The authentic and insightful story of Kemi, Brittany-Rae and Muna, three Black women and their everyday experiences living in Stockholm, a predominantly white city. Three Black women. Three everyday lives. There is no one way to be Black.
Nigerian-American and based in Sweden, L?lá Ákínmádé Åkerström is an award-winning author, speaker, and photographer. Her work has appeared in National Geographic Traveler, BBC, CNN, Guardian, Sunday Times Travel, Daily Telegraph, New York Times, Travel + Leisure, Slate, Travel Channel, Adventure Magazine, Lonely Planet, amongst others. In addition to contributing to several books, she is the author of the following books: 2018 Lowell Thomas Award winner for best travel book, Due North and bestselling LAGOM: Swedish Secret of Living Well, available in 18 foreign language editions. She has been recognized with multiple awards for her work, including 2018 Travel Photographer of the Year Bill Muster Award, and she was honoured with a MIPAD 100 (Most Influential People of African Descent) Award within media and culture in 2018. Her photography is represented by National Geographic Image Collection. Lola is also the editor of Slow Travel Stockholm, an online magazine dedicated to exploring Sweden's capital city in depth.
A sharply written story with messy, deeply moving characters,
raising brutal questions and steering clear of easy answers. A book
that will stick with you long after you've turned the last page
*Taylor Jenkins Reid, bestselling author of Daisy Jones and the
Six*
These characters will pull at your heartstrings. L?lá writes with a
contemporary flair, highlighting the layered subtleties of the
Black woman's plight
*Nicole Dennis-Benn, bestselling author of novels Here Comes the
Sun and Patsy*
A sexy, surprising, searing debut about love, loss, desire, and the
many dimensions of Black womanhood. Timely and terrific!
*Deesha Philyaw, award-winning author of The Secret Life of Church
Ladies*
This is a very different and unpredictable portrayal of Black
women's search for love and self, and it's pure magic
*Kim Golden, author of Maybe Baby*
At once enjoyable and disturbing as it explores the painful price
millions of women around the world pay for walking around with
black skin
*Imbolo Mbue, New York Times bestselling author of Behold the
Dreamers*
Captivating. Åkerström describes what it is to be an ambitious
black woman in today's world. The story of Kemi, Muna and
Brittany-Rae – black women hoping to start anew in a society that
does not see them – is a story for these times, and their fate is a
stark reminder that the seaweed isn't always greener in somebody
else's lake
*Chika Unigwe, author of On Black Sisters' Street*
A striking debut... As entertaining as it is revealing, Åkerström's
novel has readers hoping that each of these women is able to break
free from toxic expectations and achieve her every dream and
ambition. Along the way, Åkerström also delivers poignant
commentary on Swedish culture and the price Black women pay by
virtue of the color of their skin. A guaranteed favorite for fans
of Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie's Americanah'
*Booklist*
Take three Black women in search of a better life. Add love and
desire to a mix of family expectations and what it's like to have
no family whatsoever. Akinmade Akerstrom's voice is fresh and
insightful as she tells a compelling story of what it means to be a
Black woman in a globalised world. From a rich, cushioned elite to
a determined refugee, she takes us from the US and London to
Sweden. This ambitious novel is beautifully realised. Akinmade
Akerstrom is definitely a writer to watch!
*Yaba Badoe, author of A Jigsaw of Fire and Stars and
Wolflight*
L?lá Ákínmádé Åkerström’s debut novel is as much a liberating
battle cry as it is a searing, multifaceted examination of the
hearts and minds of Black women navigating white-dominated
spaces... Rather than shying away from or oversimplifying difficult
and complex topics, Åkerström has effectively packaged themes of
racism, immigration, fetishism and otherness into an engrossing
story that will enlighten its readers, regardless of their
nationality or race'
*BookPage*
A beautiful novel [...] that highlights what it's really like to be
a Black woman today... Contemporary and vivid, this story will
captivate and educate'
*Good Morning America*
A rich narrative, weaving together each woman's perspective to
unpack nuances around foreignness and belonging. Through lively
prose and spirited dialogue, Åkerström shows that for all the
protagonists' differences, being a Black woman in a white-dominated
society will inevitably lead them to the same fate
*Vulture*
An engaging novel that presents the nuanced experiences of Black
women from all walks of life. The author takes on misogynoir
masterfully in this book that's never quite what you think it
is
*Essence*
I loved In Every Mirror She's Black so much. I was captivated by
the writing from page one, and the characters kept me turning. I
was heavily invested in Brittany, Kemi, and particularly, Muna,
whom I had become protective of. Although it had sad notes, I
appreciated how Lola didn't shy away from exploring heavy themes,
as it made the book even more powerful
*Lizzie Damilola Blackburn, author of Yinka Where Is Your
Husband?*
Incisive, thought-provoking and un-put-down-able... Riveting,
moving and stirring (with punch-packing endings you won't see
coming), In Every Mirror She's Black is a magnificent
must-read'
*LoveReading*
Each must find their way in a society depicted as more concerned
with hygge than humanity in this hectic and ultimately extremely
sad story
*The Gloss Magazine*
The book provides a pointed look at how Black women must navigate
the world around them
*Independent*
An immersive novel about three Black women building new lives in
Sweden and how racism manifests in an already-insular society
*Red Magazine*
A thought-provoking read
*Prima Magazine*
Stunning thought-provoking contemporary fiction from Akinmade
Åkerström shines a deeply nuanced light on the Black woman
experience in the Nordics
*Bella Naija*
In search of escape these three women find themselves in Stockholm
– but instead of a fresh new start, they find the same problems
just wear a different name
*Closer*
As their lives intersect, this smart, unflinching novel reveals
facets of how it is to be a Black woman living and working in a
white-dominated society
*Heat*
There are powerful, important themes underpinning the narrative,
but what really shines through is the distinctness of the different
characters and the depiction of real lives and emotions
*South Wiltshire Living*
Åkerström writes all too convincingly about racism, fetishism,
identity and loneliness, giving additional depth and texture to
this vivid, involving novel
*Daily Mail*
Åkerström sustains an undercurrent of darkness, a pulse of anxiety,
so you as the reader never quite know where you will be from page
to page
*Bad Form*
Drawing comparisons to Queenie and Americanah, it promises to be
one of the most discussed novels of 2021
*Stylist*
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