AmericanahDiscussion

Americanah | Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie

Thank you all so much for a wonderful discussion on Americanah this month!!

How'd you like the book overall? How would you rate it?

🍋If you didn't get a chance to participate in this month's discussion you can find the questions under the hashtag #AmericanahDiscussion & go back to add your thoughts.

🍋You can find articles & content related to the book under #AmericanahContent.

🍋Feel free to also leave feedback below!

BookishFeminist, rachelm

Notafraidofwords Totally a pick. My favorite part was the ending. He picked a side. I needed that. 8y

mllemay Pick for me! There could have been a bit less focus on the romantic relationships for me - I didn't find them to be the most interesting parts of the book - but still a great story overall that made me think and question a lot of things 👍🏻 8y

InLibrisVeritas Definitely a pick for me! My favorite was the focus on coming to love and accept natural beauty for all its differences. It's something I've struggled with and something I see my family struggle with, so it hits close to home. ❤️ 8y

See All 11 Comments

mauveandrosysky I was meh about the relationship stuff but Ifemelu's story and her commentary on race were so excellent that I'm recommending it to everyone! 8y

Hooked_on_books A pick for sure. Great character arc, great "outsiders" perspective on race in America. I'm so glad I read it. 8y

Chessa Definite pick! I loved Ifemelu's perspective the most, and sometimes found myself frustrated when it switched to Obinze (even though I liked him!). Her perspectives on race in the US were just so thought provoking and incisive. 8y

little.miss.books It's a definite pick for me because I loved the book. Although I preffered Ifemelu story better than that of Obinze. It was my first Chimamanda book and now I have to read everything else 😄😄 8y

Canadian.Reads Finally finished it last night... And still wondering if I am pronouncing Ifemelu right in my head. Definitely a pick for me. An important read for so many reasons and everybody should. The perspective on race by Ifem and her experience was eye opening. It gave words to many feelings and answers to many questions and thoughts I've had about racism in Canada. 🌟🌟🌟🌟🌟 can't wait to read more from Adiche 8y

Posemn Life took hold this week and I was not able to follow the discussion so thanks for the discussion hashtag. I think this book is a definite read and I will recommend it to anyone that will listen. I read it more as a political novel and I know many @litsy readers read it as a feminist novel. Either way the book has a lot to offer! Loved it. 8y

KVanRead Definitely a pick for the incredible character of Ifem and her brilliant and eye-opening observations on race, gender 8y

KVanRead ...and belonging. I definitely want to take a page or two from her book and be less reticent to speak out. This book and Gloria Steinem's latest have both deeply affected and challenged me on these issues. 8y

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LitsyFeministBookClub

Americanah | Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie

Our Americanah discussion is coming to an end! If anyone has any additional questions or content related to this book or Chimamanda let me know and I'm happy to post it.

Question 7—How do gender roles play out in the book in America and Nigeria & between the different characters? Do certain characters embody gender roles more than others? (Question from bookrags.com)

#AmericanahDiscussion

BookishFeminist, rachelm

27 likes

LitsyFeministBookClub

Americanah | Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie

For Question 6!

I thought it would be helpful to have a visual aid to see some of the hairstyles discussed in the book for those unfamiliar with them. These drawings were commissioned by the publisher.

To learn more about black hair, here's a couple other resources:

🍋 Great blog post: http://wp.me/p32l4Y-1a3

🍋 Hair Story: Untangling the Roots of Black Hair in America by Lori Tharps, http://bit.ly/2efpVoi, recommended by @BlackandBookish

BookishFeminist, rachelm

Shortstack I love the quote about how she wanted to spend the entire book talking about hair!! 😂😂😂😂 I really enjoyed the parts where she did talk about it though. 8y

DivineDiana @Shortstack So did I! Fascinating! 8y

LitsyFeministBookClub #AmericanahContent #AmericanahDiscussion 8y

Chessa This is awesome! 8y

68 likes4 comments

LitsyFeministBookClub

Americanah | Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie

Sorry things have been silent the past few days! I've been dealing with a lot at home but I'm extending the discussion an extra day to fit in our last few questions. :)

Question 6—How is hair a symbol and metaphor in the book? (This question is from bookrags.com)

I'm putting up of some hairstyles mentioned in the book in our next post so you can learn more about this topic on your own. It's complex but fascinating! #AmericanahDiscussion

BookishFeminist, rachelm

LastSplash This is one part of the novel that has really stuck with me after reading it- I think about it all the time! 8y

