Swans, A Novel

In the novel “Swans,” it’s March 1970, and Sibby’s mother drops her off at a conversion therapy ranch. Teenaged and trans and armed with only a fold-up knife and a gas station map, Sibby flees to hitchhike north and try to find her pen pal. The book takes place during the 8-day letter carrier strike, when postal workers refused to deliver the mail, and each person who gives Sibby a ride has something they must deliver or retrieve themselves—a baby gift, a pension check, a love letter, a pair of swans.

Research partners will learn about the novel-writing process, and possible assignments might include looking into the history of transgender medical care, reading and writing reports on midcentury gay literature, reading folklore about swans, and reviewing J. Ari Kane's counseling work with trans clients.