Very Inspirational

I liked everything about this book. Experiences, thoughts, opinions, and so on are beautifully narrated and very inspiring. Highly recommend!

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Great to hear it!

Great to hear different perspectives and different versions of who a 'loud black girl' is.

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Really interesting points of view

Great narration and diverse topics. Definitely recommend for anyone who enjoys listening to personal essays

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Highly recommend

As excellent as the first book!! Very inspiring and can't wait for the next book to come 👑👑👑

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1 person found this helpful

Loud Black Girls

I listened to 𝗟𝗢𝗨𝗗 𝗕𝗟𝗔𝗖𝗞 𝗚𝗜𝗥𝗟𝗦 from Slay in Your Lane as an audiobook, and was also approved to read an electronic copy of the book on Netgalley. Thank you to 4th Estate for approving my request to read this fantastic collection of essays from 20 black, British, women writers, collated by Yomi Adegoke and Elizabeth Uviebinené.
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𝗕𝗲𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗮 𝗹𝗼𝘂𝗱 𝗯𝗹𝗮𝗰𝗸 𝗴𝗶𝗿𝗹 𝗶𝘀𝗻'𝘁 𝗮𝗯𝗼𝘂𝘁 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝘃𝗼𝗹𝘂𝗺𝗲 𝗼𝗳 𝘆𝗼𝘂𝗿 𝘃𝗼𝗶𝗰𝗲; 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝘂𝘀𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝘆𝗼𝘂𝗿 𝘃𝗼𝗶𝗰𝗲 𝗱𝗼𝗲𝘀𝗻'𝘁 𝗮𝗹𝘄𝗮𝘆𝘀 𝗺𝗲𝗮𝗻 𝘀𝗽𝗲𝗮𝗸𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗹𝗼𝘂𝗱𝗲𝘀𝘁 𝗼𝗿 𝗱𝗼𝗺𝗶𝗻𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗿𝗼𝗼𝗺. 𝗠𝗼𝘀𝘁 𝗼𝗳 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝘁𝗶𝗺𝗲 𝗶𝘁’𝘀 𝘀𝗶𝗺𝗽𝗹𝘆 𝗲𝘅𝗶𝘀𝘁𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗮𝘀 𝘆𝗼𝘂𝗿 𝗮𝘂𝘁𝗵𝗲𝗻𝘁𝗶𝗰 𝘀𝗲𝗹𝗳 𝗶𝗻 𝗮 𝘄𝗼𝗿𝗹𝗱 𝘁𝗵𝗮𝘁 𝗶𝘀 𝗰𝗼𝗻𝘀𝘁𝗮𝗻𝘁𝗹𝘆 𝘁𝗿𝘆𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝘁𝗼 𝘁𝗲𝗹𝗹 𝘆𝗼𝘂 𝘁𝗼 𝗺𝗶𝗻𝗶𝗺𝗶𝘀𝗲 𝘄𝗵𝗼 𝘆𝗼𝘂 𝗮𝗿𝗲.
Elizabeth Uviebinené.
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Loud Black Girls is, quite simply, a book everyone should read and listen to. And it should be read/heard with open-mindedness and empathy, not defensiveness.
