Audiobook Review: Heavy: An American Memoir by Kiese Laymon

5 disco balls

Published: October 16, 2018 by Scribner
Length: 6 hours and 17 minutes, narrated by the author
Category: Memoir, Nonfiction

I finished the audiobook for Heavy a few days ago and have sat on my review, as I wanted to make sure I was doing the book justice. I still don’t know if I could, but I am certainly going to try.

There is something very powerful about an author who narrates their own memoir. Writing a memoir alone, an author deserves all the stars for putting their story out there to be judged by others.

Kiese’s story was not owed to us, and I look at it as a gift. Thank you for your truth and for teaching me something about myself: reflecting on the disappointment of a loved one who is supposed to protect you not hurt you, struggling with body issues where it doesn’t matter how bad you feel on the inside as long as you look good on the outside, understanding that I’ve had the privilege of not worrying about my race – really truly understanding the meaning of that and opening myself up to learning how I can be better.

Excerpt from Goodreads synopsis: 4.46 average rating
In Heavy, Laymon writes eloquently and honestly about growing up a hard-headed black son to a complicated and brilliant black mother in Jackson, Mississippi. From his early experiences of sexual violence, to his suspension from college, to his trek to New York as a young college professor, Laymon charts his complex relationship with his mother, grandmother, anorexia, obesity, sex, writing, and ultimately gambling. By attempting to name secrets and lies he and his mother spent a lifetime avoiding, Laymon asks himself, his mother, his nation, and us to confront the terrifying possibility that few in this nation actually know how to responsibly love, and even fewer want to live under the weight of actually becoming free.

I cannot recommend listening to this audiobook enough. So go and use that audible credit stat, or get on that Libby waiting list (I am certain there is a wait at the library with all the buzz this book is getting), or buy your own copy from your local bookstore…whatever you do, get this book.

Purchase Links:
Amazon US
Amazon UK
Barnes & Noble
Indigo

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