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A review by thesoaresprotocol
In Every Mirror She's Black by Lọlá Ákínmádé Åkerström
emotional
informative
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
2.75
I had very high expectations for this story. As a champion for diversity and black women in literature myself, I was hoping this would be another addition to ambitious and multidimensional portrayals of black women all across the globe.
This wasn't. It was more of a marketing push riding that wave through a colorful cover and mainstream coverage/distribution.
At times, this novel felt like a bad TUBI joint. Stereotypical black characters (Jamal, the wealthy and short-tempered lawyer from Atlanta, a flight attendant that failed to pursue modeling, a powerful executive with the emotional intelligence of a 7-year old...) brought nothing new to diverse literature and proved once again harmful to our cause.
Both main black women were portrayed as unfaithful and lustful... The men in the story all have some form of mental illness or condition yet possess the charisma of James Bond in his prime.
Coming from a marketing background, I laughed at the fictional marketing campaign for the Bachmann account, set in motion by Kemi... "Dare to be different" This caption is so cliche and lacks subtlety; it would have never made it through the preliminary brainstorming stages in real life. And the symbolism was awkward and elementary.
Last but not least, the linguo... Oh my god. I grew up in the hood, raised by black folks, and we would never shout stuff like "I gotta represent" or "Gurrrlll"... This ain't TikTok! Those are grown women in their 30s, 40s...
The other black woman (Muna, a refugee) ends up being wanted for involuntary manslaughter in a far-fetched development. The ending lacked closure.
This, ladies and gentlemen, is proof that we have to support novels for their content and not their packaging, and champion the voices that truly contribute to improving diversity in the literary landscape (show some love to your indie authors as well).
This wasn't. It was more of a marketing push riding that wave through a colorful cover and mainstream coverage/distribution.
At times, this novel felt like a bad TUBI joint. Stereotypical black characters (Jamal, the wealthy and short-tempered lawyer from Atlanta, a flight attendant that failed to pursue modeling, a powerful executive with the emotional intelligence of a 7-year old...) brought nothing new to diverse literature and proved once again harmful to our cause.
Both main black women were portrayed as unfaithful and lustful... The men in the story all have some form of mental illness or condition yet possess the charisma of James Bond in his prime.
Coming from a marketing background, I laughed at the fictional marketing campaign for the Bachmann account, set in motion by Kemi... "Dare to be different" This caption is so cliche and lacks subtlety; it would have never made it through the preliminary brainstorming stages in real life. And the symbolism was awkward and elementary.
Last but not least, the linguo... Oh my god. I grew up in the hood, raised by black folks, and we would never shout stuff like "I gotta represent" or "Gurrrlll"... This ain't TikTok! Those are grown women in their 30s, 40s...
The other black woman (Muna, a refugee) ends up being wanted for involuntary manslaughter in a far-fetched development. The ending lacked closure.
This, ladies and gentlemen, is proof that we have to support novels for their content and not their packaging, and champion the voices that truly contribute to improving diversity in the literary landscape (show some love to your indie authors as well).