SoniaC I felt that when she embraced natural hair she was really embracing her own sense of self. She stopped trying to fit in or be someone she wasn't but instead nurtured and took good care of her hair/herself. 8y

Shortstack Hair really represents a lot of things within the book: the lack of understanding outsiders have about African American issues, the decision to fit in or embrace oneself, and the rejection by America of things they do not understand are a few things that come to mind. The scene where she has to change her hair for a job interview especially stuck with me. 8y

See All 8 Comments

Notafraidofwords @LastSplash I agree! Plus it's interesting that it is when she is going back home that we see the hair transformation take place. It's like; this is a part of who she needs to become to get back home. 8y

Hooked_on_books I think her hair is a great metaphor and visual depiction of her character arc as she matures and adjusts to life. I found it very realistic for her to make such efforts to change her hair when she was lacking in confidence, then to embrace her natural hair as she came into herself. It really enhanced the story. 8y

BooksForEmpathy Yes, @Shortstack. Hair is so political here in America and it was a perfect way to discuss race and how limiting our ideas of beauty and even appropriateness are. I read this book a long time ago, but I remember being struck by how little awareness I had about black/African-American/African hair. Shame on me. Another clear example of my privilege. Working with high schoolers, I remember listening to one student describe her weekly hair routine. 8y

BooksForEmpathy It was tedious for her and painful, yet there was no alternative she saw. The expectation was to make it straight and shiny and long. It had reminded me of Ifemelu at the time. Books really do help to empathize, and even more importantly, to listen with compassion and gentle curiosity. 8y

mllemay @Shortstack that scene really strucke mw as well. The fact that she had to inflict pain and harm to herself in order to be seen as "professional" enough to get the job is, in my opinion, yet another form of violence against women that comes out of our supposedly evolved western society. 8y

31 likes8 comments

LitsyFeministBookClub

Americanah | Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie

Question 5—Let's talk microaggressions & "political correctness." How were these issues addressed in the book? How do you view this through the lens of your own race and location, either in the US or elsewhere? Has it shed light on some of your own actions or expectations?

?Feel free to discuss here and on the previously posted questions.

#AmericanahDiscussion

BookishFeminist, rachelm

SoniaC I think that yes there is a group that try and act as if race doesn't exist. I feel you can acknowledge differences such as race and or culture in a way that values and respects them. 8y

Caterina That passage struck me because it seems PC on the surface, but as long as we pretend not to notice race, we can't discuss the real issues that exist relating to race, and we can't make any progress at all. It's a way of maintaining the status quo while seeming to be PC. I loved how Adichie frankly called us all out on the insidious ways we try to be smooth things over but actually do more harm than good. It's made me re-evaluate my own attitudes! 8y

ariane.schng I agree that glossing over issues of race only allows us to ignore them. Considering this, I don't feel fully comfortable with identifying people in these situations based on their race. Perhaps this is a problem with my own social conditioning and what i've learned can and can not be said. I think a major recurring theme in the book is the disparity between people's intentions and the reality of their political actions, and PC culture is a target 8y

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Bookish.Leftist.Auntie @Caterina I agree! I feel that we definitely do more harm than good pretending to be colorblind. Instead of pretending that we are all some neutral shade, doesn't it make more sense to embrace all of what we all are? Humans come in countless shapes, sizes and colors. I've actually been in long term relationships with someone of a different race several times and believe in order to love about someone you have to truly see them. 8y

rachelm @SoniaC @Caterina totally agree. It's the thing that drives me crazy when people say they are "colorblind". People have different races-- to ignore that treats race like something you think someone should be ashamed of or that you think the default is white. 8y

BeththeBookDragon I definitely feel like there is pressure not to identify the black Miss Katie at my son's daycare instead of the white white Miss Katie , and that I should call them the tall and short one. Even thought I feel weird about it, I've started refusing to do that. 8y

Simona I'm from Slovenia and if I go on holiday to America my reaction would be exactly the same - color and racial blind for the simple reason, because I don't know anymore what it is for someone insulting and unacceptable and what kind of term is appropriate. So, I belong among the blind white liberals with good intentions pretending that problems doesn't exists! 8y

38 likes7 comments

LitsyFeministBookClub

Americanah | Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie

Question 4—How does Kimberly & other white people as perceived & portrayed by Ifemelu exemplify liberal white guilt? Both toward Africa & Africans but also toward black people in the US? What effect does it have on Ifemelu & other Africans or black Americans?

