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All Boys Aren't Blue

All Boys Aren't Blue

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  • Create Date：2021-05-30 10:51:17
  • Update Date：2025-09-07
  • Status：finish
  • Author：George M. Johnson
  • ISBN：0241515033
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Summary

This powerful YA memoir-manifesto follows journalist and LGBTQ+ activist George M。 Johnson as they explore their childhood， adolescence， and college years， growing up under the duality of being black and queer。 From memories of getting their teeth kicked out by bullies at age five to their loving relationship with their grandmother， to their first sexual experience， the stories wrestle with triumph and tragedy and cover topics such as gender identity， toxic masculinity， brotherhood， family， inequality， consent， and Black joy。

PRAISE FOR ALL BOYS AREN'T BLUE
An exuberant， unapologetic memoir infused with a deep but cleareyed love for its subjects。 The New York Times
An empowering read 。 。 。 All Boys Aren't Blue is an unflinching testimony that carves out space for Black queer kids to be seen。 Huffington Post
Powerful 。 。 。 All Boys Aren't Blue is a game changer。 Bitch Magazine
All Boys Aren't Blue is a balm and testimony to young readers as allies in the fight for equality。 Publishers Weekly

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Reviews

Jasper ，

"Everything is connected， and it often requires someone breaking a stigma or pattern in order to change the trajectory of a family。 Instead of giving up and drowning， I fought to stay afloat。" This is a book you can really tell was written with warmth， care， and love。 "Everything is connected， and it often requires someone breaking a stigma or pattern in order to change the trajectory of a family。 Instead of giving up and drowning， I fought to stay afloat。" This is a book you can really tell was written with warmth， care， and love。 。。。more

David ，

The open honest writing made this such an educational reading。 Black and queer made George's coming out doubly tough。 His detailed memory for his grade school all the way through college experiences are not romanticized。 He talks of traumatic instances that he can now reflect on differently。 He dispels the 'it gets better' mantra， but with a realistic outlook that NEEDS to be heard。Sex Ed in early teen years at school tends to be the dry science， and nothing about relationships or minority group The open honest writing made this such an educational reading。 Black and queer made George's coming out doubly tough。 His detailed memory for his grade school all the way through college experiences are not romanticized。 He talks of traumatic instances that he can now reflect on differently。 He dispels the 'it gets better' mantra， but with a realistic outlook that NEEDS to be heard。Sex Ed in early teen years at school tends to be the dry science， and nothing about relationships or minority group vulnerabilities。 There are some sexual encounters in this memoir that are slightly graphic， but necessary。 These are not included for reader-fantasy here， but rather for the realism George has growing into adulthood。I really liked how feminine-George can still play football。 He really shows anyone can do anything。 He doesn't preach about how to ignore what others think。 He actually shows that there can be name-calling indeed。 But he shows a great example of how to move through this， and how to value the friends that you trust。I listened to the author read his book。 He did a great job！ Easy to highly recommend this book。 。。。more

Sayde ，

An excellent read！ Johnson grew up in the same social era as me but with a vastly different background。 I wanted to read his book to learn about his experiences and perspectives and it did not disappoint。 I found his deeply personal stories uniquely and refreshingly relatable because they are still so relevant today and because Johnson has considered the many sides of his stories which he discusses with both knowledge and grace。 Johnson didn't wait to share these and I am so grateful for that。 H An excellent read！ Johnson grew up in the same social era as me but with a vastly different background。 I wanted to read his book to learn about his experiences and perspectives and it did not disappoint。 I found his deeply personal stories uniquely and refreshingly relatable because they are still so relevant today and because Johnson has considered the many sides of his stories which he discusses with both knowledge and grace。 Johnson didn't wait to share these and I am so grateful for that。 His book provides perspective， understanding， and proliferates one of the most positive messages of deeply universal love and family strength I have ever read。 。。。more

Nicole M ，

Love the mix of anecdotes and lessons。

Akiva ，

This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers。 To view it， click here。 Beautiful stories; kinda stilted， overly conversational writing。 Bet it would be fabulous as an audiobook。

Lauren ，

Fine。 Not my favorite style of writing。 Two powerful observations:1- white washed us history and it’s impact on poc children2- the importance of lgbtq sex education

