If Aphrodite chills at home in Cyprus for most of the year, then Fez must be the goddess’s playground

Janet Mock's honest and sometimes searing journey is a rare and important look into la vida liminal, one that she manages to negotiate remarkably well, with grace, humor, and fierce grit. Mock doesn't only redefine what realness means to her, but challenges us to rethink our own perceptions of gender and sexuality, feminism and sisterhood, making this book a transcendent piece of American literature.

To me, travel is more valuable than any stupid piece of bling money can buy

Nobody, she felt, understood her-not her mother, not her father, not her sister or brother, none of the girls or boys at school, nadie - except her man.

Lately, Mami’s eyes have been so dark, I don’t like looking into them because I’m afraid I’ll fall in.

Are Latino-Americans white? Black? Other? Illegal aliens from Mars? Or are we the very face of America?

Support and encouragement are found in the most unlikely places.