🍋Feel free to discuss here and on the previously posted questions.

#AmericanahDiscussion

BookishFeminist, rachelm

mauveandrosysky This is such a tough question. I'm still learning in many ways, so I don't even have a good answer. That said, one of the things I loved most about the book was that Adichie didn't let anyone off the hook — even white liberals with their (our) good intentions. I like that she didn't hesitate to call white liberals out for white fragility and for the uncomfortable ways that white guilt can manifest. 8y

Caterina Before I started reading this book, I wasn't familiar with concepts like white liberal guilt, and most of the problematic ways white people relate to race in the book, I wouldn't have realized were problematic. My background is more like Aunty Uju in the small Massachusetts town with white people professing colorblindness, which I hadn't realized was so problematic. Needless to say, an extremely eye-opening book!! 8y

Caterina I found it especially eye-opening how many seemingly harmless ways white people interact with black people about issues of race actually focus only on the white person, on their thoughts and feelings and needs, and devalue and push to the side those of the black person, all while masquerading as a proper liberal, non-racist way to deal with racial issues. 8y

See All 8 Comments

SoniaC Good Question. I think Kim represents white liberal guilt fairly strongly but I also think part of the problem goes back to only having one story of Africa. 8y

Simona For me personally expression of white liberal guilt is a new term and perfectly covers the "good purposes of good people" who don't want to see the problems(ch12 p127, ch14 p137) (I think that Kimberly is a exemplary model for this, ch15 p146) or they don't dare to ask the questions, ? 8y

Simona because the answer would embarrass them, made them uncomfortable. Guilt is an emotion very close to a patronizing attitude. Such a attitude raises anger, a sense of inferiority and it is insulting but looks very innocent and harmless (ch 17 p175). 8y

TheNextBook This is a difficult question especially when you know someone has good intentions. It's funny because recently I had a friend post "If you have a black friend that you havent had a conversation about race with, that person isnt a friend. It's an acquaintance." I agree with that statement because I want to be able to have an honest conversation about race. Sometimes people don't realize when they are being racist or just completely insensisitive... 8y

TheNextBook There were things Kim couldnt say because there was a line she didnt want to cross because they weren't close. She was uncomfortable because she was afraid of what would happen if she were honest. 8y

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LitsyFeministBookClub

Americanah | Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie

Question 3—How does Ifemelu struggle with her Nigerian culture in America and also with what she has adopted from America when she goes home to Nigeria? How does this conflict shape her character? Does it resonate with you?

🍋Feel free to discuss here and on the question posted last night.

#AmericanahDiscussion

Notafraidofwords Hmm. I think she truly adopts a comparison. I mean now she knows America, she can compare. That is a sort of a privilege within itself. She also takes this sense of independence of being a woman doing it on her own. That's why I loved the part where she talked about missing Ceiling, but being able to live without him. Being able to accept that. That was powerful. 8y

Chessa I was struck by her self proclaimed "conservative" values around child-rearing! How something about how children should/shouldn't be in the world was so ingrained that a new culture could not touch it. As a parent who questions traditional American parenting culture (often for being too conservative!), I found this fascinating. 8y

TheNextBook @Notafraidofwords I agree. I'm not going to say that she conquered America and the fears she had when she came but I think she definitely learned what America represented for her. That knowledge was enough for her to go back to Nigeria with a commanding voice and confidence. 8y

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Notafraidofwords @Chessa I agree. I do not necessarily agree with how she thought 💭 about children. For example, she said something about not giving children choices and I don't really agree with that. But understood where she was coming from. 8y

Chessa @Notafraidofwords Yeah, it was definitely an interesting insight into another parenting paradigm! I really haven't read much about parenting values of different cultures, so it just kind of smacked me in the face - that this was one of the things that she just couldn't let go of. 8y

mllemay I think she portrayed the feeling of not belonging to either place when you initially return somewhere really accurately. There's always this weird adjustment period where you have to figure out how to meld your "before" and "after" identities and I'm glad she didn't gloss over that. 8y

