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gygyreadsgygysips's review against another edition
5.0
Graphic: Sexual assault, Grief, Emotional abuse, Alcoholism, and Rape
ivi_reads_books's review against another edition
4.0
She takes us back in time and into her head to different points in time of her life. From her troubled childhood into her early adult years figuring out how to navigate life. She tells her story with compassion without making excuses. I was very moved by her book
Graphic: Child abuse and Violence
Moderate: Rape, Physical abuse, Sexual assault, Sexual harassment, Alcoholism, Death, Domestic abuse, and Pregnancy
silver_lining_in_a_book's review against another edition
4.0
“We don’t give up on our people. We don’t stop loving them.” She looked into my face, her eyes watering at the bottoms. “Not even when we’re burning alive.”
There is something about memoirs that are written so beautifully they almost read like magical realism that just does it for me. Ashley C. Ford's voice is one of the most lyrical and emotional I have come across this year - I couldn't stop reading it.
This book is so incredibly crafted, you can feel all the love and hard work Ashley has poured into it. I especially loved following this up with Ford's interview with Clint Smith, author of How the Word Is Passed: A Reckoning with the History of Slavery Across America, which touched on so many aspects of the book that I was curious about while reading; it cemented this book as a real masterpiece in my mind.
Considering how short this book is, I do not want to go into a summary of the novel, but I will mention what my favourite aspect - besides the prose - was. This is, of course, a trend for me at this point, but exploring different family dynamics and familial love was the highlight of this book. It's something that never fails to grasp my attention, but the way Ford approached it made me feel like I was experiencing everything she described for myself, particularly when it came to her relationship with her mother and grandmother.
The reason that I cannot give this book the full 5 stars is that I found the beginning to be difficult to get into and I almost put the book down. I am so glad I powered through it, but it was a little bit of a challenge. I also this that certain very important events in Ford's life were glossed over due to the conciseness of this book. I think it would have been very impactful to explore these (no spoilers!) in more detail.
Graphic: Sexual assault, Grief, Rape, and Pedophilia
Moderate: Grief, Child abuse, Toxic relationship, Panic attacks/disorders, and Racism
Minor: Infidelity, Fatphobia, Drug use, Body shaming, and Alcoholism
moonpotter's review against another edition
4.0
Moderate: Violence, Rape, Toxic relationship, Fatphobia, Alcoholism, and Sexual violence
sambashua's review against another edition
4.25
Graphic: Alcohol, Confinement, Cursing, Child abuse, Emotional abuse, Rape, Alcoholism, Physical abuse, Sexual assault, Abandonment, Domestic abuse, Grief, and Sexual violence
Moderate: Suicidal thoughts and Body shaming
leslie_overbookedsocialworker's review against another edition
4.75
Moderate: Child abuse, Sexual violence, Sexual assault, and Alcoholism