Divided: Rejecting Shame, Embracing Vulnerability, and Discovering the Power of Radical Authenticity

In this heartfelt, honest debut, Beeching tells the story of growing up evangelical in the U.K., going to college, and scoring a major Christian recording deal—all while knowing she was gay and doing her best to pretend otherwise. Beeching knew from her early teens that she liked girls and didn’t like boys. Her church preached that homosexuality was “an abomination,” but no matter what Beeching did—answering an altar call, joining the Christian youth organization True Love Waits, attending an evangelical seminary, going out on plenty of dates with men, denying herself as a sexual being altogether—she was unable to stop having feelings for other women. Beeching’s prose flows easily as she tells a straightforward story of coming to terms with her sexuality and coming out. The narrative reveals her relief in living out her true identity, but also the complications her honesty caused. Readers will be heartbroken as Beeching describes being unable to enjoy her incredible musical success and revel in her strong faith because of concerns about her sexuality—a sorrow that led her to contemplate suicide. Christian young adults with questions about sexual identity in relation to their faith will find Beeching’s memoir illuminating, and all readers will relate to her earnest struggle against the pressure to conform to impossible expectations. (June)