Read a memoir about instability behind a life of glamour
Long Live the Tribe of Fatherless Girls — T Kira Madden
What to Read This Week
Long Live the Tribe of Fatherless Girls by T Kira Madden
What It’s About
Madden grew up in Boca Raton, Florida, grappling with the dichotomy of living in a privileged community while also being queer and biracial and is confronted with racial disparities. She attends an exclusive private school and competes in majestic equestrian competitions. She is also an only child of parents fighting drug and alcohol addictions.
Madden was often left on her own to decipher where she fit in in this world of two sides, finding camaraderie with other girls who were also on their own. She had ups and downs and fell into mistakes and challenges, but she knew the only way to move forward would be by trusting herself.
This reads like a series of connected essays, exploring her own past as well as her parents’, to lead up to the events that made Madden who she is today. She discusses grief and trauma from losing family without actually having lost them, what family truly means, and the challenges of trying to navigate a world without rules that doesn’t make sense.
Who Will Like It
This is an incredible memoir that I generally recommend to everyone, but especially those interested in exploring generational trauma, societal issues like microaggressions and classism, and what it means to be family. Readers of memoirs like Know My Name and I’m Glad My Mom Died will want to pick this one up.
Madden also does an incredible job of highlighting why it’s important to read stories and consume media by and about those different from us. This memoir has stuck with me because of the two worlds she lived in and had to navigate and how very different they are from anything I’ve ever known. I encourage you to pick this one up to learn about what it’s like to deal with racism in school or to have parents battling addiction.
Next Up
The poll from last week’s post is incredibly close! I was glad to see so many people excited to vote, so I’ll definitely be doing more polls like this in the future. But for now, I’ve pulled the two frontrunners and am excited to get started on one of them, so if you haven’t voted yet, go cast yours!
Let me know what you’re reading this month—I’m not big on holiday rom-coms, but these are all over my feed this month, so I’d love to hear if you all enjoy these kinds of books!
I started reading Ducks: Two Years in the Oil Sands, which I can already tell is going to be both excellent and a heavy-hitter. It’s been a while since I’ve dug into a big graphic book, but the last one I read, Seek You: A Journey Through American Loneliness, is one of my very favorites, so my hopes are high. Do you have graphic novel recommendations?
More Books
Can’t get enough, or looking for a different recommendation? Browse the archives, or check out some popular past recommendations:
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I need to look more into Long Live the Tribe of Fatherless Girls, could be of interest to me or for me to recommend to others. My next three reads are as usual all over the place. I have just started Yellow Wife by Sadeqa Johnson; it has grabbed me quickly. Next up is a mystery by Nevada Barr, What Rose Forgot. I love her Anna Pigeon Series so thought I give this a go. Also, your recommendation: Gingerbread by Helen Oyeyemi. Looking forward to reading that one and also hearing your comments.