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katie0528's review against another edition
4.25
Graphic: Bullying, Death, Homophobia, Racism, Sexual assault, and Transphobia
Moderate: Addiction, Drug abuse, Drug use, Misogyny, Racial slurs, Outing, and Injury/Injury detail
pizzaisjesus98's review against another edition
3.75
Graphic: Child abuse, Cursing, Death, Homophobia, Incest, Panic attacks/disorders, Racial slurs, Rape, Sexual assault, and Grief
Moderate: Bullying, Chronic illness, Emotional abuse, Mental illness, Racism, Sexual content, Terminal illness, Toxic relationship, Violence, Medical content, Medical trauma, Alcohol, Dysphoria, and Injury/Injury detail
Minor: Addiction, Deadnaming, Drug abuse, Drug use, Hate crime, Misogyny, Transphobia, Blood, Excrement, Police brutality, and Cultural appropriation
frawst_disasta_reads's review against another edition
4.25
Graphic: Homophobia and Sexual assault
Moderate: Racism and Grief
Minor: Addiction
ankita1996's review against another edition
4.0
Graphic: Cursing and Racial slurs
Moderate: Bullying, Death, Sexual content, and Grief
Minor: Addiction, Chronic illness, Drug use, Homophobia, Incest, and Alcohol
grboph's review against another edition
5.0
Graphic: Death, Homophobia, Incest, Pedophilia, Racial slurs, Racism, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Violence, and Grief
Moderate: Bullying, Cancer, Chronic illness, Cursing, Deadnaming, Drug use, Mental illness, Medical content, Outing, Alcohol, and Dysphoria
Minor: Addiction and Injury/Injury detail
katsbooks's review against another edition
4.5
"Navigating in a space that questions your humanity isn't really living at all. It's existing. We all deserve more than just the ability to exist."
"American history is truly the greatest fable ever written."
"Knowledge is your sharpest weapon in a world that is hell-bent on telling you stories that are simply not true."
I always feel weird rating memoirs so take my star rating with a grain of salt. The strangeness lies in giving a star rating to someone's life. Like, how can I do that? So my rating is mostly based on social content and writing style.
I loved a lot of things about this book. I really like that it is written in a way that is accessible to teenagers. It is clear and concise in it's messaging while also being personal and impactful. It also doesn't shy away from tough topics. The author often addresses the sentiment that he wants this book to serve as an example of queer, Black human existing and thriving as a full human with a lifetime of positive and negative experiences. I especially appreciated the chapters on his school experiences. As an educator, it's always good to hear students have experienced the school system.
My only major critique is that tone of the writing felt... immature? I'm not sure if that's the verbiage I want to use but I got the feeling sometimes that I was reading an essay from one of my high school students. That being said, though, it's meant for high school students so I can definitely understand if that was done on purpose.
Graphic: Misogyny, Racism, Rape, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Violence, Police brutality, and Dysphoria
Moderate: Bullying, Deadnaming, Racial slurs, and Injury/Injury detail
Minor: Addiction, Cursing, Death, Drug use, Terminal illness, Transphobia, Outing, and Alcohol
rupkathb's review against another edition
5.0
Graphic: Sexual harassment
Moderate: Deadnaming, Homophobia, and Transphobia
Minor: Addiction and Outing
berodatheelf's review against another edition
4.5
Moderate: Addiction, Bullying, Cancer, Deadnaming, Death, Drug use, Gore, Homophobia, Racial slurs, Racism, Sexual assault, Sexual content, Grief, Medical trauma, and Outing
starsincline's review against another edition
5.0
Graphic: Death, Drug abuse, Homophobia, Incest, Racial slurs, Racism, Rape, and Death of parent
Moderate: Addiction