If It's A Choice, My Zygote Chose Balls: Making Sense of Senseless Controversy

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If It's A Choice, My Zygote Chose Balls: Making Sense of Senseless Controversy

by Jeremy Hooper (Goodreads Author) (author)

4.65 of 5 stars 4.65 · rating details · 34 ratings · 8 reviews

Jeremy Hooper's Good As You website (www.GoodAsYou.org) is known for blending passion and wit, making the case for LGBT equality worldwide. In If It’s a Choice, My Zygote Chose Balls: Making Sense of Senseless Controversy, Jeremy continues that style, blending a unique mix of memoir and social commentary that argues for equal rights based on relatable human principles.

Hoop...more Jeremy Hooper's Good As You website (www.GoodAsYou.org) is known for blending passion and wit, making the case for LGBT equality worldwide. In If It’s a Choice, My Zygote Chose Balls: Making Sense of Senseless Controversy, Jeremy continues that style, blending a unique mix of memoir and social commentary that argues for equal rights based on relatable human principles.

Hooper leads readers through his own life story, revealing the positive and unnecessarily encumbered aspects of growing up gay in contemporary society. The noted author and activist writes in a sometimes humorous, sometimes serious, but always sharply informed style, opening a window into the realities of family rejection and acceptance. Whether offering direct guidance for would-be straight allies or sharing the inner monologue of a boy who knew who he was long before early adulthood would allow him to own it, Hooper provides a wealth of insight and argument to push the equality conversation forward.

“From constant talk about marriage to the popular parlor game ‘Which celebrity is gay?’ our world is, in many ways, obsessed with LGBT topics,” says Hooper. “However, there is serious neglect in terms of actually tackling the issues at hand. I want to address the weighty topics head on, but in a relatable way.”

As someone who spends ten to twelve daily hours slogging through the "culture war" for his celebrated website, Jeremy Hooper knows better than anyone how far the LGBT community still has to go in order to obtain full equality. At the same time, his focused lens had led him to believe that some of the usual LGBT activism has isolated the fight and stories, leaving much of the continued struggle to go unrealized by the population at large. So Hooper's answer is to present relatable tales that are just as proactive in changing hearts and minds as any textbook gay rights treatment, but doing so in a package that pops with universal heart and wit. Hooper calls out the B.S. for what it is, while keeping an equal focus on uniting folks from all walks of life for the common causes of peace, equality, acceptance, and, ironically enough–family values. All of this while remembering to keep his tongue in or around the cheek region.

Written to engage and entertain, as well as inspire further discussion and action, the book is aimed at a wide range of readers interested and open to learning.(less)

Paperback, 1, 238 pages

Published June 5th 2012 by Good As You

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Dec 13, 2012 Susan Shulman rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition Recommends it for: everyone and anyone

Recommended to Susan by: Jeremy Hooper and Andrew Shulman

Of course I was going to read this book (I have read it twice so far). Jeremy is my son-in-law and I have a gay son. My first read left me in awe of Jeremy's amazing use of language while presenting a poignant and clear portrait of the gay rights movement. I was a little nervous reading it for the first time, not only for fear of finding typos (that I knew would annoy the heck out of my perfectionist son-in-law), but worried if I would follow it all or maybe find out something that Jeremy felt t...more

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Nov 10, 2012 Edward rated it 5 of 5 stars

I cannot recommend this book enough. As an educator, and as an aware adult and citizen, I believe that this book should be read by every high-school student. And then let the recommendations and dialogue ensue. Yes, dialogue. Not enough information is available from persons who have the experience, the intelligence, the real-world insight, and the wit and relatability of Mr. Hooper. You'll laugh, you'll cry, you'll smile, you'll see light bulbs flashing above your head, but more than anything, y...more

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Apr 13, 2013 Terri Kinckner rated it 5 of 5 stars

I loved this book! Jeremy was able to join humor and common sense in this wonderful book! I think everyone needs to read this book, the world will be a better place! This book can really open the eyes of many people that fear the LGBT community simply because they do not understand it. I've seen that fear and hatred sent my way, but I've also been really glad to see that there are a lot of wonderful people out there that may not embrace the lifestyle, but let us be ourselves and show us as much...more

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Mar 31, 2013 Daniel rated it 5 of 5 stars

I received this book through a Goodreads giveaway. Being a supporter of marriage equality and gay rights, I enjoyed reading "If It's a Choice..." greatly. Jeremy Hooper shows, through prose and example, that the average LGBT person wants nothing more than a fair shake from life. As much a memoir as a call to action, this book provides as much entertainment in the form of humor as it oes insight into the anti-gay movement, it's myriad motivations, and why we should not ale it seriously.

