Preview
  • Long Live the Tribe of Fatherless Girls

  • A Memoir
  • By: T Kira Madden
  • Narrated by: T Kira Madden
  • Length: 8 hrs and 13 mins
  • 4.2 out of 5 stars (622 ratings)

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Long Live the Tribe of Fatherless Girls

By: T Kira Madden
Narrated by: T Kira Madden
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Publisher's summary

One of the most anticipated audiobooks of 2019.

Acclaimed literary essayist T Kira Madden's raw and redemptive debut memoir is about coming of age and reckoning with desire as a queer, biracial teenager amidst the fierce contradictions of Boca Raton, Florida, a place where she found cult-like privilege, shocking racial disparities, rampant white-collar crime and powerfully destructive standards of beauty hiding in plain sight.

As a child, Madden lived a life of extravagance, from her exclusive private school to her equestrian trophies and designer shoe-brand name. But under the surface was a wild instability. The only child of parents continually battling drug and alcohol addictions, Madden confronted her environment alone. Facing a culture of assault and objectification, she found lifelines in the desperately loving friendships of fatherless girls.

With unflinching honesty and lyrical prose, spanning from 1960s Hawaii to the present-day struggle of a young woman mourning the loss of a father while unearthing truths that reframe her reality, Long Live the Tribe of Fatherless Girls is equal parts eulogy and love letter. It's a story about trauma and forgiveness, about families of blood and affinity, both lost and found, unmade and rebuilt, crooked and beautiful.

©2019 T Kira Madden (P)2019 Audible, Ltd
  • Unabridged Audiobook
  • Categories: LGBTQ+
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Critic reviews

"Frank and funny and powerful and surprising. An utterly gorgeous debut." (Lauren Groff)

Featured Article: Audible Essentials—The Top 100 LGBTQIA+ Listens of All Time


While LGBTQIA+ creators have been around for millennia, it’s only recently that we’ve been hearing more diverse, more queer-authored, and more queer-performed stories about the entire spectrum of LGBTQIA+ experiences and identities. This list—just like the community it represents—is meant to be fluid. But most importantly, it’s meant to celebrate and reflect on the issues faced by LGBTQIA+ people everywhere.

Editor's Pick

Growing up on the dark side of privilege
"T Kira Madden is a certifiable badass who grew up in the sun-scorched land of 'gator infestations and amusement parks, i.e. Florida. Her dad already had another family when she was born to her Chinese-Hawaiian mother, but he eventually left to be with them—although, it seemed, never quite fully. Her uncle, Steve Madden is famous for two things: his shoe company, and his white-collar crimes as portrayed in The Wolf of Wall Street. But now the spotlight is fully on T Kira and her shiver-inducing memoir about absent parents, irresistibly kissable women, the casual cruelty of prep school kids, and the dark side of privilege. In anyone else’s hands this story would be a tell-all, but in T Kira’s hands it’s a dream just woken up from, where everything feels urgent, sensual, and a little hazy. Her voice in my ear was soft and intimate, drawing me into her world and sending chills through me. What I’m trying to say is that I LOVED it, and it’s hands-down one of my favorite memoirs of the year so far."
Rachel S., Audible Editor

What listeners say about Long Live the Tribe of Fatherless Girls

Average customer ratings
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  • Overall
    4 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars

Good!

The narration is very calm; almost bored at times. Otherwise it’s a great book, a story of growing up neglected in florida

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  • Overall
    3 out of 5 stars
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    3 out of 5 stars
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    3 out of 5 stars

Money Can't Buy Happiness

T Kira's life has been very different than mine. VERY different. So I had a very hard time relating to her mindset and actions. She's a great example of how you can grow up with money and still not have it all.

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  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars

Like fiction, but with heart

I didn't realize I wasn't reading fiction at first. The world is clear and the characters complex, but there was still a sort of whimsy, even for what can be a sad story. The main character is a girl, and she is easy to relate to and pulls emotions like card from a deck. The changes in timeline are not seamless, but also not bothersome. This book is well-balanced in every way. The final chapters are completely unexpected. As in most real lives, there is no definitively happy ending, but there is a level of understanding and contentment we can all appreciate.

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  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars

LOVED LOVED LOVED THIS

I have not until seeing this title heard of this author or this book. I am soooo very grateful for her welcoming me into her life into her family and making me smile laugh and cry.I am happy that my family isn't the only perfectly imperfect family around. Her story made me remember and discuss with complete honesty my teenage years. THANK YOU

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  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars

A memoir full of life!

This is a story of circumstance and choices. Choices made, choices taken away, choices of regret, choices yet to be seen... of circumstance that can not be changed.

T Kira has included her deepest secrets and families tales to illustrate a beautifully written story of a girl coming of age in a land only made for story books. This story tugs on your heart as you feel for the little girl hanging to the ankle of a mannequin. This story leaves you with hope for that little girl, hope for healing and renewed spirit. A memoir truly full of life!

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10 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
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Not what I was expecting!

A shocker at times, captivating me so much that I needed to hear more, any free time became listening time. Thank you for sharing your families story.

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  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
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Absolutely amazing

Authors Acknowledgment said it all:

“This book was written because once a little girl needed more stories like her own.

My greatest dedication and gratitude To every other drop dead lonely, queer as hell, bucktoothed, loserly outcast reading a book under the covers with a little light. For anyone with a story to tell and a will to rise, write it down, you are not alone, you are the champion of my heart. “

Thank you

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  • Overall
    4 out of 5 stars
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    4 out of 5 stars
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    4 out of 5 stars

Keeps you engaged

At times the story was hard to follow as she jumps from different ages but the story came together really nicely!

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  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars

yes, please!

Haven't had such as good time with a book in a long time. What a story. What a ride.

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  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
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Gorgeous

Really beautiful memoir that covers the pain of untended youth, especially as a young woman navigating becoming. Very tender recognition of the personhood of her parents and her own coming out process. Would love to read more from this author.

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