Book review: Oli London makes sense of the ‘gender madness’ in new autobiography

In the first chapter of his autobiography, Gender Madness, British man Oli London recalls traveling to Armenia where he had found a “yes man” doctor to perform three of his 32 plastic surgeries – two related to male breast reduction and the other on the nose.

“My mind was consumed with graphic images, imagining myself lying on a cold table in a dark room hearing the sound of sharp chisels being bashed into my bones and saws cutting up my flesh. It sent shivers down my spine, but I knew deep down that I had no other choice,” he writes.

London suffered from severe body dysmorphia caused by his emotionally abusive father and years of severe bullying in school – a condition further exacerbated by a social media addiction.

What began with a common nose reduction snowballed until London was fixated with having feminine features, eventually identifying as a woman.

He writes that he was “addicted to plastic surgery,” which left him with permanent scarring and “facial muscle paralysis.”

Then, on the cusp of beginning gender-altering treatments to commit to his transgender identity, London walked into a church and found God, he writes.

There, he heard the story of Jesus healing a man with leprosy – a man who would have been ostracized and rejected by society – and thought, “If Jesus could save a man whom no one else loved, then maybe he could save me.”

Having found salvation, London is now an advocate for children worldwide, warning against gender indoctrination and supporting parents’ rights and women’s rights against liberal transgender policies.

In the second half of his book, London addresses the unprecedented number of children identifying as transgender and the devastating influence of social media, particularly TikTok. He should know: he is a social media influencer boasting millions of followers across multiple platforms. 

According to his research, many children who identify as transgender have underlying mental illnesses, and between 85-90% will revert to their biological sex in adulthood. This is just one reason among many others given for why gender treatments on children should be banned.

It’s impossible to read London’s book without feeling compassion for what he and others have suffered and for the lifelong consequences “gender affirming” surgeries leave them with.

And while it would be easy for the author to slide into anger and self-pity, London never gives in to victimhood. Instead, his tone is consistently one of empathy for those suffering and indoctrinated, and one of hope that such suffering can be prevented and healed.

Gender Madness: One Man’s Devastating Struggle with Woke Ideology and His Battle to Protect Children was written for anyone who wants an honest perspective on gender dysphoria that doesn’t end with rainbow flag-waving or heartless Bible thumping.

London speaks credibly on the complexity of gender dysphoria and related mental health issues without compromising the truth or losing his passion to protect innocent people from gender madness.

Throughout both the narrative and research halves of his book, London is neither pedantic nor erudite. He speaks frankly about his inner turmoil and self-harm and is unashamedly earnest about his conversion to Christianity and hope for the future.

This was a book that needed to be written and one that every Christian concerned with the rise of transgenderism should read.