Tomorrow Will Be Different: Love, Loss, and the Fight for Trans Equality, by Sarah McBride. Crown Archetype, 2018

Sarah McBride is the woman who was the first trans person to speak at a national political convention in 2016. She was only 26 at the time, but had lived a life packed with more events than many people get in a long life time.

Obsessed with politics since she was a child, she was student body president in college as well as being head of the student newspaper. She had worked on campaigns for local politicians already at this time. When she came out, she was lucky; her family was supportive (although shocked, and grieved the loss of their son for a while before realizing she was still the same person), the student body was supportive, and the politicians she knew were supportive. While it was by no means easy, she managed to avoid a lot of the problems some other trans people suffer- violence, loss of friends or family. And she is very aware of how lucky she is!

As soon as she was out of college, she began working in politics. There she met Andy Cray, a trans man who also worked in politics. They fell in love, and planned to make a life together. Then he was diagnosed with a fast moving cancer. After enduring grueling treatments, he died just four days after they were married.

McBride’s story is both inspiring and heart breaking. While this is her personal story, there is much of politics and trans issues in here, as well as basic LGBTQ rights. It’s a very informative book as to what LGBTQ people have to go through, how much they have gained legally and how far there is to go to achieve full equality. The book is well written- the author does a lot of writing professionally- and easy to read- the legal and political parts blend seamlessly with her personal life and do not bog the story down. I hope she has a long and happy life from here on out- one thing I’m sure of is that it will be a busy life!

Patriot Number One, by Lauren Hilgers. Crown, 2018

The author spent six years in China, and had been back in America two years when a contact from her expatriate time phoned her suddenly, saying he would see her soon in New York. This was totally unexpected, although she knew that Zhuang Liehong and his wife, Little Yan, were hoping to escape from China and seek political asylum in the United States. Zhuang was a political activist, seeking to reform the local system in Wukan, the village where he lived. Corruption was rife, and he wanted justice for his fellow villagers.

Escape was amazingly easy- they managed to get visas to take a tour of some US cities, under the auspices of a tour guide. The hang up was that they had to leave their infant son behind, to make it look like they were coming back. But they hoped to get asylum right away and be able to send for him. They left him with family.

New life in the US was not so easy, though. Zhuang did not speak any English, and what English Little Yan knew was rusty. Hilgers went to where she had her laundry done; the woman there gave her some contacts and hints. Soon enough, the couple found that being granted asylum was neither easy nor fast. Without asylum and green cards, they cannot get above-board jobs, so making a living is difficult. Plus, at first Zhuang insists that Little Yan must work at the same place he does, so he can keep an eye on her. And when he gets over that, he goes back to political activism, which eats up a lot of his time. This story alternates with backstory, telling us how and why Zhuang became a man the government of China wanted to keep an eye on.

There are some many people that Zhuang and Little Yan interacted with that you practically need a cast of characters. The story can be confusing at times; non-fiction is rarely as smooth and even as novels are. I found the story fascinating; those of us born in the US can barely grasp what difficulties immigrants face when they come here, particularly ones seeking political asylum. Zhuang and Little Yan were lucky because they knew someone in New York, an American who could speak their language, who was willing to devote time to helping them. I recommend this book a lot; it’s highly illuminating of problems both here and in China. Four and a half stars.

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