This was a fascinating memoir, one which focuses on an areas of recent history which is gaining much airtime of late. Mary was initially raised in Tennessee in what was deemed a traditional upbringing. He world came tumbling down however when he family split and her father, a preachers and well respected in the community, came out gay, during an era when homosexuality was still misunderstood and frequently frowned upon. The AIDS epidemic was at its peak and gossip, curtain twitching and judgement were rife. Ahorred by the situation Mary's mother packs up their family and crossed the US, destination California. This is her story told in an honest, heartfelt way. It is raw in parts, where we witness Mary's mother's personal struggles too. That Mary came out the other side, as balanced and as understanding as she seems to be is a testament to her strength of body and mind.

I felt like this seemed like a diary than a memoir. I think a better editor could have tightened it up a bit. It was hard to stay connected and care about the author when it went off on tangents and part of it seemed more like prose poetry.

I would have preferred this book to be a bit more evenly divided up when it came to chapters. Some of them ranged from 1 or 2 pages long to others over 30 pages long, which made it feel like I was reading this book for a while.

The majority of this book is based on Mary’s young life and how she grew up with a mother who had serious mental health issues, whilst struggling with poverty and her own disabilities. The development of Mary and how she overcame the challenges along with her brother and sister is an inspiring story!

I really enjoyed the journey of this book and took my time reading through to soak up the story. I was heartbroken and angry through certain parts of this book but ultimately inspired by everything the author achieved despite her upbringing so I’d definitely recommend reading this book.

A really interesting memoir Mary shares with us the moment her life completely changed.The journey her mother takes her on.Really well written very engaging a book I wil be recommending,#netgalley#booksgosocial

I don't think I can critique someone else's real life story, so I won't, but I think it's fair to say I enjoyed roughly half of this book. I struggled to remain engaged for the other half, particularly the final third of the book.

Writing wise I thought it was pretty good but a little bit choppy. Sometimes the paragraphs and chapters didn't flow overly well.

Also, I didn't read this in one sitting and I had a hard time keeping track of what year it was, how much time was passing and how old everyone was.

A riveting little story that kept my attention and my humor. Not too heavy, not too light, it's a good read for the holidays when you have some down time. The chapters flowed quickly into each other, although I wish they had been more cohesive and less divided in some places and shorter in others. Overall, I enjoyed it thoroughly.