A review by balletbookworm
What Doesn't Kill You Makes You Blacker: A Memoir in Essays by Damon Young

4.0

Young uses the form of the essay to both tell his own story of growing up black in Pittsburgh AND write about the culture around him. He has a sharp turn of phrase and a dry humor that I really enjoyed. There is a lot to think about here, from ripping culture, to masculinity, to use of the N word in black culture, to his lack of an driver’s license and how that impacts employment, to his new identity as a parent. I really appreciated how he constructed the chapter about his mother’s illness and death then comments on how the white medical establishment views black women’s pain and bodies; very well-crafted.