was.

This was a stunning and powerful audiobook! . Right now, having a visible trans woman this popular feels like a win! I appreciated how she mentioned that she doesn't speak for every trans person, but that all stories are valid and necessary! I wish her all the best.

Thank you to Netgalley for giving me access to this audiobook.

I absolutely adored hearing Dylan's story! I followed part of Dylan's girlhood series on tiktok and always enjoyed seeing her cross my page but definitely missed out on some major parts of her transition! This memoir caught me up on things I missed previously and held some nice moments I was there for as a follower. I really enjoyed the way this was set up as well. Dylan and the Beergate issue was a major moment in the zeitgeist (and occurred when I wasn't actively watching her tiktoks) so the before/after differences were a helpful way to distinguish the different times in her life and the respective feelings and memories. Dylan also did a great job narrating the audiobook for this as well and I'm glad I got to hear it directly from her!

First thing’s first: thank you Netgalley for the ALC of this book!
Paper Doll: Notes From A Late Bloomer was really fun and easy to listen to. I’ve followed Dylan for most of her journey of girlhood and this was a sweet peek into who she actually is vs who she is just on TikTok. It was breezy and light while still addressing some more serious pieces of being trans in the public eye. Dylan is incandescently optimistic and that really came through in her book and narration. I really liked this one and thought it was a solid memoir.
4.25⭐️

A whirlwind of experiences to follow. I decided to listen to this book to try and expand my knowledge on the myriad of womanhood and girlhood. Needless to say I was not disappointed. Having the author narrate was a bonus and it felt like listening to a friend that is really going through it. I was aware of some of the struggles the trans community go through but hearing first hand how people can be so cruel towards someone they do not know was devastating. Regardless this book was hopeful and that is what I am taking from it, hope that one day everyone regardless of their sex or gender can go through life as their true self. Thank you Dylan.

Thank you to @recordedbooks for the gifted audiobook!
Happy Pub Day to this stunning memoir, Paperdoll, by @dylanmulvaney
I adore a good memoir and I enjoy Dylan and her content so much! I've been following her all through her days of girlhood journey so I simply couldn't pass up the opportunity to listen to her memoir (narrated by the author!)
This memoir was authentic and real, funny, relatable and charming - just like Dylan herself. I had to snatch up a physical copy and the book is simply gorgeous (should I have expected any less though-c'mon, Dylan is high fashion)
Swipe to see more of the dust jacket, end pages and a peek at the inside. Needless to say I thoroughly enjoyed this memoir. I highly recommend to anyone who has been following along Dylan's journey and those who have not!

I was unfamiliar with Dylan Mulvaney before listening to Paper Doll, but I enjoyed the audiobook. The narration was engaging, and the story provided a unique, insightful, and thought-provoking perspective. Learning about experiences different from my own is always interesting, and this book delivered on that. Overall, a great listen, and I’m eager to explore more of her work.

I wanted to love this book so badly! Dylan fascinates me but I didn’t like how it was narrated. At first, I thought it was fun but it felt like an overly long TikTok or a podcast. After a while, I just stopped paying attention and caught myself losing interest. I feel like if the writing style was slightly different, I would have loved this!

Dylan Mulvaney is a brave, passionate soul, and she is quite amazing. Paper Doll is an exploration into girlhood, which bounces back and forth between her first 365 days immediately after coming out as a girl, told through journal-like entries, and her life during what she refers to as “post-beergate”, a reference to the wildly public, months long, right-wing backlash to her Bud Light partnership on TikTok. Dylan prefaces the book with the note that she writes how she talks, and while I appreciate the candor, I think the style in which she’s written this book felt stilted and, at times, a bit inauthentic. I don’t want to be misunderstood here – Dylan does delve into a lot of personal and intimate topics on an authentic level, but the delivery leaves something to be desired. Paper Dolls reads less like how someone’s talking to you as a friend, and more like how someone might be talking in a viral video which became a bit of a challenge. Paper Dolls offers and important insight into Dylan, into coming out, and into the perception of girlhood. It was fun and enjoyable to witness the joy Dylan cultivates in her life.

Paper Doll, Notes From a Late Bloomer
By Dylan Mulvaney

First off, a huge thank you to Recorded Books and Netgalley for giving me my copy of this fabulous audiobook.

I think hearing Dylan tell her own story was so impactful and fun. I laughed and cried my way through this audio. Listening to Dylan talk about all her joys and struggles was like having our own slumber party or catching up over brunch. I felt like we were besties, and I was privileged to be hearing her stories.

