Take a photo of a barcode or cover
4.41 AVERAGE
4.41 AVERAGE
I had to read this for class. There is some really great writing in here but unfortunately, it suffers from the dry history lessons scattered throughout.
challenging
emotional
informative
inspiring
reflective
sad
medium-paced
dark
emotional
informative
reflective
sad
medium-paced
very interesting and thorough dive into a black english woman’s complicated family history. i learned a lot
Content Warnings
Graphic: Racism, Rape, Slavery
Minor: Child death, Domestic abuse, Physical abuse, Violence, War
A very important read with many thought-provoking questions. Hearing about the experiences of a child with a black father and white mother was something I’d not read much about before, and the fact Carby is a historian made it even more interesting to see her going through archives with a professional and personal view. Some parts will really stay with me, I’m sure. I initially read snippets of this book for uni, which was 2 years ago, and I still remembered certain segments from back then.
Carby’s own experiences were fascinating, so when she moved the perspective I noticed myself skimming entire chapters. I get portraying her grandmother’s history makes way to discuss the effects of colonialism in how she’s perceive her son in law, for instance, but it felt like this could be done in just a few sentences or so. The Carby family having a ‘white’ side (and ‘white’ history) is very interesting, but I personally wouldn’t need an elaborate description of the abolishment of slavery in Britain to accompany this. The perspective kept changing too and went back in forth in time, which made it a bit confusing.
Still, if anyone wants to know why ‘where are you from?’ is such an awful question, or what it’s like to grow up with a British/Welsh mum and a Jamaican/British dad, I’d definitely point them towards this book.
Carby’s own experiences were fascinating, so when she moved the perspective I noticed myself skimming entire chapters. I get portraying her grandmother’s history makes way to discuss the effects of colonialism in how she’s perceive her son in law, for instance, but it felt like this could be done in just a few sentences or so. The Carby family having a ‘white’ side (and ‘white’ history) is very interesting, but I personally wouldn’t need an elaborate description of the abolishment of slavery in Britain to accompany this. The perspective kept changing too and went back in forth in time, which made it a bit confusing.
Still, if anyone wants to know why ‘where are you from?’ is such an awful question, or what it’s like to grow up with a British/Welsh mum and a Jamaican/British dad, I’d definitely point them towards this book.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Racial slurs, Racism, Rape, Sexual assault
challenging
slow-paced