Lukie ，

Carries important messages about growing up black and queer aimed at the young adult audience， but beneficial for older folk as well。 There are the hurdles of coming out and feeling safe in their body but， as life stories go， there is not much that is too upsetting except one incident they endure as a five year old。 I found it really refreshing and interesting that Johnson's family has other queer members and is unusually accepting and supportive。 Carries important messages about growing up black and queer aimed at the young adult audience， but beneficial for older folk as well。 There are the hurdles of coming out and feeling safe in their body but， as life stories go， there is not much that is too upsetting except one incident they endure as a five year old。 I found it really refreshing and interesting that Johnson's family has other queer members and is unusually accepting and supportive。 。。。more

Allison Jones ，

Words can't express how amazing this book is。 Words can't express how amazing this book is。 。。。more

Dom Hung ，

A very powerful and deep read on George M Johnson’s life journey and each of the lessons/moments faced as he grew up a queer black person！His message is really about learn from all I experienced and know it’ll be ok！！ I definitely appreciate that about the boom and definitely recommend to pick up

Anne Pauline ，

I’m out of words。 A powerful masterpiece that everyone should read。 rep: trans black author。tw: racism， sexual assault， rape， violence， blood， death， sickness （cancer）， transphobia， homophobia。

Katie Schwab ，

Such a fantastic and emotional memoir。

Gina ，

Great resource for those who work with young teens， this YA book minces no words about growing up queer and black。

Raul Bimenyimana ，

I think this book is best suited for two audiences。 Young Black queer individuals under the age of twenty three （I learnt that this book is classified as young adult memoir， a genre I did not know existed， and so this makes sense） and both non-Black and non-Queer individuals。 It's an informative， even instructive， book where the writer uses the experiences they've faced in a socio-political context to explore the history of racist， homophobic and transphobic oppression; their present-day repercu I think this book is best suited for two audiences。 Young Black queer individuals under the age of twenty three （I learnt that this book is classified as young adult memoir， a genre I did not know existed， and so this makes sense） and both non-Black and non-Queer individuals。 It's an informative， even instructive， book where the writer uses the experiences they've faced in a socio-political context to explore the history of racist， homophobic and transphobic oppression; their present-day repercussions; as well as the ways in which they can be remedied to create a better world。As a rule I don't read memoirs written by individuals under 45 （the number keeps going up the older I get） unless the writer was witness to a momentous event and whose account informs and enriches its history。 I don't think focusing on narrating traumatic incidents （warning for sexual abuse and violence） as is the case with a lot of memoirs， this one too， necessarily makes good writing。 Yet I can't ignore just how resourceful and even important this book is， or the flashes of pleasure I got from seeing a story similar to mine in some ways written。 I think it just comes down to having encountered most of the politics discussed here better articulated。 。。。more

Gabriel Wollenburg ，

It is very brave of George M。 Johnson to write a book wherein he backs the wrong former member of Destiny's Child。 It is very brave of George M。 Johnson to write a book wherein he backs the wrong former member of Destiny's Child。 。。。more

Isabella ，

I really enjoyed this memoir， where George M。 Johnson discusses his coming of age as a queer Black boy。 Johnson does not hold back as he explores seminal childhood moments， his family， his friends， and his entry into adulthood as a college student。 His writing is accessible， easy to read， and entertaining， which balances out a lot of the stories that he shares that address really heavy topics such as trauma， abuse， bullying， HIV， aging， sex， death， etc。 Johnson does a fantastic job of writing a I really enjoyed this memoir， where George M。 Johnson discusses his coming of age as a queer Black boy。 Johnson does not hold back as he explores seminal childhood moments， his family， his friends， and his entry into adulthood as a college student。 His writing is accessible， easy to read， and entertaining， which balances out a lot of the stories that he shares that address really heavy topics such as trauma， abuse， bullying， HIV， aging， sex， death， etc。 Johnson does a fantastic job of writing a book that both serves as a physical manifestation of growing into a place where he fully accepts and celebrates himself and also paves they way for other people who may belong to marginalized communities to do the same。 This is an illuminating read， and I would especially recommend it to any potential readers that are looking to read for social justice， white readers， or cis-het readers。 While it is fantastic to tackle reads like White Fragility: Why It’s So Hard for White People to Talk About Racism and the like， the memoir genre presents a context for social justice issues and delivers insight on them with a heavy dose of humanity。I found Johnson's relationship with his family members so loving: while every family member didn't always understand transgender identities or expressions of LGBTQIA+ personalities， every interaction seems to be grounded in love and respect。In telling his story， I do think that Johnson achieves his goal of providing a voice and a history that is not commonly seen in literature and， in doing so， creates a space and an understanding for readers that identify with him and his experiences。[SPOILER ALERT/TRIGGER WARNING BELOW}。。。。。。。。。。。。。This book does include a recounting of an abusive sexual encounter within the family， told in detail。 。。。more

