If you’re looking to read more queer memoirs by authors hailing from outside the US or UK, I can definitely recommend this one. It’s a bit of a challenging read in terms of structure, but once you get used to it you’ll be swept away by Gzar’s story.

During the US Occupation of Iraq, Gzar was a student at the University of Baghdad. There, he had a whirlwind romance with a Black US soldier, an affair which was a threat to both of their lives. Once Morise returns to the US, Gzar is kidnapped for his sexuality. Gzar tells this story in hindsight, having moved to Seattle in an attempt to reunite with Morise. He gets really creative with the telling of his story, often recounting horrific homophobic episodes in Iraq to inanimate objects such as a shoe or his own nose. His story is augmented by line drawings (Gzar is an illustrator as well as author) which are in turn funny and disturbing.

Even though the brutal homophobia of Iraq is behind him, Gzar faces new challenges in Trump’s America. Enjoyable afternoons at a museum are marred by racist remarks casually thrown out by security guards. He also has to confront racism in dating, with white men only interested in fetishizing his brown skin.

A difficult read that is worth persevering with to hear Gzar’s story.