Well-Read Black Girl

August 15, 2018
A book club founder and creative strategist gathers pieces from distinguished black females to celebrate "the legacy of Black women in literature," which is "extensive, diverse, and beautifully complicated."Well-Read Black Girl founder Edim writes that "[s]torytelling is an extension of [African-American] sisterhood." In this book, she highlights black literary achievement by offering first-person narratives from noted writers, activists, and intellectuals along with recommendations for further reading. In each essay, the contributor discusses her relationships to reading, books, and the world, yet each bears the unique experiential imprint of the woman who wrote it. In "Magic Mirrors," two-time National Book Award-winning novelist Jesmyn Ward explores storytelling and representation. A favorite childhood book--Jennifer, Hecate, Macbeth, William McKinley and Me, Elizabeth--depicted a rarity for that time: a black girl who "harbor[ed] the power of magic." But because the girl did not narrate her own story, Ward felt cheated. Only after she began writing her own stories was she able to find the "mirror" literature had been unable to offer her. Edim's interview with Rebecca Walker deals less with literary reflections and more with the truth-telling power of words. Walker discusses how witnessing a man beating a woman in the street and then writing about the incident for her high school newspaper made her aware of just how important storytelling could be. It could give voice to the voiceless and socially marginalized and spotlight those "challenging the status quo." Barbara Smith, lesbian activist and co-founder of Kitchen Table: Women of Color Press, discusses how reading saved her during the culturally repressive 1950s and how her own awakening came after reading the works and "miraculous language" of James Baldwin--in particular, his hetero- and homosexually explicit novel Another Country. Candid and thoughtful from start to finish, Edim's collection amply celebrates the many paths black women have traveled on the road to self-definition. Other contributors include Tayari Jones, Jacqueline Woodson, Nicole Dennis-Benn, and N.K. Jesimin.An eloquently provocative anthology.

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October 22, 2018
Started in 2015 as an Instagram page, Well-Read Black Girl has grown into a nationwide book club and Brooklyn literary festival. WRBG founder Edim’s collection of brief, pithy, and original essays by 21 distinguished black women addresses the question, “When did you first see yourself in literature?” The answers include discovering “the right book at the right time,” reading a book first through one lens and later through another, and recognizing oneself in figures as seemingly far removed from one’s experience as Hans Christian Andersen’s little match girl. As expected, a pantheon of black women writers are acknowledged, with Veronica Chambers, Marita Golden, and Jamia Wilson paying tribute to, respectively, Jamaica Kincaid, Zora Neale Hurston, and Nikki Giovanni. There are thought-provoking surprises as well: Stephanie Powell Watts recalls finding inspiration in the Jehovah’s Witnesses magazine Watchtower, and N.K. Jemisin in J.R.R. Tolkien’s Lord of the Rings trilogy. The book’s thematic organization—sections include “Books on Black Feminism,” “Plays by Black Women,” and “Poetry by Black Women”—makes it easy for readers to dive in based on personal preferences, though they could just as contentedly read from cover to cover. Speaking directly to black women readers, this book contains a journey from which anyone can derive enjoyment and benefit.

November 1, 2018

An invigorating anthology edited by the founder of book club and online group Well-Read Black Girl. Black women writers across genres and generations share moments of strength, joy, grief, and vulnerability in response to the question, "When did you first see yourself in literature?" Renée Watson's "Space to Move Around In" explores racism, fatphobia, and the author's unexpected discovery of Lucille Clifton from a disinterested white teacher, while Dhonielle Clayton muses on coming out, loss, and Black girlhood in "The Need for Kisses." Teens will gravitate to recurring themes of self-discovery, pursuing creative ambitions, and building rich inner worlds to escape hardship. Some sensitive topics are addressed that may benefit from further discussion, including abortion and abuse. The emotive entries from well-known and emerging creators read quickly but are worth savoring and visiting many times over. Interspersed are "Well-Read Black Girl Recommends" lists including the book club's 2015-2018 selections, sci-fi and fantasy books, poetry, and more by Black women. Closing out the collection is the eminently helpful "All the Books in this Book" list, which simultaneously compiles all titles referenced and shapes a contemporary Black women's literary canon for avid readers and the classroom curriculum. VERDICT A stellar example of an accessible text about writing as craft, and reading as transformative practice.-Ashleigh Williams, School Library Journal

