All Boys Aren't Blue: A Memoir-Manifesto

We all appreciated reading it, but no one LOVED it.

This is such a great memoir, and such an important memoir, especially right now. I think I thought this was a novel, but when I stumbled upon it when browsing for memoirs I knew I needed to listen.

I’m awestruck by the author’s honesty and I absolutely loved his narration! I loved the audiobook, and would absolutely recommend it!

I ended Pride month with this read and highly encourage you to pick this one up if you have yet to read it.

Interesting read because of a glimpse into the experience of this black, queer young boy’s life growing up with having to navigate being a black boy in a culture of racism and then knowing he was different from a young age before he had the terminology, gay, queer. What stood out the most for me was the support of his family, especially the support of one of his grandmothers who he called Nanny. I gave it a 7 because of the story, and the vulnerability, and introspection, not the writing.

oof idk how to rate this, audiobook was good read by author and super interesting memoir i wish it went a little more into certain areas
some parts were uncomfortable but it’s his life so makes sense to be completely honest regardless

"Love who you want to love and do it unapologetically, including that face you see every day in the mirror." First things first, how beautiful is this cover? Literally the whole reason I picked it up! I read this book on Kindle thanks to an Amazon price drop during Pride Month while also listening to it on Audible. I enjoyed following along on Audible hearing Johnson's story narrated in his own voice. Johnson makes it very clear from the beginning and throughout that his family was a building block for him. I loved hearing him speak about his family dynamics growing up, and how much of an impact his family, particularly his Nanny, had on his life and who he grew to become. There are so many black queer kids who aren't afforded the luxury to grow up in a queer loving family, surrounded by not only unconditional love, but queer family members as well. George was blessed in that regards, and he takes the time to let us all know it. I loved hearing about his relationship with Nanny and the rest of his family, as an example of being a queer Black youth in an accepting family. The individual chapters addressed to family members were touching, especially the chapter for Hope which brought me to tears. The homage he pays to his different family members, regardless of gender or which umbrella term they fall under in the LGBTQIA community is loving, and sweet, and honestly, makes me wish I had grown up in such an amazing familial environment myself. I was a little jealous of him in that regards, not gonna lie. Seeing George's struggle with his gender identity is what stuck out to me the most. He had this preconceived notion of what it meant to be "masculine" and if it didn't look a certain way, then he believed that he must be a girl. But throughout the memoir, we see him come to terms with his gender, and what that looks like to him. Masculinity isn't blue, and neither is George. Johnson writes about his life growing up as black and queer in modern America, and he’s not afraid to cover it all, even the parts that are not so glamorous. I feel as though this as an important read for kids who are exploring their own sexual/gender identities because, as Johnson says, “You sometimes don’t know you exist until you realize someone like you existed before.” However, as heartbreaking as George's story is, this is a book that doesn’t know what it wants to be. He details his experience growing up as a queer black boy in America through a series of personal essays that didn't always flow together nicely. This memoir felt a bit clumsy at times, as was the integration of the statistics or facts at the end of some of the chapters. They felt out of place and like a minor nod to the bigger issue connected to his experience. There was a lot of telling instead of showing, a lot of "OK we will get to that a minute" (which is fine, unless it's used A LOT), and a lot of simple sentences and clunky words. In general, his writing style was a bit bland for my taste. There were a few gems that I was compelled to highlight, but overall I felt like the prose was a bit dry. I appreciate that Johnson was bold enough to share his story and I believe that it is one that should be heard by other Black queers.