by Janet Mock
First published 2014
Janet Mock transforms from a deeply private woman hiding her transgender past to a powerful voice for her community. After earning a master's degree and building a successful career at People.com in New York City, Mock keeps her history secret until love changes everything. When she falls for a man who sees her as the woman of his dreams, she finds the courage to share her story publicly. Mock reveals her childhood as her parents' firstborn son, her determination to live as her authentic self despite her family's lack of resources, and her turbulent adolescence in Honolulu. She details transitioning during high school, self-medicating with hormones at fifteen, and traveling alone for sex reassignment surgery at eighteen. The memoir traces how a 2011 Marie Claire profile catapulted the magazine editor into becoming an influential advocate for transgender rights. Mock examines the unique challenges facing trans youth while showing how personal testimony can create change for marginalized communities.
Genres: autobiography, memoir, non-fiction, biography-memoir, 21st-century, lgbt, gender-identity, activism
Vibes: emotional, intimate, thought-provoking
Tropes: coming-of-age, personal-journey
Setting: Honolulu, New York City
Period: 2011
263 pages · Hardcover · Atria Books
Content warnings: mental-illness, self-harm