Copyright 2018 School Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

October 1, 2018
By reading Eloise Greenfield's Honey, I Love and Other Love Poems (1978) to her daughter, Edim's mother seeded in her an abiding passion for reading and profound appreciation for the work of black women writers. So ardent a reader is Edim, her partner presented her with a T-shirt declaring her a Well-Read Black Girl. The responses this evoked in New York inspired Edim to create an online book community, a national book club, and a literary festival. The creative and affirming synergy these projects have generated is embodied in this vital anthology, zestfully introduced by Edim, of personal essays by 21 black women writers who share memories about their girlhoods and early reading experiences and reflect on why they write and which writer has influenced them most. Tayari Jones muses on Toni Morrison, Veronica Chambers on Jamaica Kincaid, Marita Golden on Zora Neale Hurston. Other contributors include Jesmyn Ward, Stephanie Powell Watts, and N. K. Jemisin. Well-Read Black Girl Recommends reading lists covering various themes and genres add to the reach and radiance of this empowering literary resource.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2018, American Library Association.)

Starred review from October 15, 2018

Edim, creator of the Brooklyn-based Well-Read Black Girl (WRBG) book club, invites readers to discover uplifting stories by black women writers in this thoughtfully edited anthology. Part essay, part interview, and part bibliography, this compilation gathers inspiring literacy narratives from major contemporary authors such as National Book Award winner Jesmyn Ward (Salvage the Bones), Veronica Chambers (Mama's Girl), and Jacqueline Woodson (Another Brooklyn) to reveal the influences that have shaped them as writers and also to give greater visibility to their literary contributions. VERDICT This work affirms the transformative power of reading. Bibliophiles will find it hard to put down, and their reading lists expanding. All English teachers should take note and consult. [See Prepub Alert, 4/9/18; Editors' Fall Picks, LJ 8/18, p. 27.]--Meagan Lacy, Guttman Community Coll., CUNY

Copyright 2018 Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

October 15, 2018

Founder of Well-Read Black Girl (WRBG), a Brooklyn-based book club and digital platform that celebrates black literature and sisterhood, Edim curates original essays by black women writers on the joys and the importance of seeing themselves in books.

Copyright 2018 Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

Starred review from November 1, 2018

An invigorating anthology edited by the founder of book club and online group Well-Read Black Girl. Black women writers across genres and generations share moments of strength, joy, grief, and vulnerability in response to the question, "When did you first see yourself in literature?" Ren�e Watson's "Space to Move Around In" explores racism, fatphobia, and the author's unexpected discovery of Lucille Clifton from a disinterested white teacher, while Dhonielle Clayton muses on coming out, loss, and Black girlhood in "The Need for Kisses." Teens will gravitate to recurring themes of self-discovery, pursuing creative ambitions, and building rich inner worlds to escape hardship. Some sensitive topics are addressed that may benefit from further discussion, including abortion and abuse. The emotive entries from well-known and emerging creators read quickly but are worth savoring and visiting many times over. Interspersed are "Well-Read Black Girl Recommends" lists including the book club's 2015-2018 selections, sci-fi and fantasy books, poetry, and more by Black women. Closing out the collection is the eminently helpful "All the Books in this Book" list, which simultaneously compiles all titles referenced and shapes a contemporary Black women's literary canon for avid readers and the classroom curriculum. VERDICT A stellar example of an accessible text about writing as craft, and reading as transformative practice.-Ashleigh Williams, School Library Journal

Copyright 2018 School Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.