An Autobiography of Skin by Lakiesha Carr

Published: February 28, 2023
Pantheon
Pages: 256
Genre: Romance Literary Fiction
KKECReads Rating: ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️
I received a copy of this book for free, and I leave my review voluntarily.
Lakeisha Carr graduated from Southern Methodist University in Dallas, Texas, and received her MFA at the Iowa Writers’ Workshop, where she was awarded a Maytag Fellowship for Excellence in Fiction and a Jeff and Vicki Edwards Post-graduate Fellowship in Fiction. A journalist and writer from East Texas, she has held various editorial and production positions with CNN, The New York Times, and other media. Her writing has received support from the Bread Loaf Writers’ Conference, the Callaloo Creative Writing Workshop, the DC Commission on Arts & Humanities for nonfiction writing, and the Kimbilio Fellowship for fiction writing.

An Autobiography of Skin is a dazzling and masterful portrait of interconnected generations in the South from a singular new voice, offering a raw and tender view into the interior lives of Black women. It is at once a powerful look at how experiences are carried inside the body, inside the flesh and skin, and a joyous testament to how healing can be found within—in love, mercy, gratitude, and freedom.
“Because the romance remained.”
This is a family story. And how family can be the cement that holds you together and the cement that kills you.
These women are strong, they are wise, and they are aware. This was a glimpse into what family can be and mean and the way history can weigh on a person.
This was beautifully written and well presented. These stories moved me and the way love was represented in all forms.
This is a powerful tale of how strong a community can be and how the family takes care of their own. These women were all instrumental to this story, and their presence was powerful.