4.5

Take My Hand goes back and forth between 1973 and 2016 focusing on Civil Townsends' experience being a nurse at the Montgomery Family Planning Clinic. From the first couple of chapters, I was intrigued by the MC Civil, her personality was fire and she was passionate about her career and just being a free woman. The story focuses on Erica and India (sisters) and their family - I loved the relationship between her and the sisters. The family lived in extreme poverty and Civil tried to help them in every way possible, forming a relationship with each family member, and fitting right in. The government took advantage of this family and put India and Erica on birth control when they had no reason to be. It is so cruel and sad how the government took advantage of Black families such as Erica and India’s family; which took a traumatic turn that had me literally gasping out loud in shock. I learned a lot while reading Take My Hand and I took a lot from this story, and it will stick with me. I really enjoyed reading this book, it was quick-paced at the beginning but the end had a slow burn. I loved the characters and this story was beautifully written. I highly recommend you read this to learn about the racism and discrimination in health care in America.