Dylan talks about her "Days of Girlhood" series and what that was like to share her transition so publicly every day. She talks about "BeerGate" and all the awful transphobia she received afterward and the effect it had on her mental health.
She also has a witty and honest way she explains all the details of her transition. Her surgeries, laser hair removal, and tucking are all discussed. But in a way that feels less invasive because she's telling you herself.
I really appreciated her candor and her determination to keep being a beacon of positively. She's a beautiful soul! And if you are looking for a first-hand story of trans joy and resistance, this is it.

to people review bombing this just to spew transphobic rhetoric... get a life. what a fun romp of a memoir! i listened to this on audio, so i didn't get to see all the illustrations and design of the book, but that COVER is to die for. it reminds me a lot of mccurdy's "i'm glad my mom died". one thing about me: i love girly, feminine, pink covers!

i've followed along mulvaney's "days of girlhood" journey over the years, though i kept up with her most frequently all the way back in 2022. she is such a vibrant, lively lady-- her joy is contagious. "paper doll" didn't offer too much of what we didn't already know, but it was a really entertaining memoir nonetheless. getting to hear dylan herself narrate this made it even better. she even sings all the lyrics she references in the book. the memoir honestly reads like a gossip session with a girlfriend. listening to it on audio makes it feel like you're on a call with your best friend, debriefing her wild escapades.

in her memoir, dylan brings up an important conversation about recognizing privilege, specifically in her experience transitioning. not everyone has easy access to gender-affirming care and procedures the way that she did, and she recognized that. dylan dives into her experience getting FFS, laser hair removal, etc, and as a cisgender woman, it was really interesting getting to hear all about it.

the ayahuasca tangent was a little strange, i won't lie. i hadn't taken dylan to be the "woo woo" type (as she described herself). it gives me pause whenever i hear the mention of this drug, because it makes me think about that youtuber that went on an ayahuasca retreat and ended up in a cult.

thank you to netgalley, dylan mulvaney, and abrams publishing for the audio ARC. all opinions are my own. <3

Paper Doll is less a memoir and more a memoir of a very specific period of time interspersed with background/backstory and snippets of how we got where we are today. And that's cool! I usually have the notion of "oh honey you're too young to write a memoir" with certain other books but for this one, it really worked. This is Dylan Mulvaney's memoir of having "been" a boy (rather, someone designated male at birth) and her memoir of becoming a woman through the ~2ish years of transition (and exploding into social media virality) covered here. It's part narrated diary entries and part musings on events in a way that flips around via time in a way that can sometimes be confusion in its non-linear fashion, but comes together as a whole in a trans speedrun, openly acknowledging the white and influencer-privilege she has despite things that have happened (as she says, Google "trans beer girl") to try and bring her down. She's living her best life, and being someone so young still, is definitely still on the road to maturation. I'd love to listen to a memoir from her in another 20 years to see the person she's grown into. (I also don't have TikTok and have never watched one of her videos, only heard about her here and there via cultural osmosis.)

The tone is very "chatting with your girlfriends" in a way that's so accessible while also opening herself up to vulnerability and educating via "Trans 101" at times. It's a fun, quick listen.

Thank you to RBmedia / Recorded Books and NetGalley for the ALC in exchange for review!

When I watch Dylan's TikToks I feel as if she is talking to her best friend, one on one. She draws you into her upbeat personality even when she is having a rough day. Listening to her narrate her own story feels like watching her TikToks.

Dylan takes us through her childhood questioning who she was and trying to find herself in her teens and young adult life. While we get to hear about these great experiences Dylan has had from walking red carpets to designer clothes, readers also see the lonely side of popularity. Before starting her story, Dylan mentions that this is her personal journey and it should not be the basis for all transgender people. She also recognizes that her popularity has given her advantages and privileges that others have to wait for or never have the opportunity to get.

It takes guts to be vulnerable and Dylan gets very personal in her story. Through Dylan's story, I have a better understanding of the struggles transgender people face through their personal journeys and in public. But I do realize I still have a lot to learn. Be kind to people.

I do think listening to the audiobook and reading the book in tandem would be a lot of fun. There are moments where Dylan says "insert a descriptive picture" and I can only imagine how that looks on the page.

Thank you RB Media and NetGalley fo the opportunity to listen to this audiobook.

Actress and social media darling Dylan Mulvaney shares her journey into womanhood.
👧🏼
Dylan came out online and became a viral sensation overnight. Her coming-out journey created a platform for her to showcase not only her story, but to share so many others’ stories as well. Dylan is also a strong advocate for trans people everywhere. This #memoir allows her to tell her story not just the 365 days she journaled acknowledging her girlhood, but also her acting career as well.
📱
I’ve followed Dylan for a while on TikTok, even before she was attacked viciously online and no one deserves success more than this beautiful (inside and out) woman. She is kindness personified and the true essence of queer joy. I smile every time I see one of her videos and how she fought against hate was inspiring and handled with grace. We need more people like Dylan in this world. The audiobook read by Dylan herself was like one long TikTok video and I loved every second.

CW: transphobia, homophobia, cyberbullying, drug use, religious bigotry, suicidal thoughts, alcohol, sexual assault, sexual violence, stalking, body shaming, dysphoria, bullying, domestic abuse, emesis, eating disorder, medical content

Loved Dylan's narration on the audiobook. The format made it feel more like a conversation with a friend than a memoir. Her vulnerability, performance skills, and sense of comedic timing really shine throughout.

Thank you NetGalley and RBmedia for the ARC!