Firstborn Girls
A Memoir

Quotes

Praise for Firstborn Girls

“McFadden’s voice is sincere and moving, both on the page and in the audiobook, which the author narrates herself. This memoir is a treasure.”
—Elle, "Best Books of Spring"

“In [McFadden’s] first work of nonfiction, she reveals the equally complicated truth of her own history, depicting the fierce and flawed women of her family with both compassion and rage.”
—Oprah Daily

“A distinguished novelist explores the history that shaped her and the women in her family. . . . A powerful, richly tapestried book about race, history, love, and the healing power of the written word.”
—Kirkus

“Novelist McFadden delivers the captivating, multigenerational stories of her family in a poignant memoir.”
—Booklist

“In her remarkable memoir, Bernice McFadden revisits the chaos of girlhood and her journeys as a mother, daughter, and writer, all beneath the specter of white supremacy, patriarchy, and domestic violence. Hailing from generations of hard-loving, bold, flawed Black women, McFadden’s recounting of their lives and intimacies is masterful and mesmerizing. Fueled by compassion and anger, resilience and curiosity, McFadden reveals family secrets, strivings, and struggles, against the backdrop of our country’s long legacy of racial injustice. Revelatory and enthralling, Firstborn Girls is an absolute treasure.”
—Deesha Philyaw, author of The Secret Lives of Church Ladies

"Firstborn Girls does what Bernice McFadden does better than absolutely everybody, it takes you on a journey through the ages that makes you feel all of your feelings unabashedly. What makes it more special in her first non-fiction book is that it's her story, her real, lived experience that she has boldly invited us to journey alongside her. Her ability to tell a story makes it one of the most engrossing memoirs I have read in a long time and allows you to forget that it is the real life of a family with such a rich and interesting history. People will talk about these Firstborn Girls for years to come!"
—Tarana Burke, activist and author of Unbound

“Firstborn Girls, Bernice McFadden’s riveting memoir, cements her position as one of America’s most creative and necessary writers. Like Toni Morrison who focused her lens specifically on the lives of Black people, and hence told a universal story, so too does McFadden. With Firstborn Girls she has produced a vital and stunningly gorgeous work, again.”
—Sapphire, New York Times bestselling author of Push and The Kid