Choosing Family: A Memoir of Queer Motherhood and Black Resistance is a beautiful reflection of one women's journey as a Black queer mother in modern society. In many ways author Francesca Royster is writing a love letter to her past, her present, and her future. It is a moving tribute of the concept of choosing family, and how the choices you make for your chosen family impact all other aspects of your life. Choosing family is not a one time act but something that occurs over and over again as an individual experiences any physical, emotional, or spiritual change in their life.

This memoir reflects on the past and how it can help form your future. The author describes the lessons which she has learned from the strong Black women in her life as well as those who have intellectually influenced her. She explains how she uses these lessons from her past to shape her perception of her present and future. Specifically in regards to how she is trying to create a life different than the one she grew up with.

The main focus of her story is about her interracial marriage and adopted daughter. There are alot of intricacies involved with both of these topics. Everything is very intertwined and it was interesting to read about. Through the choices that she has made Francesca T. Royster has experienced multiple levels of joy and sadness. Many of her more joyful moments come from her chosen family but, there is also sadness as this family also has to grow and change.

By having a same sex marriage and making the decision to adopt, her personal and professional life have forever become connected. Each comes with its own struggles but being bond together illuminates them so that they are no longer hidden. It forces people to come to terms with it. It forced the author to choose her path of resistance and who would be in her chosen family. Choosing Family: A Memoir of Queer Motherhood and Black Resistance is an insightful and reflective piece of work. It seamlessly provides the audience a new perspective on the value of choosing family.

It's just such a beautiful book and its appeal factors will touch a wide variety of audiences. Once I started I could not put it down.

In this narrative memoir, Francesca Royster shares the journey she and her wife, a multiracial couple in their 40s and 50s, undertook to adopt and raise a child. In addition to her own personal story, Royster calls on queer and gender theory to explore intentional parenthood and a more fluid understanding of families. It's a beautifully personal story, both widely relatable and unique in the specific issues Royster and her wife faced. A fantastic book about modern parenting and families.