Maria ，

I really liked that this was an author-narrated memoir。 He does a phenomenal job。 It was authentic and raw， and gave the reader an honest look at how difficult it was for the author to grow up black and queer。 I also adored his family， who loved him unconditionally and allowed him to be his genuine self。 I highly recommend this book。

Shakshi_ __ ，

Black Queer Men！！ Black Queer Men！！ Black Queer Men！！ Black Queer Men！！ Black Queer Men！！ Oops！！！ Sorry， but this is what I come across so many times in this book。。。Although there is frequent usage of one word that tells about one single community specifically but author do tell what everyone's problem that falls anywhere near that community。 ** Darling， if somebody out there wants to "treat" you better to love you ， just because you don't fill the norms ， somebody changes you from who you are， Black Queer Men！！ Black Queer Men！！ Black Queer Men！！ Black Queer Men！！ Black Queer Men！！ Oops！！！ Sorry， but this is what I come across so many times in this book。。。Although there is frequent usage of one word that tells about one single community specifically but author do tell what everyone's problem that falls anywhere near that community。 ** Darling， if somebody out there wants to "treat" you better to love you ， just because you don't fill the norms ， somebody changes you from who you are， can't see you as yourself in your light。。。。 then walk out of the relationship which is not meant to be。 Your individualness is what makes YOU as you。 ** -> This is what I got to learn highly from this book。All Boys Aren't Blue is a very poignant tale in a memoir form that tells about the individuality of a person from other and tells us what is a right decision in the right time。 As it's not necessary that any decision can be considered as right or wrong on the basis of presumptions， but situation and time matters， if a decision is correct for a time being and maybe it's not afterwards。 The books tells hypothetically says that the normal verse is what makes you normal not how others tell it to be normal。 This book quietly tells us all those things that everyone wants to listen， not just as someone from some community but as a human。 *TBH， this is the most logical and practical book I have read till now*This book tells about the various situations and dilemma that one come across in life most probably if they are either black or Queer。 The typical stigma that world see to anyone who don't follow the society "normal" rules or is anyway lacking down in it is considered as Queer is what we can see in this book。 There are so many twist and turns in author's life that let him question the world about his existence in their eyes。。。about how they saw them。。。 but the most important of them all is why they have the right to see and judge his mannerism？？ Thankfully， they parented with my best interest in mind， instead of their potential embarrassment of raising a child like me。 。 This tells how family support can overcome any fear in the mind of a child and how much necessary is it for the families to understand that although their child is somewhat "different" from the typical standards set by the society but that doesn't mean he/she is completely a "Queer" who needs to be abandoned or "treated"。 There is only way my family knows how to raise a child， and that is by love。。 Coming across various situations in the life of author as narrated by him， shows that every black household possess the same mentality and way irrespective of their caste，race， origin or nationality， that one can co-relate with him if he/she is a black。 Talking about plot， character development etc is pointless as this is a memoir not a tale。 Whereas Trigger Warnings are also not there。 Recommended。 。。。more

Chloe Chesla ，

I think this is an excellent story， with an excellent perspective。

Cait ，

Trigger Warnings: Assumed gender identity discussion， fighting and teeth trauma， injuries， police brutality， surgery of parent， discussion of trauma and drowning， hospital stay of parent， transphobia， death of loved ones， hiv， discussion of cancer and death， childhood molestation from a relative and incest， murder of a cousin， mention of 9/11， underage drinking， depression， loss of virginity， sexual activity

