lachellerising's reviews
174 reviews

I thoroughly enjoyed this book. On the surface, it looks like it's about body positivity but it goes deeper than that. This book is for everybody regardless of gender, size, race, etc. Among my biggest takeaways were a chapter in which she discusses ways we can engage in conversations with people who are less inclined to question the things they've been indoctrinated to believe --- constructive conversations seem hard to come by these days but she offers sage advice on how to approach them with grace, perceptiveness and without ego.

Unwittingly, this book also exposes how superficial much of the body positivity movement is today. A lot of is based on liking our appearance but not necessarily self-love (or radical self-love as she puts it) or understanding the systemic implications of placing so much value on the appearance of the body.

I know that some of the critiques about this book have been the use of academic and conversational language, but I actually don't mind it. I didn't find it to be verbose (even if some parts were a little redundant). Another critique is about it being "preachy" but I think that is usually code for not being ready or willing to receive what is being said --- you are after all reading this book to learn something new, it is not a conversation between two people.

Overall, I think this book is a great starting point for people who are looking to educate themselves on political liberation and bodily autonomy. If we're not doing the work within ourselves, we won't be as effective when we're doing the work out in the world.

A very interesting short novel. I would say between Passing and Quicksand I prefer Passing. They have similar themes and character narratives and both ended in a manner I did not anticipate. Quicksand gives a deeper feeling of sadness and demoralization than Passing which isn’t necessarily a good or bad thing. I walked away from this book with the sense of understanding how important it is to find love and belonging within yourself—if you don’t, you end up searching for it in physical locations, communities and relationships that can only fulfill certain needs. It’s unfortunate Nella Larsen’s literary canon was so limited, would’ve loved to have more to read from her.

[3.5 stars]

A nice collection of short stories I would definitely reread. I read this book during a deep dive into Kathleen Collin’s work. Most of the stories are told through the lens of middle to upper class Black folks, many who live in NYC in close proximity to white people in the late 1960s and 70s which was a very interesting time politically.

I particularly love the way she fuses elements of screenwriting into some of these stories, you get a sense that world-building was a integral part of the way she told stories. She does a great job at making her settings and characters feel authentic, complex and intriguing.

As someone who has been a fan of Mariah Carey for as long as I can remember, I loveddd this book. I have always had deep respect for her has as a musician and writer but hearing more about her human experience (and how it has lended itself to her incredible artistry) was a beautiful experience. Knowing the stories behind some of my favorite songs of hers has given me a deeper appreciation for them (but also can’t get over Derek Jeter being a muse on so many of them, who would’ve thought?!?) Learning more about her family background and the adversity she endured provided clarity on why I’ve always felt connected to her music, there is a level of authenticity in her songwriting that can’t be fabricated. Of course I love her infectiously fun hits and her early work before leaving Mottola but there are many deep it songs of her that I’ve listened to throughout my life to pull me out of dark places (most notably “Fly Like a Bird”) and understanding the spiritual context of why/how she wrote them was deeply moving.