First published 2022
Isaac Fitzgerald examines his turbulent journey from childhood trauma to adult self-acceptance in this memoir told through interconnected essays. Fitzgerald traces his path from growing up in a Boston homeless shelter through various incarnations as altar boy, bartender, smuggler, and biker across different cities and countries. He confronts the damage inflicted by early violence and his parents' troubled relationship, exploring how these experiences shaped his understanding of masculinity and family. The author recounts specific episodes from bartending in San Francisco to smuggling medical supplies into Burma, always returning to his central struggle with body image and belonging. Fitzgerald builds his narrative around moments of crisis and revelation, showing how he learned to channel anger and isolation into generosity toward himself and others. His approach combines raw honesty about personal failings with humor about his various misadventures. The book offers readers a clear-eyed examination of how trauma can be transformed into understanding, presenting forgiveness not as a single moment but as an ongoing practice of redefining what family and masculinity can mean.
Genres: addiction, abuse, autobiography, biography-memoir, 21st-century
Vibes: emotional, intimate, thought-provoking
Tropes: coming-of-age, redemption, self-discovery
Setting: Boston, Burma, San Francisco
Period: 21st-century
256 pages · Hardcover · Bloomsbury Publishing
Content warnings: abuse, mental-illness