I Have Always Been Me

Book excerpt: A powerful memoir of independence, releasing the past, and living the dream by award-winning trans advocate Precious Brady-Davis. Precious Brady-Davis remembers the sense of being singular and grappling with "otherness." Born into traumatic circumstances, Davis was brought up in the Omaha foster care system and the Pentecostal faith. As a biracial, gender-nonconforming kid, she felt displaced. Yet she realized by coming into her identity that she had a purpose all along. In I Have Always Been Me, Brady-Davis reflects on a childhood of neglect, instability, and abandonment. She reveals her determination to dream through it and shares her profound journey as a trans woman now fully actualized, absolutely confident, and precious. She speaks to anyone who has ever tried to find their place in this world and imparts the wisdom that comes with surmounting odds and celebrating on the other side. A memoir, a love story, and an outreach for the marginalized, Precious's sojourn is a song of self-reliance and pride and an invitation to join in the chorus.