I always find it extremely difficult to rate and review such deeply personal memoirs, especially ones where I have no way to understand and relate my own life to the person writing the story. Five stars doesn't really seem like enough for this incredibly touching, beautiful book, but it's the highest rating I can give.

Kiese Laymon shares extremely personal and difficult stories from his life in the format of letters to his mother. He talks about abuse, sex, weight, race, family, education, feminism, and the weight of being a black man in America. Every word of this book is meaningful and intentional, there isn't one second I wished I had skipped.

If you like audiobooks, this is definitely one to consider. The author reads the book himself, making it a much more heartfelt experience for the listener.

This is not a story that everyone is necessarily going to relate to, but I definitely think it is one that everyone should know of and be empathetic to.