It should be no surprise to anyone in the 21st Century to hear stories of how the society we live in is a racist one. However, it may be a surprise to learn all the nuanced ways that racism is exploited for capital gain, and hopefully it may change the way you think, and certainly should change the way you behave online.
And by that, I don't mean being conscious about what you say in an effort to not be racist - that's a given. We all need to take a step back from the world of social media at times, and consider how we are being emotionally manipulated, before we blindly share the latest outrage post or negative news article.
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𝗧𝗵𝗲𝗿𝗲 𝗶𝘀 𝗮 𝗿𝘂𝗻𝗻𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝘁𝗵𝗲𝗼𝗿𝘆 𝘁𝗵𝗮𝘁, 𝗮𝘀 𝘁𝗵𝗲𝘆 𝘄𝗮𝗸𝗲 𝘂𝗽 𝘁𝗼 𝗵𝗼𝘄 𝗽𝗼𝘄𝗲𝗿𝗳𝘂𝗹 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝘃𝗼𝗶𝗰𝗲𝘀 𝗼𝗳 𝗯𝗹𝗮𝗰𝗸 𝘄𝗼𝗺𝗲𝗻 𝗶𝗻 𝗽𝗮𝗿𝘁𝗶𝗰𝘂𝗹𝗮𝗿 𝗮𝗿𝗲 𝗯𝗲𝗰𝗼𝗺𝗶𝗻𝗴, 𝘀𝗼𝗺𝗲 𝗯𝗿𝗮𝗻𝗱𝘀 𝗮𝗿𝗲 𝘂𝘀𝗶𝗻𝗴 ‘𝗯𝗹𝗮𝗰𝗸 𝗼𝘂𝘁𝗿𝗮𝗴𝗲’ 𝗮𝘀 𝗮 𝗺𝗮𝗿𝗸𝗲𝘁𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗴𝗶𝗺𝗺𝗶𝗰𝗸. 𝗡𝗮𝗺𝗲𝗹𝘆, 𝘁𝗵𝗲𝘆 𝗰𝗿𝗲𝗮𝘁𝗲 𝘀𝗼𝗺𝗲 𝗶𝗻𝘀𝗲𝗻𝘀𝗶𝘁𝗶𝘃𝗲 𝗼𝗿 𝘁𝗼𝗻𝗲-𝗱𝗲𝗮𝗳 𝗰𝗮𝗺𝗽𝗮𝗶𝗴𝗻, 𝘂𝗻𝗹𝗲𝗮𝘀𝗵 𝗶𝘁 𝗼𝗻 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝘂𝗻𝘀𝘂𝘀𝗽𝗲𝗰𝘁𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗽𝘂𝗯𝗹𝗶𝗰 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝘄𝗮𝗶𝘁 𝗳𝗼𝗿 𝗕𝗹𝗮𝗰𝗸 𝗧𝘄𝗶𝘁𝘁𝗲𝗿 𝘁𝗼 𝗴𝗲𝘁 𝗲𝗻𝗿𝗮𝗴𝗲𝗱. 𝗧𝗵𝗶𝘀 𝗼𝘂𝘁𝗿𝗮𝗴𝗲 𝘁𝗵𝗲𝗻 𝗯𝗿𝗶𝗻𝗴𝘀 𝗺𝗼𝗿𝗲 𝗮𝘄𝗮𝗿𝗲𝗻𝗲𝘀𝘀 𝘁𝗼 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗯𝗿𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗽𝗿𝗼𝗱𝘂𝗰𝘁 𝗶𝗻 𝗾𝘂𝗲𝘀𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻, 𝗯𝗲𝗰𝗮𝘂𝘀𝗲 𝗻𝗼𝘁𝗵𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝘀𝗽𝗿𝗲𝗮𝗱𝘀 𝗮𝘀 𝗾𝘂𝗶𝗰𝗸𝗹𝘆 𝗮𝘀 𝗯𝗮𝗱 𝗻𝗲𝘄𝘀.
Jendella Benson
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Loud Black Girls does, understandably, include views that are rooted in frustration, especially in a post-Brexit Britain and a post-Trump world.
