BREATHE

Stories and information about chest binding from university researcher Peitzmeier and award-winning author/illustrator Kobabe, who's known for Gender Queer: A Memoir (2019).

Through anonymized, illustrated interviews, female-assigned people of various ages, races, and genders share their experiences with chest binding. Within these meaningful personal stories, they touch upon issues of mental health and describe how binding has made them feel more at ease in their bodies, as well as some of the physical issues that can arise when binding. The authors approach the topic from a harm-reduction standpoint, providing advice on ways to minimize these problems without giving up binding entirely. This book is a valuable resource for people who bind or want to bind, and the stories are full of snippets of wisdom, such as never to use ACE bandages or plastic wrap. Unfortunately, the last third of the book, which is dedicated to offering direct advice, does not thoroughly compile the information discussed earlier in the stories: The content is excellent, but the presentation is disorganized, with self-reflection worksheets, brief tips, advice in comic format, data, and simple physical exercises all thrown together, making the book difficult to use as a reference work. For example, Kobabe and Peitzmeier suggest choosing a binding method that is “kinder to your body” or trying a different style of binder, but readers must rely on self-reflection or comb through the interviews to determine exactly how to follow this advice.

A realistic, affirming guide to binding.