Trans Historian Jan Morris Biography First Edition "Conundrum": "I was three.. when I realized that I had been born into the wrong body and should really be a girl... it is the earliest memory of my life."

Jan Morris

First Edition

[LGBTQ] Morris, Jan. Conundrum. London: Faber and Faber, 1974. First edition. 160 pages. Brown cloth binding with title, author, and publisher stamped in gold on spine. Original white dustjacket with black lettering and a fine line optical illusion drawing on cover, black and white portrait of Morris on back cover. Jan Morris was a prolific Welsh journalist, historian, and travel writer, best known for the Pax Britannica Trilogy, a comprehensive history of the British Empire from 1837 to 1965, and for reporting on and accompanying the 1953 British Mount Everest expedition, the first recorded successful ascent of Everest. Morris began her transition in 1964 but continued to publish under her birth name, James, until undergoing gender reassignment surgery in 1972. Her 1974 memoir documents her transition and her lifelong struggle with fully realizing her gender identity. In the first lines of the book Morris writes "I was three or perhaps four years old when I realized that I had been born into the wrong body and should really be a girl. I remember the moment well, and it is the earliest memory of my life." Though her transition was not without backlash, Morris generally remained a celebrated and respected journalist even in the less-than-tolerant mainstream social atmosphere of the 1970s. Her accolades include the Glyndŵr Award for Outstanding Contribution to the Arts in Wales, the Golden PEN Award for a Lifetime's Distinguished Service to Literature and the 2018 Edward Stanford Outstanding Contribution to Travel Writing Award. Some markings to endpaper and pastdown, Overall good to very good condition.

Item #20789

Price: $285.00