Reviewed by Tiffany Sostar, Aakhil Lakhani and April Wick
A group of friends reviews Charlie Jane Anders’ (2021) nonfiction book Never Say You Can’t Survive: How to get through hard times by making up stories and her (2025) novel Lessons in Magic and Disaster, and reflects on the process of reading these books together. We found it sustaining to be in community with each other, engaging richly and intentionally with the vibrant work of a trans author, as a group of mostly trans and nonbinary readers, at a time of rising hostility to trans folks. We found significant resonance between narrative therapy and the practices outlined in Never Say You Can’t Survive and meaningful opportunities for therapeutic conversations sparked by the characters and story in Lessons in Magic and Disaster.
Key words: book clubs; trans; transgender; book review; narrative therapy; narrative practice
Sostar, T., Lakhani, A., & Wick, A. (2026). Reading Charlie Jane Anders’ Never Say You Can’t Survive and Lessons in Magic and Disaster together at a time of rising hostility to trans folks, a review of the books and the process. International Journal of Narrative Therapy and Community Work, (1), 150–158. https://doi.org/10.4320/FXRD8766