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I was blessed to receive an advance review copy of this book, an extraordinary biography of Black trans revolutionary Marsha P. Johnson is exactly rhetorical book this world needs right now, and Tourmaline delivered exactly that with such deeply researched, profound and loving insight and care. I learned so much more about Marsha P. Johnson than I ever knew, while also receiving a layer of even deeper insight into why Marsha was cherished by so many throughout her life and why she resonates so powerfully in the decades since her death among people - like myself - who never knew her and yet always felt like we have.

The writing here is elegant. The story is at times whimsical and funny, and also heartbreaking and enraging, but always honest and humane. The book is wonderfully organized into chapters that illuminate some aspect of Marsha’s life from her youth and struggles in New York, to her artistry, activism, and abundance as aesthetic.

I can’t overstate how much I love this book. If I could gift it to every person out there wondering how we are to hold space to pursue justice and freedom acknowledging our rage and the need to agitate for the world we all deserve, and at the same time not lose site of joy as revolution, I would. I hope everyone will read this book and be transformed again and again for the better by Marsha’s enduring spirit.

And to whoever designed the cover, you did a wonderful job. It is gorgeous and just made me smile and encouraged me with its cheerful power every single time I saw it, and whenever people saw me reading the book they gravitated to me. The cover is magic and it should be framed.

Thank you, Tourmaline and Tiny Reparations for this incredible book. You have done Marsha, all Black trans and queer people, and biography as a genre extremely proud.