Notafraidofwords @Chessa I know. What I found awkward was the explanation of how kids from divorced parents are just fine. Speaking from experience, I wished and prayed many times for my parents to split when I was growing up. Yet, because of their traditional values they did not. So the opposite was harmful. 8y

ultrabookgeek It's so easy to give in and make yourself like others around you. What's interesting is that sometimes assimilation is essential to surviving intact bodily while creating a division of self. It's so easy to judge yourself and hold yourself to some standard, but I think you learn best sometimes when you fail yourself and you see where your values really lie. 8y

mhillis I was really interested in the connection between language and identity for not only Ifemelu, but also the other characters. For example, about Nicholas: "He spoke to them only in English, careful English, as though he thought that the Igbo he shared with their mother would infect them, perhaps make them lose their precious British accents." 8y

Yamich49 I think this is a good example of realizing that she was judging herself based on American values i.e. proud that she sounded "American" and not like an "immigrant." When she was proud of herself for it, I think it really made her realize that she was starting to adopt some "American" views on things. That part made her feel guilty because she was judging herself based on values that were not hers or her culture and that she didn't really respect. 8y

Chessa @Notafraidofwords @BookishFeminist do you guys follow Adichie on FB? I just saw this post and was blown away. So so good. https://www.facebook.com/chimamandaadichie/posts/10154412708460944 8y

BookishFeminist @Chessa I do but I am NEVER on Facebook. That website stresses me the heck out! Just looked at that piece though and OMG. She's the best. Is that letter fiction or is it written in response to someone? 8y

Notafraidofwords @Chessa omg this is amazing. I just read it. She's so rad. 8y

EloisaJames What a great essay--she's such a warrior! 8y

Hooked_on_books What resonates for me is the feeling of not belonging. It's such a universal concept and so true when in a new place. In a foreign place, you want to retain who you are while not standing out as too "different" and that struggle is very real and nuanced for Ifemelu. This makes the story so real and the reader able to understand better by relating to some degree. 8y

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LitsyFeministBookClub

Americanah | Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie

You guys are having awesome discussion! I'll be joining you later on.

Question 2- Does Ifemelu's split between Princeton & Trenton signify a greater split between her life in the US vs Nigeria? How? Does this dichotomy resolve?

🍋Feel free to discuss here and on the question posted last night.

🍋Feel free to discuss as specifically or as generally as you want or if you haven't finished or read it in a while. All welcome! #AmericanahDiscussion

BookishFeminist, rachelm

TheNextBook I think it represents her own natural divide and the fact that she can adjust to many different circumastances. She sees the reality of both Princeton and Trenton and recognizes the flaws in both. Aware of those differences she is prepared to exist in both. 8y

AmberJoy @TheNextBook ooo that's a good point and I don't think I even saw that. 8y

TheNextBook @AmberJoy This book has so many different layers. The more I think about it, the more I see. 8y

See All 9 Comments

KVanRead @TheNextBook @AmberJoy Agree. And I think her comfort with it is related to her US/Nigeria divide...once you are already the other, you can become more comfortable with otherness. You sort of accept being in a place but not of it and vice versa. 8y

DivineDiana Yes, I do think that it is an indication of her struggle to keep her essence. I haven't finished yet, but I know things did not happen as she planned. I feel she wants to go home to see if she has made the right choice. 8y

Simona Even Ifemelu has some of prejudices (against women from other African countries, hair salons in her vicinity are '' few black locals she had seen were so light-skinned and lank-haired '' and ''he was eating an ice cream cone; she had always found it a little irresponsible, the eating of ice cream cones by grown-up American men ''). Princeton, where the majority of population is white, this is not her home, there she just live and '' she could...👇 8y

Simona pretend to be someone else, someone specially admitted into a hallowed American club''. And I think that this internal split between living in American culture and bearing Nigerian culture is the reason for moving back Home. She reach hers goal, she is successful ''and yet there was cement in her soul.'' She isn't neither the American nor the Nigerian anymore. She lost herself. 8y

KVanRead @Simona Very good point. I think you're right. 8y

ultrabookgeek When you grow up surrounded by people who look and speak as you do, you feel like a part of the community, even when you don't act in line with how your culture expects you to. Moving to a new place and seeing different facets of people who look like you but you don't understand, creates a different you to deal with it. 8y

26 likes9 comments

LitsyFeministBookClub

Americanah | Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie

Welcome to discussion week of AMERICANAH!! We're excited to discuss this amazing book with you guys & have loved seeing everyone's statuses!

Question 1—why is it important to have, as Adichie puts it, a non-American black perspective on race & black culture in America?

