This fantastic blend of memoir & self-help was amazing. Though I am not the direct intended audience, I feel like this book has valuable insights for all people. This book was gentle and affirming, yet hit on subjects of accountability and the ways we can lash out when we need to do inner work on ourselves. Goodman provides context for each of the concepts that have shaped his own growth into self-love and actualization by sharing stories from his life. These stories are heartfelt and relatable, making the concepts clear and resonate.

This book is so vulnerable and engaging. A perfect mix of humor and heart. I loved seeing different sides of Goodman and seeing the world through their eyes. Especially pieces of their story I thought I knew. The level of vulnerability and self reflection in this book is top notch. For all the young queer kids and kids of color and the you get versions of ourselves, this book is a hug and a nod toward acceptance and affirmation. Really a positive embrace.

I genuinely don’t know if I’ll ever have accurate words for this one. What I do know: this is a MUST read for everyone.

If you’re doing your work unlearning / learning about the queer community, you need this book.

If you’re doing your work unlearning / learning about racism, white supremacy, and Black Lives Matter, you need this book.

If you’re trying to live a more authentic life, you need this book. At the root of this book is the question “who would I be if society never got its hands on me?”

Brandon is a non-binary, gay, Black man and in an interracial marriage. Their story is messy & raw & vulnerable and these pages are filled with struggle, joy, anger, success, love, loss, encouragement, hardship, and wins. This book is Brandon’s heart and soul for everyone to read.

I’ve been following Brandon on social media for more than two years, and when I saw they were writing a book, the stoke level was high. Brandon has built a messy, honest, vulnerable, and safe community on IG where they regularly talk about sex, racism, & being queer.

Brandon writes like they talk. Having watched their IG stories for two+ years, I could hear their voice, their tone, and their inflection in every word on the page. I felt like I was sitting across from Brandon over a bomb meal or going on a walk with them & their dog Korey and Brandon was telling me their life story. It’s not something many authors can truly pull off, but they did.

Instead of following a chronological order like memoirs often do, Brandon interweaves different parts of their life throughout. Within the titled chapters (my fave title: YouOnSomeFuckShitVille), Brandon is connecting different parts of their life to talk about a topic, something they had to reckon with in therapy, and more. The detail & the descriptions are so vivid that you feel like you’re right there walking alongside them.

I could talk about this book & why you need to read it for forever. But I’ll leave you with this. Brandon regularly signs off a day on Instagram with the same message & I’m going to borrow it in case you need to hear it: “In case you haven’t heard it yet today, you are so deeply loved.”

Thank you to Grand Central Publishing & Netgalley for an ARC in exchange for an honest review.