2024 Living Now Book Awards Bronze Medalist in Memoir – Female

"Rossi owns her punk rock-ness, queerness, and Jewishness . . . This blistering story never lets the reader let their guard down."
—BookLife Reviews, EDITOR'S PICK

"A wise, hardscrabble coming-of-age story about finding oneself in an unlikely locale."
—Kirkus Reviews

"The memoir is not only a coming-of-age story but also a commentary on the clash of cultures and the resilience to authentically be yourself no matter what, and this is perfectly clear in the confident, proud narrative voice that carries us through the tale."
—Readers' Favorite (5 STARS)

"I thought I'd heard everything until I read Rossi's memoir. It's a story of resilience, acceptance, food, love, chosen family and the chosen people. What more could you want?"
—Judy Gold, comedian, actress, author, and two-time Emmy winner

“Raised during and after the Holocaust, Rossi’s parents tried desperately to breed fear into their children—of outsiders, of losing touch with the Jewish community, of a demanding God—but Rossi was fearless and hungry for experience. Which explains, and doesn’t, why one day her parents dropped their rebellious lesbian daughter off among the Lubavitch Hasidim to ‘keep her safe’ in a dangerous drug-ridden area of New York City. Rossi was sixteen. The rest can be read as the funny, terrifying coming-of-age/coming-out of one intrepid soul, or as a vibrant portrait of 1980s New York, or as an underbelly view of Crown Heights, because Rossi does it all in this exhilarating, satisfying read.”
—Leah Lax, author of Uncovered

“When Rossi was sixteen her small-minded parents, terrified of her queerness, sent her to live with Lubavitchers in pre-gentrified Crown Heights, Brooklyn. Because she escaped with her humor and integrity intact, we have this fascinating memoir unveiling the interior life of this cult-like religious Jewish community. While the expected bullying and misogynistic elements are revealed in detail, we also see the misfit subculture of Chasidim. Rossi encountered the Lubavitcher queers, the dopers, the dealers, the thrill-seeking and free-thinking men and women living on the edges of this ultra-conformist society. Her ride is a fascinating one, not only to a lesbian life but also perhaps the more difficult path of challenging the anti-Black racism of both her parents and the religious Jews. A page-turner.”
—Sarah Schulman, author of Let the Record Show and Conflict Is Not Abuse

“Somehow, despite finding herself in tremendously challenging, oppressive, and at times dangerous situations, Rossi holds onto her strength, her rage, her humor, her joy, her neshama (soul) and her heart. . . . This wild ride of a memoir pays tribute to the human spirit. It is an amazing book; I couldn’t put it down.
—Lesléa Newman, author of A Letter to Harvey Milk and Heather Has Two Mommies

“The Punk-Rock Queen of the Jews: You have to read it to believe it. A rollercoaster ride of a not-so-good Jewish girl and her road to redemption. Get ready for jail time, cult busters, flying beef stew, and finally, a great original chef named Rossi.
—Tovah Feldshuh

“Chef Rossi’s intensely personal recollection of Yom Kippur services, September 26, 2001, offers me—the rabbi who led them—a new perspective on an already unforgettable event. Rossi is a very special storyteller. . . . Take my word about the book as someone in the book: READ the book.”—Rabbi Sharon Kleinbaum, Senior Rabbi, Congregation Beit Simchat Torah, world's largest LGBT synagogue