🍋Feel free to discuss as specifically or as generally as you want & jump in if you you haven't finished it yet or read it in a while. All are welcome! #AmericanahDiscussion

BookishFeminist, rachelm

LitsyFeministBookClub 🍋Track one of us down if you have questions about anything or suggestions for questions to ask this week! I'm happy to post your questions as I want this to be as open an environment as possible. You can DM us on Twitter or Goodreads & I'm also on Instagram. Our contact info is in our profiles. You can also email litsyfeministbookclub@gmail!😀

🍋If anyone at anytime feels unsafe please let me know. I want this to be a safe environment for all. 8y

LitsyFeministBookClub 🍋Most importantly, HAVE FUN!! Have fun listening to and learning from each other. We learn the most through empathy & discussion. 8y

Shortstack Race, in America especially, has become such a complicated topic. Adichie speaks about it so candidly that it was really refreshing and impossible not to have an impact on the world around you. Her insights, especially into the at best awkward/ignorant and at worst harmful/hateful encounters African Americans have with white people was especially eye opening. 8y

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Shortstack I found myself outraged so often while reading this! And also I found myself cringing as I could hear real people I know saying some of the things said in the book. It was truly heartbreaking at times to see the every day racism and makes me want to read everything by Adichie to soak up her insight. 8y

BookishFeminist @Shortstack I agree! Heartbreaking and also scathing at the same time. I think Adichie and the narrator Ifemelu function as a fly on the wall of America, especially being entrenched in Princeton culture. She sees and divulges it all. Painful but necessary to hear. 8y

Notafraidofwords I really enjoyed her perspective, because in a way she was a foreigner to America. So, her perspectives felt fresh and new. I enjoyed that part. 8y

Shortstack @BookishFeminist Ifemelu is really the perfect narrator for these issues. Her outsider perspective reveals the "oddity" of racism in America. It shows, even more so, how racism is not an automatic in any culture, but something created by particular cultures. This makes the upsetting things she discusses all the more appalling. 8y

MMenefee Ifemelu says she didn't know she was black because where she came from everyone is black which really struck me as a fascinating perspective. 8y

mllemay @Shortstack I agree that Ifemelu's was probably the perfect viewpoint for these issues - she was simultaneously an outsider and an insider. It was such an enraging reading experience. The divide is so great and the racism and judgment so entrenched...how does a society change that? It makes me feel a bit helpless honestly. 8y

TheNextBook @Shortstack so much of what you said is right on point. I loved Ifemelu's point of view as a Non-American because I think people fail to realize how easily anyone with a certain skin tone is placed into a group they may not belong to. And it's so unsettling. As a Non American she was able to point that out and it really emphasizes how we judge others. 8y

TheNextBook Can I just say how much I loved every single one of her blog post! It felt like I was having a very in-depth discussion about race every time we saw a different post. 8y

TheNextBook @mllemay we change that by having these types of honest discussions about race. It isn't hopeless but people have to be open and willing to think about personal experiences that vary from their own. Racism exist because so many people choose to turn a blind eye and pretend it isnt happening because they don't experience it. 8y

Shortstack @TheNextBook Her blog posts were the best! My favorite parts as well!! They made me wish I could read every post she had ever written! 8y

TheNextBook @Shortstack right?! It was perfection. 8y

TheNextBook This is one of those books that I wish I could recommend to my white friends/family members that see absolutely nothing wrong with whats going on in the United States right now. Racism never went away, it simply went underground and formed communities on the internet. 8y

Shortstack @TheNextBook I am trying to get my more conservative family members to read it. This election has been eye opening for me personally at how alive racism is in current America. Not that I thought it was gone, but it has been so ugly seeing it so prevalent. My favorite line of the book was "Racism should never have happened so you don't get a cookie for making it better." So important to remember in modern day America. 8y

sparklemotion @MMenefee I loved this quote, and I think it explained perfectly why her perspective was different from people in the USA. 8y

TheNextBook @Shortstack exactly! This election has been very eye opening and disheartening. There are people that I have in my life, that I almost feel betrayed by. Like, did they ever love me or was I just "safe" and/or "different" because I'm married to a white man? Because they obviously dont empathize or understand any of my personal experiences as a black woman and almost try to discredit them. 8y

mllemay @TheNextBook yes, people definitely need to stop shying away from hearing about experiences that make them uncomfortable. A lot of people just can't bear having their view of reality challenged. 8y

sparklemotion I think the perspective of an African writer was important because of how different her experience with race was, coming from another country. The contrast of how both countries deal with race made the book richer, and it made the subject more urgent. And for the readers it was easier to learn about race in America from someone who was just "beginning" to experience it. 8y

