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A moving and empowering memoir about the power of passionate individuals, the fight for trans and LGBTQ+ equality, and McBride’s journey to coming out as transgender, finding love, and solidifying her purpose in the world.

Tomorrow Will Be Different is a very unique memoir - quite heavy on politics and definitely not a tell-all. These are not negatives, though. It’s an essential, diverse, inclusive, and real look at being trans in America and the fight for LGBTQ+ equality. Sarah actively chooses not to share some of the more personal aspects of her transition, and she speaks frankly about her journey of coming out. She reminds readers that a trans person’s story does not need to be one riddled with trauma and drama to be valid. Sarah finds love - however briefly - and she shares that experience, as well. If you’re into the behind-the-scenes of policymaking, educating yourself on social equity, and hearing a unique perspective of the LGBTQ+ community, I think you’ll get a lot out of this fascinating and moving memoir.

It’s rare that I give a book five stars, but this book deserves every one. Sarah McBride has written a seminal text about human rights and the human experience. As a white, socioeconomically privileged person, Sarah does not speak for all trans people, but she is deeply aware of the privilege that has enabled her to get to where she is today, and repeatedly acknowledges that the experiences of trans people of color and other disadvantaged groups are markedly different than hers, using her voice and platform to educate as much as share her personal experience as a transgender woman.

I cried throughout the book, alternately from happiness, sadness, anger, and feeling deeply moved by the open, accepting, and loving reception Sarah got from some of the people she came out to. I am cisgender, but I am blessed and fortunate to have some amazing trans people in my life who have been very open about their experiences as trans people and the discrimination they face every day, but I learned a ton from this book. The trans people in my life were already far into their transitions when I met them, so I have never thought of them as anything but their true genders. After reading this book, I now know how to be a better cis person when someone who hasn’t transitioned yet chooses to come out to me.

This is going to be one of the most important books of 2018, and one of the most important books you will ever read, whether you are trans, cis, straight, or queer. I have so much respect for Sarah and the amazing way she is changing the world. May we all have the freedom, acceptance, and bravery to live our truth the way Sarah does every day. Read this book. It might just change your life. I know it changed mine.

Sarah McBride weaves together her personal and political story in this compelling memoir. She’s now a state Senator for Delaware (the book ends before her historic run and win), and I’m excited to see where her career takes her.

"I know that it can feel like we’re almost lost as a country. But we must never forget that even with all of the hate and all of the challenges, no matter who is president, we can continue to change our world for the better. We’ve done it before and we can do it again. It’s the change that’s allowed a community that was once ignored and later mocked to now stand on the cusp of our chapter in history. It’s the change that’s taken a movement from Stonewall to the steps of the Supreme Court and brought marriage equality to every state in the land. It’s the change that has allowed more families and friends, coworkers and classmates, to welcome an LGBTQ loved one with broad smiles and open arms."

Sarah McBride has come through tragedy and hardship to fight for trans equality. A great book for anyone looking to get into trans activism, as it addresses a lot of questions and concerns people may have. The appendices include further reading and research for people looking to take the next step toward equality. An inspiring book.

I love memoirs and this is one of the best. Sarah is the inspiration and hope so many of us need in this world. I knew a little about her before reading this (first openly trans member of congress) but did not realize how much she has done to be a role model and increase LGTBQ+ rights in this country.

Sarah is so incredibly vulnerable in writing this book and I feel so honored to have heard her story. If you are looking for a book that will help you on your allyship journey and inspire you to keep fighting the good fight, this is it. What a great way to kick off 2025 reading!

An amazing story of bravery and resilience. Sarah’s leadership is inspiring and she is a role model for trans kids.

The best way I can describe [being transgender] for myself [...] is a constant feeling of homesickness. An unwavering ache in the pit of my stomach that only goes away when I can be seen and affirmed in the gender I've always felt myself to be. And unlike homesickness with location, which eventually diminishes as you get used to the new home, this homesickness only grows with time and separation.

This was such an interesting book. I'm going to come across as such a nerd, but... the legislative details were fascinating! To give you the context, we still don't have marriage equality in my county and don't even ask what transgender people have to go through to have their identity seen as valid. But the discussions are very much present, most of the population supports marriage equality, but not enough to make it political priority and so politicians just ignore the issue altogether (and when they are not ignoring it, they are equating us to pedophiles and zoophiles and god knows what else). So it was nice to see some of the parallels here and other places where our paths differ. Toward the end, I was a little sorry that it didn't contain more of the primary material, because I would be interested in more of specific information about some of the laws (but that's not what this book is, so it's perfectly fine...).

Each of us has a deep and profound desire to be seen, to be acknowledged, and to be respected in our totality. There is a unique kind of pain in being unseen. It's a pain that cuts deep by diminishing and disempowering, and whether done intentionally or unintentionally, it's an experience that leaves real scars.

Then there are of course the personal parts and I think we all agree that those places were powerful. Really, it made me sob. For several reasons but one of the main ones being how young she was when it all happened to them. When she was my age, she became a widow... it's hard to wrap my head around the fact. Life is sometimes so unfair.

Having certain privileges does not mean that your life is easy or that you do not face challenges. It just means that you don't experience specific kinds of obstacles or barriers faced by someone with a different identity or background. And our empathy should require us to acknowledge the plight of others in both its similarities to ours and in its differences.

I also realised that it's hard for me to read books written by politicians. There is no nuance when she talks about some of her colleagues. It kind of reads like a campaign in places... now, I'm not saying this is inherently wrong, but being an academic, it bothers me. Sometimes the tone of the book was just rubbing me the wrong way.
That said, it's still pretty great. The audio is good too, the Joe Biden introduction was strange and the narration was even worse, but the rest of the book is narrated by Sarah herself and I quite liked it. You can tell she isn't a professional narrator and she has a no-nonsense approach, both of which I quite liked for its honesty.

As I said to that state representative in Delaware who had admonished us for moving the trans equality bill too quickly, each time we ask anyone - whether they are transgender, Black, an immigrant, Muslim, Native American, gay, or a woman - to sit by and let an extended conversation take place about whether they deserve to be respected and affirmed in who they are, we are asking people to watch their own life pass by without dignity or fairness. That is too much to ask of anyone.

I would recommend you this book if you are interested in US politics, especially considering trans rights and lgbtq+ rights in general. And if you liked [b:The Fault in Our Stars|11870085|The Fault in Our Stars|John Green|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1660273739l/11870085._SX50_.jpg|16827462] (or some similar book) as a teen, before realising how unrealistic it all was. It is a heart-wrenching book targeted (I would say) more toward the cis audience than trans one, because it takes time to explain some of the really basic terms. It wasn't quite "for me", but it was still mostly great and enjoyable. I'm glad I finally got to it!

BRed at Radical Reading: https://www.goodreads.com/topic/show/22320760-buddy-read-october-november-auto-biography-memoir