This book was beautiful and eye opening. Not only would it be great for young adults to read but also adults. I have recommended this one often as I think it has a lot to offer anyone who picks it up.

Wow, I loved this book so much.

I felt all the emotions when reading this. I cried at times, laughed at times, my heart raced at times. I was just so enveloped by this story. I haven't read anything like this before and I am so glad I did.

There are two things that are for sure:

1. I will not forget this book. Ever. I'll be thinking about it for a long time, and I have no problem with that.

2. I learned so many important things when reading this that I didn't know before. Which just makes me even happier that I read it.

This book is SO important and I highly recommend it to anyone and everyone. If you haven't read this yet, please do!

Thank you to Netgalley and the publishers for a free copy of this book in exchange for an honest review. All thoughts and opinions expressed in this review are my own. 

All Boys Aren't Blue is a YA memoir by activist George M. Johnson where he tells us stories about his life as he grew up. From coming home beat up as a child to finding a frat house that gave him brotherhood, Johnson takes us through his personal journey of ups and downs. It's one I think everyone should read.

What I loved most about this book is that it isn't a collection of stories from a boy who didn't have love and support from his family. Although I believe those are also important, these are stories from a boy who was loved by his family but still had struggles, showing that love and money can't stop someone from suffering. Johnson talks about the struggles of being queer, being black and being queer and black. I think he did a fabulous job telling his story. I think it's so important to show that these struggles can come at you even if you do have the support and love your family. Johnson was blessed, yet he struggled.

I absolutely can't recommend this book enough. I can't even think of anything bad to say about it. I smiled, I cried and I was captured for every minute of this book.

There are sensitive topics discussed in this book so if you're someone who needs trigger warnings here they are: sexual manipulation, teenage sex between minors with questionable consent.

This book is a bouquet of contradictions. It is both light and dark, illuminating and creates further questions, it is both home and a place unknown. So it is full of contradictions in the best possible way.
Reading Johnson's words, I feel like I now know more about the world around me and myself. I was touched by his bravery in sharing his story in such a raw and open way. This book will stay with me for a long, long time and I am so grateful I was able to read it.

This was easily one of my favorite books of the year. The author used beautiful, emotional, and thought provoking language to share his experiences growing up as a gay Black boy.

I will highly recommend this book to a variety of people from high school and up.

"I understand now that there is no such thing as 'a respectable negro' in the eyes of society, nor was I ever made to be one."

This book was so great that I bought a physical copy after reading it. I laughed at some points. I teared up at some points. I sighed because I related too much at some points. This book is so important, and I truly hope the youth who need to hear these words will find this book. (Also I knew Lincoln wasn't the hero he was written as, but I did not know he said all those things. History really lied to us.) I feel like anything I have to say pales in comparison to George's own words, so I'll include some parts that really stuck with me.

"To go years without smiling in pictures, rarely being questioned why, leaves me to wonder how many signs of trauma we miss or ignore in Black children."

"...trauma has a funny way of showing up in our lives during the moments when we least expect it. It can be an action that we write off as something else, when really it is the manifestation of a pain we had refused to deal with."

"Navigating in a space that questions your humanity isn't really living at all. It's existing. We all deserve more than just the ability to exist."

"No matter how it comes at you, the impact matters more than the intent."

"There is so much danger in not providing proper education about sex to kids, especially for those who are having sex outside of heteronormative boxes."

Unflinching, vulnerable, and so resilient, this memoir really touched my heart. I hope everyone gives this one a try, and practices compassion and open-mindedness. To hear in detail what not only a Black man goes through growing up, but a queer man as well - it's impressive that people are capable of such strength of character. Thank you to the author for being so willing to share your experience and soul, so that others may be helped in their journey of self-discovery!

“There were no books for me to read in order to understand what I was going through as a kid. There were no heroes or icons to look up to and emulate...” so grateful for this young adult memoir that should be in the hands of teens. We need so many more books that show these journeys, that show our kids how one person navigated what it means to simply be themselves, who were loved by their family and still had to come to terms with themselves and what it means to be fully seen and see themselves. One of the best books of the year #pernillerecommends

George Matthew Johnson’s pens a powerful YA memoir about coming to terms with his blackness and queerness growing up in New Jersey.

There aren't many memoirs written with a teen audience in mind, so I didn't quite know what to expect going into this book. It is important, though, to mention that this isn't just a memoir. As it says on the cover, Johnson calls this a memoir-manifesto. And it is most definitely both.

Johnson spends time telling their own story of growing up knowing they weren’t quite like all the other boys, but without the words to express how they really felt. This memoir doesn't shy away from the difficult parts of their life, which Johnson mentions at the beginning--some people think some of the subject matter might be too heavy for a teen or young adult, but that is the age they were when experiencing these things.