If I do ha...more

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Jul 24, 2012 Thomas rated it 5 of 5 stars Recommends it for: gay

Recommended to Thomas by: LGBT

The LGBT community has been under attack by conservatives and religious fundamentalists since before Adam and Steve had their first chance to shake their groove thing at the first Eden Happy Hour (at which I'm sure God was handing out the microphone for karaoke and welcome everyone in with wide open arms regardless of taste in music, drink or sex).

Jeremy Hooper (of www.GoodasYou.org) has written a smart, witty and deeply personal pilgrimage from closeted upbringing to proud advocate for human e...more The LGBT community has been under attack by conservatives and religious fundamentalists since before Adam and Steve had their first chance to shake their groove thing at the first Eden Happy Hour (at which I'm sure God was handing out the microphone for karaoke and welcome everyone in with wide open arms regardless of taste in music, drink or sex).

Jeremy Hooper (of www.GoodasYou.org) has written a smart, witty and deeply personal pilgrimage from closeted upbringing to proud advocate for human equality in which he debunks the senseless claims made by the likes of Maggie Gallagher and her NOM cohorts, Family Research Council and numerous other denizens of the "'mo foes" army. His words are carefully chosen: cogent yet calm, targeted yet tactful, intense yet in touch. With each of their claims, he takes their words and peels back the reasons they profess for their bigotry (though they'd have you call it "preservation") and exposes them for what they are: inhuman. His goal is simple. To love each person as (fill in the blank with whatever god, guide, mother, father, friend) intended and abolish hatred.

See, Jeremy Hooper knows something that the "'mo foes" don't... they can't win their argument. Time and time again the world has seen bigotry fall away as the new generation grows, comes into its own understanding of family and community, strips away the labels of its predecessors and teaches the next to make the next steps even grander.

Get this book. Right now it doesn't matter if you agree with him or me. What matters is that you read it.

If you don't agree with the freedoms desired by the LGBT community, read it to understand this intensely personal story and how the argument against the freedom to love has affected HIS life. Read how the hurt has shaped him and countless others.

If you do agree and you believe we should all be free to love that one amazing person that we've dreamt about, read it. You'll remind yourself why we dream in the first place. Just read it. And think about what it means to want, to love, to be a human being.(less)

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Sep 01, 2012 Julie Lumpkin rated it 5 of 5 stars

As a mom of a gay son, I loved this book because it walked me through the experiences of a gay man from his childhood to his marriage. Jeremy Hooper shared his story in a heartfelt, witty, and thoughtful way. His book made me laugh, cry, and, most importantly, encouraged me to be a voice for equality for the LGBT community. This book came to me at just the right time, and I am grateful! It's a must read for any member of the LGBT community and their supporters who want to be a positive force in...more

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Oct 17, 2012 Kythera Anevern rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: lgbt

Having followed Mr. Hooper's blog for about a year, I was excited to hear he had a book forthcoming. When I at last had it in hand, I was not disappointed. Mr. Hooper's humor shines through as expected. While his story is at times heartbreaking (and all too familiar), the grace, levity, and humanity with which he recounts his tale is refreshing, and makes this book an easy read. It is a volume I have eagerly recommended to family members who are struggling to reconcile their modern mainstream Ch...more

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Jun 05, 2012 Edward marked it as to-read

Shelves: glbt, humour, law, non-fiction, politics, borrowed

I've been reading the website for years, and I look forward to reading Jeremy's new book.

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May 24, 2013 Ayame Sohma rated it 5 of 5 stars

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About Jeremy Hooper

Since founding Good As You (www.GoodAsYou.org) in 2005, Jeremy Hooper has garnered a reputation as a fresh voice in the worlds of Internet publishing and activism. With a background geared both towards entertainment and advocacy, he approaches LGBT issues with a showman’s spirit, pointing out perceived wrongdoings and follies with the clever exuberance of a seasoned jester. Both Hooper and his web...more

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