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rat_fairy's review against another edition
3.75
i have complicated feelings about this book. on the one hand, i believe Lawson told their story well and there were many passages i (digitally, read this as an ebook) highlighted. but on the other hand, other passages felt very vague and i genuinely could not tell if the timeline of this book was linear or jumped around in time.
crystalisreading's review
challenging
hopeful
reflective
4.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Chronic illness
Moderate: Pandemic/Epidemic, Infidelity, Classism, Toxic friendship, Misogyny, Mental illness, Cursing, Colonisation, Ableism, Alcohol, Medical content, Medical trauma, Racism, Grief, Gaslighting, Sexism, Slavery, Body horror, Toxic relationship, and Sexual content
Minor: Police brutality and Murder
jakinabook's review
adventurous
challenging
emotional
hopeful
informative
inspiring
reflective
tense
medium-paced
4.5
chilltash's review against another edition
challenging
informative
inspiring
reflective
medium-paced
4.75
rainbowbookworm's review against another edition
5.0
A powerful collection of essays, that explores various aspects of the author's identity in stories that are deeply personal, but also relevant. They are vivid threads in the tapestry that helps readers understand the bigger picture of how people are perceived and treated in the modern world.*
My favorite thing about the book is that Lawson is not afraid to show how they are not afraid to show how their consciousness grew, how they evolved as a person, as a result of these experiences. Hopefully their vulnerability will help others understand that this is a process where our opinions/beliefs will change and evolve as we become more aware of the inequities in the world.
*Not just the U.S. as several of the stories Lawson tell happened while traveling or living abroad.
My favorite thing about the book is that Lawson is not afraid to show how they are not afraid to show how their consciousness grew, how they evolved as a person, as a result of these experiences. Hopefully their vulnerability will help others understand that this is a process where our opinions/beliefs will change and evolve as we become more aware of the inequities in the world.
*Not just the U.S. as several of the stories Lawson tell happened while traveling or living abroad.
dejeunee's review
the writing feels very self indulgent and disjointed. I spent the whole first chapter trying to figure out what she was talking about and by the second chapter I’d just checked out.
jayisreading's review against another edition
challenging
informative
inspiring
reflective
slow-paced
5.0
Spanning across multiple countries and continents, Lawson’s memoir is more than that; it also is a manifesto of sorts, with a demand that we each deeply reflect on our complex identity and positionality in the world. Lawson, a Black American who is nonbinary, femme, disabled, and queer, draws heavily from their own traveling experiences to reflect on their identity on all fronts. One thing I particularly appreciated was how Lawson grappled with being from the United States and what that means in other countries. This is further complicated when they bring Blackness into the picture, and I found their reflections quite profound to the point that I was deeply reflecting on my own identity and how race and nationality shaped my experiences when I also lived abroad.
While Lawson’s memoir takes the reader through Africa, Asia, Central America, Europe, and the Caribbean, many chapters also focus on their experiences in different regions of the United States, which makes sense, considering how vastly different each region can be. While the themes and locations are incredibly diverse, I was really impressed that Lawson found a thread through all of them, especially in the way they stepped back to think about the world as a whole.
Written with deep gratitude, humility, and a sense of wonder, Lawson’s reflections are so welcomed in the way they challenge us to think about our place in the world and the existing potential to make it a better place.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Racism, Chronic illness, and Death
Moderate: Slavery, Ableism, Colonisation, Grief, and Misogyny
Minor: Trafficking, Pandemic/Epidemic, Police brutality, War, Infidelity, and Suicide