In the Country of Women: A Memoir

En savoir plus sur le livre

In inland Southern California, Susan Straight, a self-proclaimed book nerd, and Dwayne Sims, an African American basketball player, began dating in high school. After marrying, they moved to Amherst, Massachusetts, where Straight met her mentor, James Baldwin, who inspired her to write. Back in Riverside, during family gatherings with the close-knit Sims clan, Straight and her daughters listened to stories of Dwayne's female ancestors, who escaped violence in post-slavery Tennessee, murder in Jim Crow Mississippi, and abusive relationships. Alberta Sims, Dwayne's mother, is central to this memoir. Straight's own family history also reflects resilience, tracing roots from Switzerland, Canada, and the Colorado Rockies to California. She introduces the Pakistani term biraderi to describe a complex kinship system, emphasizing the community that helped raise her daughters. Now grown and working in various fields, her daughters embody the legacy of their ancestors, carrying the heritage of three continents. Straight emphasizes, "We are not about borders. We are about love and survival." This memoir serves as both a social history and a personal narrative, celebrating America and the strength of women.