My oh my, did I love this book!?
“This compilation is a love letter to Africa women, and a missive to all the other souls who will come across it and give space in their hearts and minds for the varying outlooks and experiences that are contained herein.” – Note from the Editors excerpt
This book was a revelation of journeys African women embark on everyday of their lives. It is stories of gender equality, kinds of feminism and what feminism is to different women.
The very first story had me take a step back and reevaluate. I like to think of myself as very self- aware individual but this story had me asking myself a lot of questions not just in the context of the story but also how we associate with others in different but similar circumstances. It bothers me to say, I have at times judged people I did not understand. FYI no one owes you an explanation on why they believe in the things they do. If they tell you its because they want to.
Things I loved about the book:
- I loved how eye opening it was. It gave me a new understanding on things I previously thought I understood but only had surface knowledge of.
- I loved how diverse the stories were, from religion to role models to feminism in society. I also loved the diversity of the writers themselves women from all over Africa wrote their stories.
- I loved that it was stories that I could easily see myself in, so relatable.
- I loved that it showed how feminism is not a foreign concept women have been practicing it through out Africa for centuries. Queens ruled here!
- I loved how feminism was shown not to be black and white. It can not be fit into a certain box but means different things for different people.
- Bonus! I am such a sucker for quotes. This book has such beautiful quotes at the beginning of each short story from strong women of colour that just made me fuzzy inside. I really loved that.
In Her Words: African Women’s Perspectives on Gender Equality is a compilation of 15 short stories by African women on their life journeys. They talk about what gender equality is to them and what that looks like in their everyday lives.
You can get the book here FREE!
Ps. Isn’t that cover to die for?
Amari Blog 