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yvo_about_books's review against another edition
4.5
“All I can say is speak up; ask questions. Explain your concerns. It's the first step in feeling empowered to push forward with your own agenda. There is no reason to stifle yourself! Because as a wise man once told me: the best moments are the ones where you're you.”
I needed a memoir that explores queerness for the POPSUGAR challenge, and my mind immediately went to Naturally Tan. I enjoyed watching Tan France in the shows Queer Eye and Next In Fashion, and there is just something about his personality that made me want to know more. And I have to say that this memoir ended up being a huge success for me. What I loved about it is just how well Tan's voice shines through in the text, and it shows that Naturally Tan is all Tan and not a ghost writer. I could hear his voice as I read this memoir, and I can imagine the audio version being fantastic with him narrating the story. There are a lot of different topics and the chapters often jump between different moments in his life, but I personally didn't mind as they were mostly chronological. More serious elements including racism, xenophobia, homophobia, outing and suicidal thoughts are mentioned along the way, but there are also plenty of lighter moments to give this memoir balance. The writing style itself is really engaging, and it really helped me speed through this book. Definitely a great option if you like his personality and want to know more about his life!
Graphic: Body shaming, Bullying, Cursing, Hate crime, Homophobia, Racial slurs, Racism, Suicidal thoughts, Violence, Xenophobia, Islamophobia, Religious bigotry, and Outing
nrogers_1030's review against another edition
4.0
Graphic: Bullying, Racial slurs, and Racism
Moderate: Cursing
Minor: Death of parent, Outing, and Alcohol
ekmook's review against another edition
3.25
Moderate: Bullying, Homophobia, Racial slurs, Racism, Suicidal thoughts, Xenophobia, and Islamophobia
leahlovesloslibros's review against another edition
5.0
I listened to the audio book, which is narrated by Tan himself, and I really loved it. I typically try to find memoirs that are read by the author, as I find the experience of listening to them tell their own story to be more personal than hearing it told by someone else. Hearing Tan recall childhood memories, especially painful ones such as being bullied for being brown (his word), are so powerful and heart-wrenching. Coming out was also something that was difficult for him, as there were certain cultural expectations placed on him by his traditional Muslim Pakistani family and culture.
Listening to Tan tell the story of starting and running his own businesses, as well as meeting his husband and the progression of their relationship, was both interesting and inspiring. Among his own story, Tan would insert advice on career, love, and just being authentically you. I really enjoyed that this book was not necessarily told completely in chronological order; rather, it was broken up by topics. Sometimes reading memoirs that are told chronologically gets a little dry, in my opinion. This book was told loosely in chronological order, but each chapter read as its own section, which made it almost like short stories. Personally, I love reading memoirs told in this way, so that was a big win for me.
I love Queer Eye, and I absolutely plan to read the book written by the Fab Five as well, but hearing Tan's story individually with bits of the show sprinkled in here and there was such a wonderful way to start my Pride Month 2021 reading.
Graphic: Racism
Moderate: Bullying, Cursing, Homophobia, Racial slurs, and Xenophobia
Minor: Suicidal thoughts
smithy361's review against another edition
Moderate: Bullying, Cursing, Homophobia, Racial slurs, and Racism
shelbyjo's review against another edition
3.75
Graphic: Bullying, Racial slurs, Racism, Suicidal thoughts, and Xenophobia