It covers some very specific modern instances of where racism has been perpetuated, including how the press and a significant portion of the British public have treated Meghan Markle, and the outrageous response to Halle Bailey being cast as Ariel for an upcoming live action movie of The Little Mermaid; If you have an issue with a black women being cast as a fictional creature like a mermaid, you really need to stop and consider why you hold that view.
But the collection does also focus on black joy and hope, and on recognising the legacy of each of the amazing women who have contributed to this anthology.
I especially loved hearing the stories about family, and love, and Princess Peace's grandfather, in particular, seemed like a wonderful man.
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𝗛𝗲 𝗿𝗲𝗺𝗶𝗻𝗱𝗲𝗱 𝗺𝗲, 𝗾𝘂𝗶𝗲𝘁𝗹𝘆 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗶𝗻 𝗬𝗼𝗿𝘂𝗯𝗮, 𝘁𝗵𝗮𝘁 𝗻𝗼 𝗺𝗮𝘁𝘁𝗲𝗿 𝘄𝗵𝗮𝘁 𝗺𝘆 𝗻𝗲𝘅𝘁 𝘀𝘁𝗲𝗽𝘀 𝗺𝗮𝘆 𝗯𝗲, ‘𝗬𝗼𝘂 𝘀𝗵𝗼𝘂𝗹𝗱 𝗯𝗲 𝗽𝗿𝗼𝘂𝗱 𝗼𝗳 𝘄𝗵𝗮𝘁 𝘆𝗼𝘂’𝘃𝗲 𝗮𝗰𝗰𝗼𝗺𝗽𝗹𝗶𝘀𝗵𝗲𝗱 𝘀𝗼 𝗳𝗮𝗿, 𝗯𝗲𝗰𝗮𝘂𝘀𝗲 𝘆𝗼𝘂𝗿 𝘀𝘂𝗰𝗰𝗲𝘀𝘀𝗲𝘀 𝗮𝗿𝗲𝗻’𝘁 𝗷𝘂𝘀𝘁 𝘆𝗼𝘂𝗿𝘀 𝗮𝗹𝗼𝗻𝗲. 𝗧𝗵𝗲𝘆 𝗮𝗿𝗲 𝗽𝗮𝗿𝘁 𝗼𝗳 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗿𝗼𝗮𝗱 𝗹𝗮𝗶𝗱 𝗱𝗼𝘄𝗻 𝗯𝘆 𝗮𝗹𝗹 𝘁𝗵𝗼𝘀𝗲 𝘄𝗵𝗼 𝗰𝗮𝗺𝗲 𝗯𝗲𝗳𝗼𝗿𝗲 𝘆𝗼𝘂. 𝗦𝗼 𝘆𝗼𝘂 𝗵𝗼𝗻𝗼𝘂𝗿 𝘁𝗵𝗲𝗺, 𝘄𝗵𝗲𝗻 𝘆𝗼𝘂 𝗹𝗲𝗮𝗿𝗻 𝘁𝗼 𝗹𝗶𝘃𝗲 𝗹𝗶𝗳𝗲 𝗮𝘀 𝗹𝗼𝘂𝗱 𝗮𝘀 𝗟𝗮𝗴𝗼𝘀 𝘁𝗿𝗮𝗳𝗳𝗶𝗰.’
Princess Peace
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There is no doubt that family can evoke complex feelings, and that how we are treated as children does have lasting effects on us as an adult.
It's wonderful to hear stories of all women, and how they are raising their children to be independent and strong, but especially amazing to hear stories of brave young girls, and their mothers who are breaking cycles of oppression that can be rooted in both gender and race - especially when these stories also highlight the wonderful male role models that support this change, like Candice Braithwaite, and her Grandad and Husband.
In sharing her story about her daughter, and about how her daughter shows her family respect without agenda, Braithwaite's pride and love resonates off the page, and hearing about her daughter's innocence and kindness really moved me.
