by Chaz Bono with Billie Fitzpatrick (Penguin Books, R230)
“Wrestling with gender confusion, failed relationships, the loss of a parent, drug addiction and a journey towards sobriety, Chaz Bono has fought many demons in his life.”
“His” life – thereby lies the rub of this no-holds-barred story of how the “cherubic blonde” Chastity Bono, daughter of iconic 60s pop partnership Sonny and Cher, grew up, fighting, to match ongoing sexual characteristics and to finally become a man.
“I felt I was not the daughter my mother wanted,” Chaz Bono admits, early on in this candid and intimate exploration.
Nope, he sure wasn’t.
As a child, Chaz’s ongoing battles, initially, ranged from rows with the famously dressy Cher, over dresses vs cowboy outfits and a bedroom decorated in “reams of pink”.
Harriet, an abusive nanny, did not help matters either.
The teenage years were, of course, much worse.
As Chaz says: “I can state with total clarity and certainty that as a child I felt like a boy… I am here to attest to the fact that you can be born one sex and yet feel with every fibre of your being that you really are the opposite.”
Tomboy relationships made way for more complicated teen lesbian friendships.
A foray into the music business proved that having famous parents did not necessarily help. Having moved from LA to New York, acting proved much more rewarding.
The painful transition eventually happened at 40, complete with breast removal, voice breaking and hair sprouting.
Chaz’s supportive partner is Jenny. The couple were originally in a lesbian relationship.
Yes, it’s complicated.
Of course, in the background is the ongoing story of the parents: Cher’s many boyfriends, as the family moved from home to home, including Tom Cruise; the death of Sonny, a politician by this time, in a freak skiing accident; and Cher’s struggle to deal with her daughter’s eventual transition to manhood.
Courage is the word. Of late, Chaz has been a courageous and popular contestant on Dancing With the Stars in the US. And, oddly enough, judge Bruno Tonioli kept referring to Chaz’s weight.