{"product_id":"the-double-dutch-fuss-a-memoir-isbn-9780063384934","title":"The Double Dutch Fuss: A Memoir","description":"\u003cp\u003e\u003cstrong\u003eIn this raw and lyrical memoir as rich and insightful as \u003cem\u003eHow to Say Babylon\u003c\/em\u003e and as vulnerable and provocative as \u003cem\u003eHeavy,\u003c\/em\u003e an Emmy Award-winning director chronicles his struggle to break free from—and live outside of—the prescribed paradigms of Blackness and masculinity that shaped him.\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e \u003cp\u003eLong before every moment of our lives was tracked by technology, Phill Branch was under surveillance. His father was a football-playing, weed-smoking, Army vet—the guy men wanted to be around, and women loved. Phill was different. His father treated him as if he were defective and continually searched for proof to support this belief. Phill paid greatly for his failures at boyhood, especially when he was caught playing jump rope with girls. This taught him there were standards to be met, codes that were not to be violated, and strict punishment for any deviation from a Black man’s assigned position in the world.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eIn this poignant, illuminating personal narrative, Branch reckons with the patriarchy and tradition of these social structures in Black America, their legacy, and how they molded and silenced him. Taking us from Newark, New Jersey, to Los Angeles, California, Branch writes unflinchingly about growing up as the queer black son of a complicated and often absent father with rigid ideas of masculinity. From early inappropriate relationships with men twice his age, to his successful rebranding at Hampton University, to the dichotomy of Hollywood—living in a world of wealthy celebrities while struggling to survive as a writer—Branch navigates his complex emotions surrounding success, perceptions of manhood, and ultimately his father.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003cem\u003eThe Double Dutch Fuss\u003c\/em\u003e recounts growing up under the heavy burden of expectation—to be a boy, to be Black, and to be queer in ways that conform to rigid, often unforgiving norms. It is about the knotted path of becoming, while navigating the always-present fear of emotional and physical violence, and the threat of isolation for simply being who you are. Branch explores the cosmic pull between fathers and sons, and how healing wounds can open a pathway toward freedom and wholeness. His is an insightful and surprisingly humorous reflection on identity, masculinity, and the quiet, radical act of choosing to exist on your own terms.\u003c\/p\u003e | \u003cp\u003eWhen wielded responsibly, humor can heal and also educate. Phill exhibits this ability with great profundity as he shows us how fathers shape us even when they don’t know how to love us well. - \u003cb\u003e\u003ci\u003eRoy Wood Jr., author of The Man of Many Fathers\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eI knew Phil Branch as a young man with dreams and fears, with questions about who he was and who he was becoming. To witness his journey, to see him claim his voice, his truth, and his power is nothing short of extraordinary. \u003ci\u003eThe Double Dutch Fuss\u003c\/i\u003e stands as a testament to courage, growth, and the healing power of storytelling. - \u003cb\u003e\u003ci\u003eSheryl Lee Ralph, actress and author\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e“Raw, honest, heartbreaking, and laugh-out-loud funny—\u003cem\u003eThe Double Dutch Fuss\u003c\/em\u003e will inspire and uplift. In these times when hope feels fragile, it delivers the encouragement we all need: No matter how difficult the journey, our dreams are always attainable.” - \u003cb\u003e\u003ci\u003eBernice L. McFadden, author of Firstborn Girls\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003ePhill Branch generously and warmly welcomes us into the world of his childhood and young adulthood full of seismic shifts and heartbreak but also self-discovery and victory, all served with a side of his signature humor and hope. It's a celebration of hard-won battles, the ones we have with expressing who we are in full. - \u003cb\u003e\u003ci\u003eSuzanne Rust, Curator at The Moth\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eIn this unflinchingly vulnerable memoir, Phill Branch traces a path toward self-authorship, learning to live on his own terms—a piercing, beautifully written meditation on masculinity in America, on the expectations we inherit, the roles we perform, and the quiet courage it takes to refuse them. - \u003cb\u003e\u003ci\u003eRobert James Russell, author of Hard Body\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003ePhill Branch’s debut memoir, \u003ci\u003eThe Double Dutch Fuss, \u003c\/i\u003eis brave, painful, heartwarming, and a testament to the resilience of the human spirit. Written with passion, hard truths, humor and vulnerability, Branch’s coming-of-age narrative is a story long overdue to be told. - \u003cb\u003e\u003ci\u003eDonna Hill, author Confessions in B-Flat and Nola and Baldwin\u003c\/i\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Amistad","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":48252278931685,"sku":"NP9780063384934","price":30.0,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":false}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/1842\/7735\/files\/9780063384934.jpg?v=1768315375","url":"https:\/\/k12savings.com\/products\/the-double-dutch-fuss-a-memoir-isbn-9780063384934","provider":"K12savings","version":"1.0","type":"link"}