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𝗯𝗲𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝘀𝗲𝗲𝗻 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗻𝗼𝘁 𝗵𝗲𝗮𝗿𝗱 𝘂𝘀𝘂𝗮𝗹𝗹𝘆 𝗹𝗲𝗮𝗱𝘀 𝘁𝗼 𝗳𝗲𝗲𝗹𝗶𝗻𝗴𝘀 𝗼𝗳 𝗶𝗻𝗮𝗱𝗲𝗾𝘂𝗮𝗰𝘆, 𝗼𝗿 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝘀𝗲𝗻𝘀𝗲 𝘁𝗵𝗮𝘁 𝗲𝘃𝗲𝗻 𝗶𝗳 𝘄𝗲 𝗱𝗶𝗱 𝘀𝗽𝗲𝗮𝗸 𝘂𝗽 𝗮𝗯𝗼𝘂𝘁 𝘀𝗼𝗺𝗲𝘁𝗵𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝘄𝗿𝗼𝗻𝗴 𝗵𝗮𝗽𝗽𝗲𝗻𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗮𝗿𝗼𝘂𝗻𝗱 𝗼𝗿 𝘁𝗼 𝘂𝘀, 𝘄𝗲 𝗮𝗿𝗲 𝘂𝗻𝗹𝗶𝗸𝗲𝗹𝘆 𝘁𝗼 𝗯𝗲 𝗯𝗲𝗹𝗶𝗲𝘃𝗲𝗱. 𝗧𝗼 𝗯𝗲 𝗰𝗼𝗻𝘀𝘁𝗮𝗻𝘁𝗹𝘆 𝗵𝘂𝘀𝗵𝗲𝗱 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝘀𝗵𝗼𝗼𝗲𝗱 𝗮𝘄𝗮𝘆 𝗮𝘀 𝗮 𝗰𝗵𝗶𝗹𝗱 𝗺𝗲𝗮𝗻𝘀 𝘁𝗵𝗮𝘁 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝘀𝗸𝗶𝗹𝗹𝘀 𝗿𝗲𝗾𝘂𝗶𝗿𝗲𝗱 𝘁𝗼 𝘀𝘁𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝘂𝗽 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝘀𝗽𝗲𝗮𝗸 𝗼𝘂𝘁 𝗮𝘀 𝗮𝗻 𝗮𝗱𝘂𝗹𝘁 𝗷𝘂𝘀𝘁 𝗮𝗿𝗲𝗻’𝘁 𝗴𝗼𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝘁𝗼 𝗯𝗲 𝘁𝗵𝗲𝗿𝗲.
Candice Braithwaite
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When it comes to workplaces, we all inherently know that black people, and especially black women, are underrepresented.
We regularly hear the rhetoric 'the first black/BAME woman to'... as though we are meant to see this as only a positive thing, when there should be more than one black woman doing everything as the norm. Currently these things are noteworthy, but they shouldn't be, and as Toni-Blaze Ibekwe says: 𝗔𝘀 𝘄𝗲 𝗲𝘅𝗰𝗲𝗹 𝗶𝗻 𝗲𝘃𝗲𝗿𝘆 𝗶𝗻𝗱𝘂𝘀𝘁𝗿𝘆 𝗽𝗼𝘀𝘀𝗶𝗯𝗹𝗲, 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗽𝗵𝗿𝗮𝘀𝗲 ‘𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗳𝗶𝗿𝘀𝘁 𝗯𝗹𝗮𝗰𝗸 𝘄𝗼𝗺𝗮𝗻 𝘁𝗼’ 𝘄𝗶𝗹𝗹 𝗯𝗲𝗰𝗼𝗺𝗲 𝗿𝗲𝗱𝘂𝗻𝗱𝗮𝗻𝘁, 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗜 𝗰𝗮𝗻𝗻𝗼𝘁 𝘄𝗮𝗶𝘁.
I do think a lot of workplaces still need to completely change their own structures and challenge their own racist practices, whether they are inadvertently racist or not. I'm sick of the false narrative around D&I 'forums' or 'committees' that do nothing other than make the employer look falsely progressive. I really hope in time this will change.
I have also witnessed awful hiring practices myself throughout my career, where candidates from overseas are viewed as somehow 'lesser than' simply because their degree is from a University that isn't in the UK or the US. This clearly should not be the norm.
