Even MORE Books for Pride!

I love when poets write prose, and Saeed Jones is no exception. He writes so beautifully, with every sentence, every word, carefully chosen. His memoir follows his life growing up as a gay Black boy in the South, trying to find a place for himself when everyone around him kept telling him everything about him was wrong. He was too Black, too gay, too loud—always too much for the people around him, especially some of his family members. Jones has such a beautiful way of writing about his complex relationships with his mom and his grandmother, two women he loved dearly. It’s so difficult to love your family while also understanding that they don’t love ALL of you, just the parts they like. I can’t do this memoir justice, but let me tell you, if you’re a memoir lover, this one needs to be at the top of your list.

Novelist Jeanette Winterson made her debut with Orange Is Not the Only Fruit, a queer coming-of-age novel. The protagonist is adopted by conservative Christian parents and eventually becomes a preacher. But when she realizes she’s queer, her life becomes even more complicated. This first novel remains her most autobiographical. But with Why Be Happy When You Could Be Normal?, Winterson shares the true version of her younger years, admitting that her childhood was more difficult than she originally depicted in Oranges Are Not the Only Fruit. Mrs Winterson, her adoptive mother, rained down verbal abuse and a host of different punishments, like locking Winterson out in the cold. Winterson’s memoir interacts with her debut novel in such a unique way, laying out all the ways Winterson fictionalized her life and tried to make it more believable. I recommend reading Oranges and then Why Be Happy, which gives you an incredible portrait of Winterson’s life.