Hillary Marshall ，

This book was received as part of our new #RainbowLibrary。 Thank you @GLSEN for the impressive grant and addition to our WHS Library collection！ As a white， heterosexual， privileged woman， I am trying to offer my patrons choice and understand choices to suggest。 I started this book which is a memoir and it felt a bit preachy。 However， stick with it， once the author let's down his guard a little bit further into the book， you see an authentic picture of George coming of age and into his own skin This book was received as part of our new #RainbowLibrary。 Thank you @GLSEN for the impressive grant and addition to our WHS Library collection！ As a white， heterosexual， privileged woman， I am trying to offer my patrons choice and understand choices to suggest。 I started this book which is a memoir and it felt a bit preachy。 However， stick with it， once the author let's down his guard a little bit further into the book， you see an authentic picture of George coming of age and into his own skin of who he truly is。 And， near the end of the book， he shows his raw， broken， exposed romantic heart but so that other queer black youth will have a place to start。 The end of the book was full of promise and hope and sound advice。 A must for every school library！ Well done George 。。。 I can't even imagine how painful and powerful this book felt to write！ 。。。more

Filipa ，

I can't imagine the courage it must take to be this transparent with the world。A must read for everyone！ If you're Queer and/or Black， that you may find here solace in knowing you're not alone and that your feelings and experiences are as much as valid as any other individual in this world。There were ideas shared throughout these pages that really made me reflect。。。On how our society never gives newborn babies a change to decide for themselves who they shall become and discover what things come I can't imagine the courage it must take to be this transparent with the world。A must read for everyone！ If you're Queer and/or Black， that you may find here solace in knowing you're not alone and that your feelings and experiences are as much as valid as any other individual in this world。There were ideas shared throughout these pages that really made me reflect。。。On how our society never gives newborn babies a change to decide for themselves who they shall become and discover what things come naturally to them， by assigning them a gender based on their genitalia before they are even born。 On how we box people into being certain ways because of how society dictates they should be behaving。 How queerness and blackness aren't given a fair chance to intersect and how vital is it that they must， for the sake of people safely being themselves。In a world where I see positive change every single day， there is still so much work to be done for Black people and for the LGBTQIAP+ community。 I think books like All Boys Aren't Blue are here to tip the balance on an overly biased world towards whiteness， gender conformity and heterosexuality。 。。。more

Vladimir De Castro ，

"I’m always talking about how this queer community has the chance to be the blueprint。 We get to set the stage for the next generation that will come up behind us。 We don’t have to be so easily accepting of the norms we were forced to follow。 We get to try them out and if they don’t work， create something new。"> "I’m always talking about how this queer community has the chance to be the blueprint。 We get to set the stage for the next generation that will come up behind us。 We don’t have to be so easily accepting of the norms we were forced to follow。 We get to try them out and if they don’t work， create something new。"> 。。。more

Rachel Mcclure ，

I’m so glad I read this because I do think it’s an important story to tell。 I personally didn’t love the writing style - it was a lot of telling vs showing。 Parts felt like a college essay。 The letters/essay/narrative mix didn’t work for me either， but again， personal preference。 It was really amazing to hear how supportive the main character’s family was - not something you hear often， unfortunately。 I love that the author read aloud the audiobook version。

Kristīne Vītola ，

2。5

Michele ，

This coming of age story is sure to heal some readers and inform others。 Listening to it on audio， I felt like he was whining the entire time？ Not about his life， just the general inflection in his voice while reading。 For that reason I say not excellent on audio but I probably would have liked it better in print。

Chelsea ，

TW: homophobia， racism， anti blackness， sexual assault ， molestation， death of loved ones， use of F and N slurs and heavy marijuana use。 I’m not going to rate this book as it’s someone’s life but this was a great read this is really informative about someone who is oppressed and dealt with some shit things in there life。 I highly recommend this book。

