For Brown Girls with Sharp Edges and Tender Hearts

July 5, 2021
Latinx activist Rodríguez debuts with an impassioned and accessible guide to dismantling the “systemic oppressions” that hold back women of color. Aiming to redistribute knowledge she gained during her graduate studies to young women who may not have access to higher education, Rodríguez interweaves her life story with primers on such concepts as colonialism, the myth of meritocracy, the male gaze, and intersectionality. Born in Nicaragua and raised in Miami, Rodríguez was encouraged at age 13 by her fundamentalist Christian parents to pray for a “God-fearing” husband. But after scoring well on the SATs and realizing that her poor grades did not reflect her academic potential, Rodríguez set her sights on college, and eventually obtained a Master’s in Divinity from Vanderbilt University. She draws on incidents from her early life and academic career to discuss how “voluntourism,” even if it’s “dressed in the semblance of goodness,” obscures how the “current state of so-called developed countries is the result of greed and exploitation from developed countries”; how women of color are socialized to believe that success comes from luck (“imposter syndrome”); and how brown and Black women internalize “colorism.” Marked by its candidness and earnest commitment to the power of self-belief, this is an inspiring and well-informed call to action. Agent: David Patterson and Aemilia Phillips, Stuart Krichevsky Literary.

October 22, 2021

As a young girl in her native Nicaragua, Rodriguez, founder of the Instagram community Latina Rebels, had her first encounter with toxic practices such as voluntourism: tourists disguised as well-intentioned volunteers. Voluntourism tends to be religious-leaning and makes broad promises of facilitating community betterment--all of which is usually far from the reality, Rodriguez writes. American voluntourists in Nicaragua were the author's first glimpse of American racism and white privilege, which she further experienced after her family moved to Miami. Over the years, she faced racism, classism, and sexism while traveling throughout the Southeast United States-- all the while grappling with and dismantling her pre-conceived notions of American success. Her life journey is one in which she addresses her family's generational trauma, and learns how to openly express self-love. In a word, Rodriguez's life has been challenging, which is why, she says, she wrote this powerful book: to connect to other BIPOC women and girls who understand her background and to show those readers that they are seen and important. VERDICT Highly recommended for readers with an interest in social issues impacting Black, Indigenous, and other people of color; immigrant stories; and sociology.--Monique Martinez, Univ. of North Georgia Lib., Dahlonega

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