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𝗮𝗹𝗹 𝗯𝗹𝗮𝗰𝗸 𝗽𝗲𝗼𝗽𝗹𝗲 𝗮𝗿𝗲 𝗶𝗻𝗵𝗲𝗿𝗲𝗻𝘁𝗹𝘆 𝘄𝗼𝗿𝗸𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗰𝗹𝗮𝘀𝘀 𝗯𝘆 𝘃𝗶𝗿𝘁𝘂𝗲 𝗼𝗳 𝘁𝗵𝗲𝗶𝗿 𝗯𝗹𝗮𝗰𝗸𝗻𝗲𝘀𝘀. 𝗙𝗼𝗿 𝗺𝗮𝗻𝘆 𝗼𝗳 𝗼𝘂𝗿 𝗽𝗮𝗿𝗲𝗻𝘁𝘀 𝘁𝗵𝗶𝘀 𝘄𝗮𝘀 𝗮 𝗿𝗲𝗮𝗹𝗶𝘁𝘆, 𝗼𝗳𝘁𝗲𝗻 𝗰𝗼𝗺𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗳𝗿𝗼𝗺 𝗼𝘃𝗲𝗿𝘀𝗲𝗮𝘀 𝗮𝘀 𝗵𝗶𝗴𝗵𝗹𝘆 𝘀𝗸𝗶𝗹𝗹𝗲𝗱 𝘄𝗼𝗿𝗸𝗲𝗿𝘀 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗯𝗲𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗳𝗼𝗿𝗰𝗲𝗱 𝗶𝗻𝘁𝗼 𝗹𝗼𝘄𝗲𝗿 𝘀𝗸𝗶𝗹𝗹𝗲𝗱, 𝗹𝗼𝘄𝗲𝗿 𝗽𝗮𝗶𝗱 𝗷𝗼𝗯𝘀 𝗱𝘂𝗲 𝘁𝗼 𝗮 𝘀𝘆𝘀𝘁𝗲𝗺 𝘄𝗵𝗶𝗰𝗵 𝗼𝗳𝘁𝗲𝗻 𝗱𝗶𝗱 𝗻𝗼𝘁 𝗿𝗲𝗰𝗼𝗴𝗻𝗶𝘀𝗲 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝘃𝗮𝗹𝗶𝗱𝗶𝘁𝘆 𝗼𝗳 𝘁𝗵𝗲𝗶𝗿 𝗼𝘃𝗲𝗿𝘀𝗲𝗮𝘀 𝗾𝘂𝗮𝗹𝗶𝗳𝗶𝗰𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻𝘀. 𝗔 𝘀𝘆𝘀𝘁𝗲𝗺 𝘁𝗵𝗮𝘁 𝗮𝗹𝘀𝗼 𝗰𝗼𝗮𝘅𝗲𝗱 𝗼𝘂𝗿 𝗽𝗮𝗿𝗲𝗻𝘁𝘀 𝗶𝗻𝘁𝗼 𝗯𝗲𝗹𝗶𝗲𝘃𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝘁𝗵𝗲𝘆 𝘄𝗲𝗿𝗲 𝗶𝗻𝗳𝗲𝗿𝗶𝗼𝗿.
Elisabeth Fapuro
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There are so many topics and themes covered throughout Loud Black Girls, but I feel one of the most important is one that I would hope everyone in the UK is now familiar with, given the raging debate that continues to spiral on social media: that of the police, and gang violence.
I often hear privileged white people, usually of my parents age (who, let's face it, have benefitted from the systems of oppression that our generation have not), talk about how if you just behave and don't commit a crime, then nothing bad will happen to you. Which is such a false and dangerous narrative on so many levels.
Aside from the inherent racism that is prevalent in our policing and justice system (though justice feels like SUCH a misnomer), we know that women aren't protected as they should be, no matter how they act or what they wear; we know LGBTQIA+ people aren't protected as they should be, and never have been, and; we know people with mental health issues are not protected as they should be, and are instead often treated as criminals themselves. Why then should we expect that this system would serve black people?
We act as though these groups of people are 'minorities', but they aren't really.
