Heavy by Kiese Laymon

I've put off writing a review of Heavy by Kiese Laymon because I feel like I lack the vocabulary to articulate why exactly this memior is so powerful. Heavy is about money and education and race and family and weight and gender. It's about how much space we take up - physically and psychologically - in this world. There were moments that stopped me dead in my tracks - as when Laymon spoke of the pressure to be an articulate representative of blackness in every college classroom - a reminder of the privilege I carry with my whiteness, the way that my presence takes up space in a way I am often unaware. Laymon's ability to tie disparate experiences together to reveal the damage we do to ourselves and to others is a testament his skill as a writer. Heavy IS a heavy book, but it's one that is infinitely worth reading (or listening to - the audiobook is narrated by the author!). It was recommended to me by a co-worker, and I can't wait to find out what else he's been reading (so I know what to read next)!⁣
⁣
TW: sexual abuse, disordered eating⁣