Scan barcode
Reviews tagging 'Death of parent'
Brown Baby: A Memoir of Race, Family and Home by Nikesh Shukla
2 reviews
etty_m's review
emotional
funny
reflective
medium-paced
5.0
Content Warnings
Moderate: Racial slurs and Racism
Minor: Death of parent
readingwithkt's review
reflective
medium-paced
3.0
It's tough to review a memoir written from father to child, but alas here I shall try.
This memoir is sectioned into various topic areas, i.e. "how will I talk to you about _______", covering topics such as race, heritage, gender, food, etc.
For around 40% of the book, I was totally engrossed and engaged. I didn't think it was a perfect book but I enjoyed the talk of disordered eating, gender stereotypes, and white dominance. It was a very engaging and interesting memoir!
Sadly, around the point of the chapter on sleep, the author completely lost me. I found myself getting annoyed at the meandering nature of the chapter and I felt it added little to this particular memoir.
It makes sense that this started as a collection of pieces that Nikesh Shukla was going to submit to various publications. At times, it felt disjointed. There was also some overlap in the arbitrary categories Shukla had set up and some repetition, which just annoyed me as an Editor myself. I find when I slip into Editor mode and out of the reading of the book, I know the book isn't hitting in the way it could be.
While some topics felt over labored, there were other topics that I felt were completely missing. For example, Shukla's wife is almost completely absent from the narrative and I was left somewhat confused by this - Shukla and his wife are together and co-parent, so it would make sense to me that she feature more heavily. This led me to feel like Shukla was holding back, which was a strange feeling to have while reading a memoir.
Overall, I felt that this is a memoir that would have benefitted from a stronger editor and a few more years of maturity. And fewer descriptions of poo.
It feels strange to critique a memoir that is written from father to child, something so deeply personal, but this was just my feelings on reading this book as an outsider, and alas it is my role as a reviewer to share honest thoughts and feelings.
This memoir is sectioned into various topic areas, i.e. "how will I talk to you about _______", covering topics such as race, heritage, gender, food, etc.
For around 40% of the book, I was totally engrossed and engaged. I didn't think it was a perfect book but I enjoyed the talk of disordered eating, gender stereotypes, and white dominance. It was a very engaging and interesting memoir!
Sadly, around the point of the chapter on sleep, the author completely lost me. I found myself getting annoyed at the meandering nature of the chapter and I felt it added little to this particular memoir.
It makes sense that this started as a collection of pieces that Nikesh Shukla was going to submit to various publications. At times, it felt disjointed. There was also some overlap in the arbitrary categories Shukla had set up and some repetition, which just annoyed me as an Editor myself. I find when I slip into Editor mode and out of the reading of the book, I know the book isn't hitting in the way it could be.
While some topics felt over labored, there were other topics that I felt were completely missing. For example, Shukla's wife is almost completely absent from the narrative and I was left somewhat confused by this - Shukla and his wife are together and co-parent, so it would make sense to me that she feature more heavily. This led me to feel like Shukla was holding back, which was a strange feeling to have while reading a memoir.
Overall, I felt that this is a memoir that would have benefitted from a stronger editor and a few more years of maturity. And fewer descriptions of poo.
It feels strange to critique a memoir that is written from father to child, something so deeply personal, but this was just my feelings on reading this book as an outsider, and alas it is my role as a reviewer to share honest thoughts and feelings.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Body shaming, Death of parent, Death, Eating disorder, Excrement, Grief, and Racism
More...