And to take a step back even further, noone commits crime in a vaccuum. Noone suddenly wakes up and decides to commit an act of violence, or to steal; these things are usually done out of desperation, or what feels like necessity to survive.
People like Akala have been talking about the UK's class system for a long time, and how it drives frustration, anger, and desperation. If people were given the support they deserved to live a decent life, crime of all kinds would reduce.
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𝗧𝗵𝗲 𝗴𝗮𝗻𝗴 𝗹𝗮𝗯𝗲𝗹 𝗱𝗲𝗵𝘂𝗺𝗮𝗻𝗶𝘀𝗲𝘀 𝘆𝗼𝘂𝗻𝗴 𝗽𝗲𝗼𝗽𝗹𝗲, 𝗿𝗲𝗺𝗼𝘃𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗮𝗻𝘆 𝗿𝗶𝗴𝗵𝘁 𝘁𝗼 𝘃𝗶𝗰𝘁𝗶𝗺𝗵𝗼𝗼𝗱 𝘁𝗵𝗲𝘆 𝗺𝗮𝘆 𝗵𝗮𝘃𝗲 𝗵𝗮𝗱, 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝘁𝗿𝗲𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝘁𝗵𝗲𝗺 𝘀𝗶𝗺𝗽𝗹𝘆 𝗮𝘀 𝗽𝗲𝗿𝗽𝗲𝘁𝗿𝗮𝘁𝗼𝗿𝘀.
𝗢𝘂𝗿 𝗰𝗿𝗶𝗺𝗶𝗻𝗮𝗹 𝗷𝘂𝘀𝘁𝗶𝗰𝗲 𝘀𝘆𝘀𝘁𝗲𝗺 𝗶𝘀 𝗳𝗮𝗶𝗹𝗶𝗻𝗴 ... 𝗼𝘂𝗿 𝗽𝗿𝗶𝘀𝗼𝗻 𝘀𝘆𝘀𝘁𝗲𝗺 𝗶𝘀 𝗶𝗻 𝗰𝗿𝗶𝘀𝗶𝘀. 𝗣𝗿𝗶𝘀𝗼𝗻𝘀 𝗮𝗿𝗲 𝗻𝗼𝘁 𝗱𝗲𝘀𝗶𝗴𝗻𝗲𝗱 𝘁𝗼 𝗿𝗲𝗵𝗮𝗯𝗶𝗹𝗶𝘁𝗮𝘁𝗲.
Temi Mwale
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Loud Black Girls is such an important book, and I recommend it to everyone. Not just from the point of view of trying to understand what life is like for other people, but to understand on a basic level of empathy.
I think empathy is something that is sorely lacking these days, and only be making the effort to hear about other peoples' experiences do we improve that.
So please listen/read with an open heart, and if any if the content of this book (or others like it) makes you feel defensive, try pausing for a moment and challenging yourself to understand why that may be.
I would definitely read/listen to more from every one of the women who contributed to this collection, and I would read/listen to more from Slay in Your Lane.
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𝗕𝗹𝗮𝗰𝗸 𝘄𝗼𝗺𝗲𝗻 𝘄𝗶𝗹𝗹 𝗮𝗹𝘄𝗮𝘆𝘀 𝗯𝗲 𝘁𝗼𝗼 𝗹𝗼𝘂𝗱 𝗳𝗼𝗿 𝗮 𝘄𝗼𝗿𝗹𝗱 𝘁𝗵𝗮𝘁 𝗻𝗲𝘃𝗲𝗿 𝗶𝗻𝘁𝗲𝗻𝗱𝗲𝗱 𝗼𝗻 𝗹𝗶𝘀𝘁𝗲𝗻𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝘁𝗼 𝘁𝗵𝗲𝗺.
Yomi Adegoke

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Inspirational

I enjoyed hearing all the contributions of the essays and books. some eye-opening findings and look forward to reading more

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