When Alexandra Billings was born in 1962, simply existing as her authentic self was considered a crime. In her haunting, hilarious, and unflinchingly honest memoir This Time for Me, Billings takes us on a journey that spans five turbulent decades, from the illegalization of her identity to her rise as one of America’s most beloved transgender actresses and activists. What unfolds is not just one woman’s life story but a rare and radical act of truth-telling that challenges the reader to rethink survival, artistry, gender, and power.
Before the word “transgender” had even entered the mainstream lexicon, Alexandra began her transition in 1980. There were no hashtags, no trans influencers, no roadmaps, only the raw determination of a woman who had been told by almost everyone she loved that her dreams were impossible. And yet she moved forward, often at tremendous personal cost. She did it because she had to. Because, as she puts it, “I was told there was no place for me. So I built one.” Raised in Illinois in a multiracial family, Alexandra was exposed to the world of music and theater early. Her father, a music director, gave her backstage access to legends like Carol Burnett and Yul Brynner. Those early memories offered a kind of magic, a place where she could become anyone, even if she didn’t yet have permission to be herself.
