This was okay, but it's clear this is Talia Hibbert's early works as her writing and story development have come a long way.

I purchased the audiobook back in February after realising Afua Hirsch had a book. I've been a huge fan of her journalism for a while and frequently read her articles so I was really interested to read/listen to her memoir that also looks at race and the history of Britain.
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Hirsch identifies from the beginning that this piece is driven by her own experiences, her British-Ghanaian identity and the interactions she's had growing up and as an adult. She narrates the audiobook herself and I could listen to her speak for hours as she's so brilliant and insightful. One of my favourite sections was her discussion about British history and how we give Black history a month of celebration in October however as she points out:
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"Britain has no white history. British history is the multi-racial, inter-racial story of a nation interdependent on trade, cultural influence and immigration from Africa, India, central and east Asia and other regions and continents from people that are not white."

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I entirely agree that Black history is entirely embedded in the narrative of all British and global history and not something that can be separated.
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Hirsch throughout the book talks frankly and openly about a variety of topics including her relationship with her partner Sam and their daughter. I think this book is incredibly informative about British attitudes to race, the history of Empire whilst still being a personal to Hirsch. I loved this book and would recommend this to everybody, especially those wanting to learn more about British racism.

The Heart of Race was initially published in 1985 and Verso re-released it in 2018 with a new Foreward and Afterwords to bring context to the work of these women in the 21st Century. It highlights how systemic racism has been and continues to be a problem in the UK. The work focuses on the Black women that came across in the 1950s and 1960s from the Caribbean, when all of the West Indies (as they were known then) under British rule were deemed British citizens and could freely come to Britain.
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"The mainstay of British culture has been the assertion of its superiority over others, it's total negation of non-European cultures in general and Black people's cultures in particular."

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The book has an initially academic set-up with chapter one, but then quickly falls into a much easier narrative that combines women's voices and facts. The book splits into 5 chapters focusing on; Black Women and Work, Education, Health and Welfare Services, Black Women's Organisation and Black women's understanding of their culture and identity. This split offered a cohesive and thorough examination of core needs of women and people and how Black women suffered unnecessarily because of gender and race in Britain.
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I think the book really benefited from the stories from various women that were included (who remained anonymous to protect their identity). There was lots of great poetry excerpts (and I'm not a poetry fan generally but I enjoyed these). One personal favourite was from Louise Bennett Jamaica 'Oman.
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This book was an excellent introduction to British racism and the problems Black British women have faced and continue to face. I bought this e-book last month, but the e-book is currently free on Verso, they just ask you to donate the amount to a relevant cause.

4.5 stars

This one was so addictive. Just finished it in one sitting.

Rate: A Buff Male Nanny was a fun, rather sweet and very steamy read. I liked the characters of Sloan and Rafe. I also adored the twin girls Avery and Addison who were bright, funny and very astute for being 6 year olds.

I loved the fact that Sloan was actually Dr Copeland, super high IQ surgeon and child genius who had flown through school ahead of time to become a very young, fantastic surgeon. She was also a great mother and I loved that none of her values were compromised in her work, in her motherhood and in herself for her relationship with Rafe.

Overall, this book was just very sweet and a fun read.

I feel like I'm one of the last people to have read this book, but I'm so glad I finally did. I've fallen in love recently with Talia Hibbert's writing and Get a Life, Chloe Brown was a warm fluffy blanket of joy and humour when I needed it most.
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I really enjoyed this book and the strengths of Chloe Brown definitely lie in the characterisation and relationship. The plot follows Chloe Brown who suffers from fibromyalgia (a chronic pain condition); since she became diagnosed with this chronic pain condition she reverted into herself, lost friends and her mental health took a dive. I've always loved the diversity that Talia Hibbert provides with her characters and to have an MC with a chronic pain condition was really refreshing. I've read very few books that touch on this subject.
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Chloe seems prickly and stand-offish to begin with as she interacts with the superintendent, Red. Across the book she begins to open up and we see the friendship and relationship blossom and intensify. I really liked Red's character. On first impressions you may think he's a classic bad boy trope as he drives a motorcycle, has tattoos and seems to have a troubled past. However, he's just a sweet, caring and genuinely thoughtful guy who I really liked.
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The romance in Chloe Brown got pretty hot in places, so if sexual scenes aren't your thing it's quite easy to skip over these. However, I think the whole thing was handled really well and Chloe and Red will have a special place in my heart for their romance.