We met U.S. author Sawyer Cole a few years ago on Instagram and were immediately struck by their kindness, enthusiasm, and ability to talk about difficult issues movingly and with compassion. Sawyer is also a wonderful supporter of books and authors from around the world and today, we are delighted to welcome them to our Power Q & A to talk about reading with boundless curiosity.
Welcome Sawyer Cole!
Coming Home by Sawyer Cole
Q: You have been a wonderful supporter of CanLit and books from around the world. Can you tell us about your reading priorities because they certainly (and refreshingly) aren’t defined by borders!
A: I think it’s important to me to read as diversely as possible because I have first hand experience of being a minority in some fashion. I was a nonbinary trans person with they/them pronouns living in Southern US. Sometimes I felt alone and secluded; ostracized from my neighbors for my identity and sexuality.
With that said, I also know I’m Caucasian so I’m still in the majority. Reading diversely lets me step beyond my world into someone else’s. It allows my empathy to run deeper and my compassion to grow further. If you aren’t reading diversely, you’re missing out on the world around you. They once said America is the Melting Pot when I was growing up, and I think that’s true. We each have our own stories, and I think that’s a beautiful thing to share and be connected with others.
About Coming Home:
Coming from a small, rural town in North Carolina, Sawyer grapples with what it means to grow up queer, where the population of queer people was, to the untrained eye, non-existent. Nuanced with the societal constructs of the gender binary, they deconstruct what it means to be queer in an evangelical Southern family. From growing up being a family proclaimed "tomboy," to joining the Army under Don't Ask, Don't Tell, Sawyer brings you a collection of essays detailing everything from coming out, to family life to church hurt and everything in between.
Candid, honest, insightful, and sometimes breathtakingly haunting, Coming Home is all about finding your queer voice in a heteronormative world. With an honest zeal for life, this set of essays will show you what it truly means to come home.
Author Sawyer Cole.
Follow Sawyer Cole on Instagram @colesbooknook.