Brown Baby: A Memoir of Race, Family and Home

Brown Baby: A Memoir of Race, Family and Home cover
Good Books rating 4.5
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  • ID: 1883
  • Added: 2025-10-10
  • Updated: 2025-10-10
  • Formats: 1
  • Reviews: 2
Reviews
app.thestorygraph.com · Unknown · 2025-10-17
moving 4.50

Brown Baby is a deeply personal and moving memoir that explores themes of race, identity, and family. The author's raw and honest storytelling creates a powerful narrative that resonates with readers.

Brown Baby is a heartfelt and introspective memoir that delves into the complexities of race, family, and belonging. The author's candid and poignant reflections on their experiences growing up as a mixed-race child in a predominantly white environment are both moving and thought-provoking. The book's exploration of identity and the search for a sense of home is particularly compelling. While the narrative is deeply personal, it also offers universal themes that will resonate with many readers. The author's writing style is engaging and evocative, making the book a powerful and unforgettable read.


Quick quotes

    This book is a love letter to my mother, to my family, to my ancestors, and to my daughter.

    I wanted to write a book that would make my daughter feel seen and loved.

    This is a story about finding home, even when home is not always a place.

londonreviewbookshop.co.uk · Unknown · 2022-03-17
heartfelt 4.50

Brown Baby is a heartfelt memoir by Nikesh Shukla that explores themes of race, family, and grief through the lens of parenting. The book is addressed to his children and delves into his personal struggles and realizations about identity, belonging, and modern parenting issues like climate change and gender roles.

Brown Baby by Nikesh Shukla is a deeply personal memoir that navigates the complexities of parenting while grappling with the loss of his own parent. The book is structured as a guide for his children, sharing heartwarming, humorous, and sometimes painful experiences. Shukla explores his journey as a father to two 'brown babies,' addressing themes of grief, belonging, and justice. He candidly discusses his own mistakes and growth, particularly in understanding issues like rape culture and feminism. Food also plays a significant role, evoking memories of his mother and a sense of home. Despite the challenges of finding belonging in a predominantly white city, Shukla finds comfort in unexpected places, reminding us of the importance of embracing our past, present, and future.


Quick quotes

    Shukla explores his struggles around being a father to two ‘brown babies.’

    When discussing how having a daughter had catalysed his understanding of the pervasiveness of rape culture, I found myself rolling my eyes along with Shukla’s friend Chimene, who replies to this half-jokingly: ‘Congratulations. It is so nice you had to have a daughter before you could see us as human beings’.

    Shukla does find elements of home in Bristol. I felt I was with him the nights he took strolls around the city to put his child to sleep, exploring new streets, looking for a sense of belonging in place.