May 31

May 31 Somebody's Daughter

Author: Ashley C. Ford
Publisher: An Oprah Book (by Flatiron)
Goodreads | The StoryGraph

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Note: Content and trigger warnings are provided for those who need them at the bottom of this page. If you don’t need them and don’t want to risk spoilers, don’t scroll past the full review.

Cover Description

One of the most prominent voices of her generation debuts with an extraordinarily powerful memoir: the story of a childhood defined by the ever looming absence of her incarcerated father and the path we must take to both honor and overcome our origins.

For as long as she could remember, Ashley has put her father on a pedestal. Despite having only vague memories of seeing him face-to-face, she believes he's the only person in the entire world who understands her. She thinks she understands him too. He's sensitive like her, an artist, and maybe even just as afraid of the dark. She's certain that one day they'll be reunited again, and she'll finally feel complete. There are just a few problems: he's in prison, and she doesn't know what he did to end up there.

Through poverty, puberty, and a fraught relationship with her mother, Ashley returns to her image of her father for hope and encouragement. She doesn't know how to deal with the incessant worries that keep her up at night, or how to handle the changes in her body that draw unwanted attention from men. In her search for unconditional love, Ashley begins dating a boy her mother hates; when the relationship turns sour, he assaults her. Still reeling from the rape, which she keeps secret from her family, Ashley finally finds out why her father is in prison. And that's where the story really begins.

Somebody’s Daughter steps into the world of growing up a poor Black girl, exploring how isolating and complex such a childhood can be. As Ashley battles her body and her environment, she provides a poignant coming-of-age recollection that speaks to finding the threads between who you are and what you were born into, and the complicated familial love that often binds them.

TL;DR Review

Somebody’s Daughter is exactly as good as all the hype says it is. Moving, gripping, smart, and incredibly observed. You should read it.

For you if: You love a well-written memoir.

Full Review

I think it’s fair to say that Somebody’s Daughter was one of the most anticipated books of summer 2021 — if not all of 2021 itself. I’ve been a fan of Ashley Ford’s writing since she was featured in the Girls’ Night In newsletter a few years ago, and I love memoirs, so I knew this was going to be one for me. At long last, after listening to the audiobook (which Ford herself narrates), I can tell you that this book is just as great as I’d hoped it would be.

Ashley Ford’s father was sent to prison when she was really young. She and her siblings were left in the care of their struggling, abusive mother, and in her mind, her distant father became the only one who might truly love and understand her. Later, she learns why her father is in prison, and it shakes her sense of the world. Throughout the book, we watch her grow up, struggle with a quickly maturing body and significant trauma (major triggers include rape, statutory sexual assault, child abuse and toxic parental relationships), and begin to find her way toward more stable ground.

There’s obviously a lot here about what it’s like to be a young, poor Black girl, and the way Ford writes it all is not only revelatory but also powerful and nuanced. She has the ability to keep you on the edge of your seat — in a memoir! — as you hold your breath and wait for what you know is probably coming but really hope is not. I was so impressed by the way she kept her gaze tight on the people she described, keeping them human and personal rather than allowing them to become symbols or motifs.

This will quickly become one of those memoirs that everyone reads, and everyone finds to be very much worth the hype. I can’t wait to see what Ford writes next.