An Autobiography of Skin

A Novel

By: Lakiesha Carr

Narrated by: Kacie Rogers, Zenzi Williams, Karen Chilton

A NEW YORKER BEST BOOK OF THE YEAR • This magisterial, intimate look at Black womanhood "follows three women whose various traumas haunt them literally and metaphorically, as it explores what it means to be a Black woman in America today" (The New York Times Book Review, Editor's Choice).

A middle-aged woman feed slots at a secret back-room parlor. A new mother descends into a devastating postpartum depression, wracked with the fear that she is unable to protect her children. A daughter returns home to join the other women in her family waging spiritual combat with the ghosts of their past.

An Autobiography of Skin is a dazzling and masterful portrait of interconnected generations in the South from a singular new voice, offering a raw and tender view into the interior lives of Black women. It is at once a powerful look at how experiences are carried inside the body, inside the flesh and skin, and a joyous testament to how healing can be found within—in love, mercy, gratitude, and freedom.

Relatable and reminiscent

Reminded me of growing up in Alabama-felt like my family stories and characters were like some of my family members

Critically important

Medical professionals, both credentialed and soon-to-be licensed must read this book. I mistakenly believed this tragedy was more related to socioeconomic status and learned how wrong I was. Not that I’d accept poor medical care for any one group of people, I’m trying to point out how critically important it is for our systems to change!