Reviews Written by Amos Lassen (Little Rock, Arkansas)
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The Pain and Power of Prejudice, December 10, 2009

I must admit that when I first found out about the new novel "She's My Dad: by Iolanthe Woulff, I found the title to be intriguing and was anxious to read it. I am certainly glad that I did. It is a powerful look at the destructive powers of hate as experienced by wonderfully drawn characters. But it is not just about how hate destroys, it also looks at the power of love and the triumph of good over evil.

This is a book for adults and it deals with adult themes yet it is a sensitive look at the world of the transgender written by someone who has been and is there now, Iolanthe Woulff is herself transgender, having been born male and in 1995 began the process of transitioning to female so she knows about what she writes.

The plot is set in Northern Virginia at Winfield College, an ultra-liberal school. A former male graduate of the school is hired to fill a teaching position. However, this former male is now a transsexual woman who keeps her secret well hidden. Nickie does not want any trouble but a young lesbian reporter, Cinda, publicly outs her and in the process other secrets come forth. Cinda discovers a son, Collie, now grown, of Nickie's that she had fathered during an affair in her undergraduate days.

But that is not all that the plot has to offer. Someone is plotting to destroy Winfield by a suicide bombing. It is here that we begin to have an intense look at bigotry. There are other secrets as well. There is Luanne, Collie's mother, who tells about the affair with Nick and when Luanne dies, Collie turns to Robin Thompson, a co-worker, for comfort. Collie's life becomes very difficult when he is stalked. This with the plan to get rid of the college shows us just what a cancer bigotry can be.

There is a lot to take in here and at times it seems that you may never get anything straight but Woulff writes in a way that keeps you reading non-stop. The plan of the novel is ingenious and the characters just jump right off of the page I think that this is one of the most fascinating books I have read in 2009 and it is going to be on my ten best list for the year. Woulff is a writer that is going to go places. She has the pedigree and she knows how to use it. —Amos Lassen