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Road Home by Rex Ogle

Road Home

Rex Ogle

WW Norton · Paperback · March 3, 2026

When Rex was outed the summer after he graduated high school, his father gave him a choice: he could stay at home, find a girlfriend, and attend church twice a week, or he could be gay—and leave.

Homelessness & Poverty for TeensLGBTQ+ Biographiesmotivational
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Who it’s for
A candid memoir about rejection, survival, and the many meanings of hunger and home.
Themes
Coming out and family rejection, Homelessness and survival, Hunger for love and belonging
Pacing
Reflective

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For younger readers: Born Behind Bars, Free Lunch

For older readers: Becoming Ted

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About this book

When Rex was outed the summer after he graduated high school, his father gave him a choice: he could stay at home, find a girlfriend, and attend church twice a week, or he could be gay—and leave. Rex left, driving toward the only other gay man he knew and a toxic relationship that would ultimately leave him homeless and desperate on the streets of New Orleans.

Continue reading

Here, Rex tells the story of his coming out and his father’s rejection of his identity, navigating abuse and survival on the streets. Road Home is a devastating and incandescent reflection on Rex’s hunger—for food, for love, and for a place to call home—completing the trilogy of memoirs that began with the award-winning Free Lunch.

Hunger and Home

A candid memoir about rejection, survival, and the many meanings of hunger and home.

Come here for

  • Reflections on coming out, family rejection, and survival
  • The ache of wanting food, love, and somewhere to belong

Expect

  • A close account of abuse and surviving on New Orleans streets
  • A personal story of homelessness and a toxic relationship

Where it sits

Homelessness & Poverty for Teens98%
LGBTQ+ Biographies81%

Percentages are BookFrontier’s reading of the book.

Publisher categories

  • LGBTQ+ Biographies
  • Depression & Mental Health for Teens
  • Homelessness & Poverty for Teens
Authors
Rex Ogle
Publisher
WW Norton
Published
March 3, 2026
Format
Paperback
Theme
Coming out and family rejection · Homelessness and survival · Hunger for love and belonging
Reading lane
LGBTQ+ Biographies