I was already hooked before I even finished the introduction. This paragraph really struck me:
"I want the words of my life story to be immortalized. I want to immortalize the narrative of joy and pain, this narrative of triumph and tragedy, this narrative of the Black queer experience that has been erased from the history books. An existence that has been here forever."

As much as this is a record of Johnson's life, it is also a guide to young queer Black boys. They speak directly to boys who are like them who might not have the support they need to flourish. They are there for the Black queer boys who have no one to turn to in their own lives, and they are vocal about their support.

Obviously, I am not the target audience of this book. But I can see how vital and how important this book will be to the young people to whom Johnson speaks. I hope that this books lands in the hands of those who need it most, because for those kids, this memoir-manifesto could be life-changing.

All Boys Aren’t Blue is a memoir-manifesto by journalist and LGBTPQIA+ activist George M. Johnson. They talk about their life from childhood to young adult and explore topics such as family, agency, and Black joy.

This is a powerful and, at times, heart wrenching book. It is thought provoking and deeply moving and is definitely something I’m going to continue thinking about for a long time.

This book will help so many people. It was crafted with such thought and care. There are many topics explored in this book that have the potential to be triggering, but Johnson talks about them all in their author’s note at the beginning of the book, so that you are prepared before starting.

They also bring up the fact that some of these things are seen as “too heavy” for teenagers, but that all of these heavy topics happened to them as a child, teenager and young adult. Teenagers, unfortunately, have to navigate some pretty awful things sometimes and Johnson wants those readers to have the space to be seen and heard in their pages.

Definitely go pick up a copy today, you won’t regret it!

This is an excellent memoir for teens exploring their identities, and it is novel because it actually features a LGBTQIAP+ positive, accepting family.

What an empowering and devastating memoir that presents Johnson's experiences in raw form. I wish I could make this required reading for everyone.

This awesome memoir manifesto is written as an ode of encouragement to those identifying as queer men of color. Such a candid, thought provoking read.

I enjoyed reading several aspects of this book! The pacing was wonderful, characters were well drawn, and the reading experience on the whole was delightful.

This was one of the most powerful books I read this year, and I'm thankful for it. I appreciate the frankness with which Johnson discusses his becoming, from the traumas he had to endure, to the beauties and joys that stick with him to this day. This is especially important given that non-POC young adults and teens are largely ignorant about what it means to move in the world as a queer black person. I loved Johnson's lyrical story-telling and his story makes you want to stop and savor the words.

This is a gorgeous, necessary book of essays which I know will mean so much to a particular group of students my library serves. I can't wait to get this book into their hands.

I can't express how good this book was. The writing is phenomenal. Not only is it a brave enterprise for the author, but it's a book that is crucial for anyone to read--and it's so representative of many of our fellow people in this world. From beginning to end, the concept of love is woven through its pages. I loved it, and this book should be on all library shelves.

George M. Johnson takes his readers through his experience of being black and queer and how that intersectionality has shaped his life. His story is important for many reasons. We like to talk about how books can be mirrors, windows, and sliding doors for readers. Each of this is part of the importance of Johnson's writing. Young adult readers need to see themselves reflected in literature, need access to understanding the experience of others, and need the opportunity to immerse themselves in a world outside of their own.

Johnson's writing is often raw and difficult to read- difficult because of the emotional overload I felt as a reader. His fear of coming out, even to family who were known to be accepting, was heartbreaking. His need to disguise his true self through most of his life to know is devastating. It is vital that people in our world read the experiences of others so that we can build better understanding and empathy.

This text was challenging for me as an adult- I spent a lot of time wondering how his experience may be a departure from what his target audience (YA readers) have experienced- meaning have things changed enough to make his experience seem like that of a distant past, or are we stuck in a cycle where his experience still mirrors the vast majority of black queer children/teens? I would like to believe things have changed, but fear that things are essentially the same.

I would recommend this book to mature young adults. There are some very serious and intense scenes that require a mature lens.

All Boys Aren't Blue is an insightful and honest discussion of the intersections between race, gender, and sexuality. This memoir told in essays are centered in the author's own experiences as he navigates his own self-evolving identity in our world as a black queer young man. The memoir is divided into three sections following the author's childhood, adolescence, and current adulthood as he wrestles his pain and joy through life. He informs his reader that is not self involved to write a memoir at a very young age (33 years old), but had to write one in order to temporarily fill the vacuum of representation for young queer boys of color and to live his own truth. The journey of Johnson's activism is full of highs and lows as he understands the labels placed upon him by himself and by society. His essays and personal experiences touches upon many tough topics such as toxic masculinity, sexual abuse, institutional violence, and the dual fear of being both black and queer when both of these identities are neither safe. Though the topics are serious they add depth and realness to the essays and strengthens his call to all of us to help fight injustices in our society. I really appreciated his stance on the process of coming out to be cyclic instead of being finite and the necessity for inclusive sexual education that will help erase the stigma of queer relationships and ultimately help save lives. This is an important memoir that is a window for many and a critical mirror for black queer individuals.