Shortstack @TheNextBook I'm so sorry to hear that. *hugs* I so wish I could offer advice to getting through to them, but how do you change people who already seem to have their minds made up? 8y

TheNextBook @Shortstack 😒 Honestly, I dont have the answer. I can just see then for who they truly are now. 8y

DragonSadhana I appreciated the candid perspective from an "outsider." It is such a significant contribution to the hot topics currently in debate in the US. I also loved that much of Ifemelu's pondering on her past took place inside a hair salon. That setting belied complexities in topics from hair to immigration to "the American Dream." 8y

TheNextBook @DragonSadhana being in the hair salon with other Non Americans was also an entirely different perspective on immigrating to the US and what that life entails. Really interesting way to widen the scope of the story. Especially knowing that she was planning on returning to Africa. 8y

Tcip He idea here is that learning about race as a white American man is something that I take for granted because I have all of these examples of what is right and wrong; what is appropriate and what is not. As an African woman, she is thrown into this clearly murky relationship called America/race. She is an outsider but treated as if she is apart of he struggle and writes as such. It changes my perspective as a someone who isn't in that conversation 8y

SoniaC I felt that her being African gave a strong perspective to how innate racism is. Until she arrived race was a non issue then suddenly it becomes in a way everything. Her blog posts were dynamic and thought provoking. Her and Blaine's different understandings and approaches to the subject were enlightening. I wish I could get everyone to read this. We still have so far to go to achieve equality. 8y

InLibrisVeritas I really appreciated the sort of "outside looking in" view the story gave. It has a rather blunt nature and calls out the focus on face, and how it shapes so much of the mentality in the US. It made really made me think about my family dynamic (mixed), and it definitely made me notice the emphasis on changing appearance and by connection identity. 8y

whatthelog For me it added another whole layer of nuance that I hadn't previously considered before - there's a lot of food for thought. It definitely allowed Ifemulu to perceive aspects of race in the US that Americans perhaps can't fully distance themselves from. (And like everyone else, I was a HUGE fan of her blog!) 8y

rachelm @nextbook @Shortstack @mllemay I thought it was especially interesting to read about the election of Obama from a non-American perspective and how that became the bonding point for her boyfriend and herself. Obama's ability to bring unity... I'm going to miss that... 😢 8y

Simona For me, as a non-American it's hard to talk about the problems that I don't know in deep. But what shocked me in this book is the realization how universal is the message of the book, and how easily it is to mirror the every day racism (I dare to say) in each country. 8y

KVanRead @TheNextBook @Shortstack @BookishFeminist @Notafraidofwords @MMenefee @mllemay @heartlesstree @DragonSadhana @Tcip @SoniaC @InLibrisVeritas @whatthelog @rachelm @simona What a fabulous discussion —loved all your comments and insights. I haven't finished (the debate killed my whole night:() but wanted to add I love how at the beauty salon and the ASU we get to see more than one Africa, how not only is there a difference btwn US and Non-US black... 8y

KVanRead ...experience but btwn the many, many cultures within Africa that are too frequently lumped together. And how the hairstylists are also guilty of bias and misconceptions against not only Americans but other Africans too. As a white immigrant to the US, my experience is so different from Ifemelu's. I find that outrageous and upsetting but I can also really identify with many of her non race related outsider experiences. Part of the beauty of... 8y

KVanRead ...many voices sharing our experiences is finding that common ground. 8y

AmberJoy I think it was perfect. She was an outsider but she's correct once you're here then you are considered black...you may not have the same experience but from her experience it seems like you're treated the same. I found her very relatable and im from the states 8y

DivineDiana I also had not considered the prejudices within Africa of the different countries. Eye opening for me. 8y

bookandcat This book is a masterclass in pointing out microaggressions, and telling it in her "outsider" perspective means that some white Americans might better understand her POV/the concept of those microaggressions because they might not feel as instantly defensive (unfortunate that it takes that POV shift for the message to be heard). The narrative thread of "hair" gives a nice touchstone to measure norms and perceptions and how they change (or don't). 8y

Hooked_on_books I think the mere reveal of Ifemelu as different for being a non-American black was a great way to start to delve into this topic. It's honestly not something I'd thought of before and starting a long string of "huh" and "what?!?" as I read the book. This was such a powerful perspective to read. 8y

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