Another memoir by another funny gay man--this is a subgenre I live for, apparently! I will boldly say that I feel like R. Eric Thomas is this generation's non-white David Sedaris. He's hysterically funny, gets himself in real pickles of his own doing, and drops pop culture references like they're going out of style. I was very impressed with the randomness of how he first went viral (a quick Facebook post about a photo of Obama which lead to national column in a major magazine.)
And one thing you rarely hear about in progressive, accepting circles is how important his religion is to him, and how at times he's had some difficulty reconciling it with being gay. That makes him stand out, to me, more than him being Black. Which certainly is also a topic, but not quite as unusual in this genre. And it's a topic that often makes me squinky, but Eric is so forthright and funny about it, that he makes it okay for those of us religiously-uncomfortable. In fact, the man he eventually marries is a preacher! Which is one of those stranger-than-fiction twists that is perfect here but would be super eye-roll-y in a novel.
And I know this is going to sound weird because they're not at all the same race, but Eric's tone really, really made me feel like this was the memoir that the character of Mateo from Superstore would write. The voice really, really sounds like Mateo, even though he's Filipino, not Black. That made me love it even more. Eric is sarcastic and snarky and occasionally bitchy but ultimately comes from a place of love. I have his second book on hold at the library and I can't wait for it.
I borrowed this digital audiobook from my local library via the Libby app.
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