Welcome to Litsy!

Although my coming out journey was nowhere similar to Koets‘ own struggle, I related to the specific emotions a little too much. Loved the way this book was formatted and how everything had a double meaning, right down to The Rib Joint itself. Both loving in secret and losing that person are some of the hardest things one will ever do, and I‘m grateful Koets was able to share her experience as openly as she did.

South Carolina writer Julia Koets won the Red Hen Press Nonfiction for this memoir told in essays. The main focus is a girl growing up gay in the south, with themes of the body and the landscape interwoven in various ways. There is intense exploration of female friendship, its permeable boundaries, and how it changes as we age.