I used this for the "an educational read" part of my 2021 reading challenge. I really enjoyed it, it was very well written and enlightening. ( )

I went into this totally blind with no context what it was about. It kind of went all over the place, but I think she’s a good writer. I’m not Christian and never have been, so the Christian themes in the latter half went over my head. ( )

Vulnerable and honest, Brown's memoir offers an intimate look at what it's like to be a Black woman in institutions and organizations that default to people who are white while dismissing and devaluing those who are not.

Many times in the reading I sensed that I was being told what my friends from school or colleagues in Christian organizations felt—things that I missed or had no words for as they happened. Patterns and systems that I may have found problematic, but that I didn't question (for long) or challenge.

Brown's story prompted me to continue to ask myself: How did and how do I contribute to the discomfort, diminishment, or erasure of another person because their way of being is unfamiliar, different, or "other"?

A generous teacher and thoughtful writer. ( )

Powerful, honest, and full of love. This might be a good introduction to anti-racism for the conservative Christian in your life.... Austin is also Christian and weaves that into her essays as part of her experience. I loved everything about this. ( )

Eye-opening read about one woman's experience as a black woman in the church and America. ( )