TimInCalifornia ，

I hope this memoir is discovered by the many， many young people who are surely out there trying to make sense of their feelings， of themselves， of why they don’t seem to fit society’s expectations。 I hope parents of femme boys and tomboys find this book as well and it helps them help their children have confidence in being themselves。 George M。 Johnson writes honestly about his life growing up as a queer black boy who’s effeminate ways were obvious even from a young age。 The tension between the I hope this memoir is discovered by the many， many young people who are surely out there trying to make sense of their feelings， of themselves， of why they don’t seem to fit society’s expectations。 I hope parents of femme boys and tomboys find this book as well and it helps them help their children have confidence in being themselves。 George M。 Johnson writes honestly about his life growing up as a queer black boy who’s effeminate ways were obvious even from a young age。 The tension between the desire to express his true love （like double-dutch jump-roping） with the society’s expectations of boys， especially black boys （get on the football field） is eloquently expressed by the adult Johnson。 Every chapter， every episode related by Johnson is told with love and compassion for the boy he was and the man he grew into。 That compassion extends to those he encountered throughout his life， even those who did not understand him and who objectively caused him harm。 Like Johnson， I grew up in a close-knit， loving family and like Johnson， that protected me from much as a child， even when my family did not understand or agree with my self-expression。 But that love couldn’t protect me from everything。 Many children experience events uncomfortable to them but they don’t have the language to talk about what made them uncomfortable and why。 Instead they carry those memories and feelings with them， sometimes getting sorted out in the future， sometimes not。 The events don’t even have to be as serious as sexual assault。 In writing this， Johnson writes directly to those children and their inner world of questions， feelings， confusion – things they aren’t sharing with family and friend， no matter how caring and kind those family and friend may be。 Nonetheless， it was a joy to be reminded of my childhood through Johnson’s telling of his。Would love to read a part two memoir by this author in another 20 years。 。。。more

Mere ，

George M。 Johnson's All Boy's Aren't Blue is an emotional memoir full of information and observations that queer teens need to hear。Johnson's memoir follows his life as a queer black teen。 It starts with his childhood and continues into his years in college。 Throughout his descriptions of these points in his life and the people that surrounded him， he talks a lot about what is like to be a black， queer man。lThis book brought me to tears at many points。 Many of Johnson's experiences and his thoug George M。 Johnson's All Boy's Aren't Blue is an emotional memoir full of information and observations that queer teens need to hear。Johnson's memoir follows his life as a queer black teen。 It starts with his childhood and continues into his years in college。 Throughout his descriptions of these points in his life and the people that surrounded him， he talks a lot about what is like to be a black， queer man。lThis book brought me to tears at many points。 Many of Johnson's experiences and his thoughts resonated with me。 Others were so well described and portrayed that I could not help but become emotional。The themes this book discusses are also incredibly important。 Systemic racism and heterosexism are addressed a lot， but it also touches on other aspects of life and these systems of oppression。 For instance， it addresses sexual assault， education， healthcare， death， and transphobia。 The book does a good job touching on these topics， and it left me with a lot of different things to think about。When I make book recommendations， I normally just talk about who I think would like the book。 This book is different。 There are a lot of people that need to read this book， not just people that would like it。 The experiences that Johnson describes are incredibly important and prevalent in lives of queer teens， particularly queer teens of color。 He offers a lot of wisdom that could help them thrive。 If you are a queer teen （and definitely if you are a queer teen of color）， you need to read this book。 。。。more

Melissa ，

I loved this book。 Such and eye-opening story。

Caitlyn ，

I don't think I can rate this fairly？The content was def a 5 star and super necessary， however， I really didn't love the writing。 I felt like they were telling us everything that we needed to glean from the story， rather than letting us come to these conclusions on our own。 I also don't want to give marginalized authors low ratings bc they cannot afford it the way that white authors can <3In short， I really recommend this book， esp if you are not black or queer。 I don't think I can rate this fairly？The content was def a 5 star and super necessary， however， I really didn't love the writing。 I felt like they were telling us everything that we needed to glean from the story， rather than letting us come to these conclusions on our own。 I also don't want to give marginalized authors low ratings bc they cannot afford it the way that white authors can <3In short， I really recommend this book， esp if you are not black or queer。 。。。more

Reference

google book https://www.google.com/search?tbm=bks&q=All Boys Aren't Blue

hathitrust digital library https://babel.hathitrust.org/cgi/ls?q1=All Boys Aren't Blue&field1=ocr&a=srchls&ft=ft&lmt=ft

The British Library https://bll01.primo.exlibrisgroup.com/discovery/search?query=any,contains,All Boys Aren't Blue&tab=LibraryCatalog&search_scope=Not_BL_Suppress&vid=44BL_INST:BLL01&lang=en&offset=0