Starred review from March 26, 2018
In this powerful book, Brown is up front about her exhaustion with white people as she meticulously details the experience of being a black woman in modern American society. After explaining that her parents named her Austin so that potential employers would “assume you are a white man,” she recreates a typical interview and first few months at a new job: “Every pair of eyes looks at me in surprise.... Should they have known? Am I now more impressive or less impressive?... It would be comical if it wasn’t so damn disappointing.” In clear prose, she relates anecdotes to shed light on racial injustices that are systematically reinforced by the standards of white society. Brown, a Christian, believes the history of American Christianity is deeply intertwined with race relations and that Christian communities need to play a large role in racial reconciliation. Explaining that change needs to come from acknowledgement of systemic inequalities, Brown calls on readers to live their professed ideals rather than simply state them. Though the writing style can be preachy, Brown’s authoritative tone and moving message make this a must-read for those interested in racial justice within the Christian community.
March 15, 2023
An adaptation of activist Brown's New York Times bestselling memoir. As an elementary schooler, Brown became accustomed to strange looks from White teachers during roll call--surely a Black girl couldn't be called Austin? Her parents chose to give her the name because the assumption that someone named Austin would be a White man might well land her a job interview. It's just one of the many examples she mulls of how gender and race have impacted her life. After her parents' divorce, Brown split her time between predominantly White Toledo and, during the summer, Cleveland, where for the first time she was around many other Black people. Brown also considers the Black church's powerful influence on her regular "small" acts of "claiming my own space" and voice. In high school, Brown and her classmates recognized that the predominantly White Glee Club received far more funding and support than the mostly Black Gospel Choir--which spurred students from both groups to approach the administration. It's clear that action combined with education was instructive to the author's self-determination, and she became increasingly confident in speaking up as she learned about Black American history. The book shines brightest when Brown encourages readers toward actionable steps such as finding community. Her thoughtful, buoyant writing will invite readers to follow her worthy example. Stirring and thought-provoking, this one will set many young people on their own paths to activism. (Memoir. 11-15)
COPYRIGHT(2023) Kirkus Reviews, ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.
March 24, 2023
Grades 4-7 Brown's memoir, adapted from her 2018 book for adult readers, opens with a look back into her first realization of her own Blackness and what that means for her in America, a country built for and structured around whiteness. In her mostly white schools, Brown highlights a series of racial reckonings that made her realize her otherness. As a child, Brown encounters microaggressions that build over time and eventually culminate when she is called a racial slur. As Brown got older, she experienced a shift in the way she saw herself, and she learned what it was to claim her voice as a Black woman. Brown's words are automatically relatable to Black readers. For other readers, she expertly shines a light on what it is to be a young Black girl growing up in America. Brown expertly creates a text that garners a necessary discussion around activism, self-love, and acceptance.
COPYRIGHT(2023) Booklist, ALL RIGHTS RESERVED.