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Love That Story
- Observations from a Gorgeously Queer Life
- Narrated by: Jonathan Van Ness
- Length: 5 hrs and 44 mins
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Publisher's Summary
The Emmy-nominated host of Netflix’s Queer Eye follows up his New York Times-bestselling memoir, Over The Top, with this collection of thought-provoking essays on grief and healing, cannabis reform, LGBTQIA+ rights, imposter syndrome, personal style, the HIV safety net, and of, course, how to make your hairdresser love you.
In his New York Times-bestselling memoir Over the Top, Jonathan van Ness showed readers how the incredibly difficult moments from his life (surviving sexual abuse and addiction, being diagnosed with HIV) have existed alongside great joy and positivity (landing a breakout role on Netflix’s Queer Eye, becoming an amateur figure skater and professional standup comedian, doting on his five cats).
If Jonathan learned anything from the painful life experiences, it’s that in order to thrive, he needed to push past the shame and fear of being his true self, which meant getting comfortable with being uncomfortable. In this candid and curious essay collection, he takes a thoughtful, in-depth look at today’s hot-button issues, viewed through the lens of his personal experience. From the evolution of his signature style to an investigative report on the queer history of his hometown, Jonathan reflects on his life and how he has learned to embrace change—doing the work to challenge internalized beliefs, finding compassion and confidence, and learning more about what makes us all so messy and gorgeous.
Balancing the dark and the light, the serious and the madcap, these essays allow us to examine our individual assumptions, expand our horizons, and give ourselves permission to be the flawed and fabulous humans we are.
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What listeners say about Love That Story
Average Customer RatingsReviews - Please select the tabs below to change the source of reviews.
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- Jamieson Wolf
- 2022-11-18
Amazing!
What a beautiful book! It was full of heart, humour and truth and I learned something along the way. I resonated with this book so much. One of my favourite books of the year!
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- Shawn
- 2023-09-09
Read it
Jonathan is honest and inspirational . His story telling abilities are excellent. Nuff said. The end
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- Candace Hart
- 2022-04-27
Authentically Honest
JVN discusses uncomfortable topics that need more awareness while sharing his own truth. Thoroughly enjoyed this book.
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1 person found this helpful
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- alex
- 2022-10-10
Important Read but not for those with White Fragility.
JVN does an amazing job harnessing the affects of capitalism and deeply rootes racism in their book. As a BIPOC myself, I believe that it is the responsibility of euro heritage descendants to really look at themselves and understand their role in colonization. Its not about "not being proud of your heritage" but looking at how your heritage has caused harm on another races existence. If you're solely taking the stance of extremist then there is no hope for you because JVN does the work and sets the standard for what it takes to accept the responsibility of a colonizer in North American. JVN slays and continues to make waves in their generation.
Love JVN's work and their podcasts. This book is highly recommended and delves into all facets of what is wrong with the colonial experience in America.
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- SoozeBag
- 2023-02-13
A meaningful and thoughtful book with a sprinkle of humour.
Intelligent, thoughtful discussions about important issues. Jonathan uses humour to to help swallow some big issues and give perspectives the reader may not have considered before. Time spent listening to this book was well worth it!
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- Jewls
- 2022-05-16
Salve for my heart
I cackled, I snorted , I wept. Thankyou ❤️ i first read the book and then listened because I just knew the audio would add extra joy and depth. It was a whole experience and I loved it
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- Amazon Customer
- 2023-11-11
Very American
I love JVN and read his last book and enjoyed very much but this time. It was more than an update. As it was a collection of essays teaching readers about how the American system was made and how it benefited their privileged family and self. Which for someone from another country kind of got tired of hearing. Although very important and it puts things into perspective since the United States of America is very much on blast.
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- Anonymous User
- 2022-04-13
Please she/he/they, can I have some more?
I can't wait for the JVN book. I finished this within two days. So many moving, real parts.
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1 person found this helpful
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- Amazon Customer
- 2023-03-07
Insightful, present and real.
This is a brilliant look into issues facing many people today. Funny and engaging while covering some heavy hitting topics. Including but not limited to, exploring the self, family, identity and cultural shifts. Delve into the history and complexity of our communities! This is a sparkling JVN work! I would gladly have kept listening for another 6 hours!
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- Morrie
- 2023-02-20
Colourful, Funny, inspiring and unforgettable
This was a beautiful story from a beautiful person.
Living your inner truth, being your authentic self, embarking on the lifelong journey of self recognition and discovery, understanding and celebrating you, your gender and sexual identities…… none of these things are easy, it takes courage, hope and conviction to take even the first faltering step. JVN tells their story in a colourful, humorous way revealing everything including the mistakes, the pain and ultimately the joy that he is today.
Gender is a social construct- how wonderful it would be if pronouns were not a thing and we could all just ‘be’ !
Xoxo
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