A review by kayleeaspen
Black Is the Body: Stories from My Grandmother's Time, My Mother's Time, and Mine by Emily Bernard

5.0

MUST READ! Emily Bernard changed my life with her essays. Bernard taught me what it means to not take things personally, and this revelation came at the most perfect time in my life. Speaking from her experiences, Bernard invites readers into her childhood, her grandmother's childhood, and her mother's childhood through the stories of racism and struggles. However, this collection of essays is not solely based around racism, although it (of course) is a major theme embedded throughout her essays. She also explains the adoption of her twin daughters from Ethiopia, which, as a woman who wants to adopt in the future, really hit home for me. She speaks of the shame and guilt she felt for not quite wanting to birth her own children, and I feel like that is not talked about nearly enough. Also, as a biracial woman, I could relate to Bernard's experiences of living in a very White space, as I was raised by my White mother in a very White city in the south. Overall, these essays are worth the read, and everyone will be able to relate to some piece of Bernard's experiences.