As she recounts the journey from the blissful non-committance of her “straight” origins, to falling in love, to her years spent (shockingly) alone, Annie Krabbenschmidt’s debut book is both wickedly funny and heartbreaking. More autotheory than memoir, Fred deconstructs the institution of “womanhood,” defying gender and genre.

Krabbenschmidt charts their adolescence through a constellation of their coded interactions with 2000s media—including The Notebook, Twilight, and, of course, Mean Girls—and is eventually resigned to undergo their inevitable arrival at true queerness. “Do I get no say?” a teenaged Krabbenschmidt screams into their godless void, only to be met by a challenge to embrace the unknown and the possibility of love, acceptance, and bold self-actualization. 

Fred carves lasting grooves of ache and comedic introspection. Wielding her Marin-County-bred compulsory social grace, Krabbenschmidt invites us to be a part of her “coming out” story, though the road is far from unidirectional. This book is a lesson in accepting comfort, love, and desire, and freeing yourself of the ties that bind from both sides.