BLESSINGS AND DISASTERS was such a beautiful book, combining compelling prose with deep knowledge, research, and personal storytelling. I have a completely different perspective on Alabama.

Book Report: Blessings And Disasters

At First Glance: I love everything about this cover… and who is Alabama, I must know.

The Gist: From a New Yorker staff writer and PEN award winner, a blend of memoir, history, and reportage on one of the most complex and least understood states in America.

My Thoughts: So obviously my thoughts going in based off the cover were extremely wrong and I’m here to tell you this tiny but mighty book was a delightful surprise. You asked me what I know about Alabama before reading Blessings and Disasters and it’s…where Hart of Dixie is set, and my oldest would love to Rush at UA. Alexis shares personal experiences alongside examining the states history and I was glued throughout it all! I know how much I love learning about PNW history due to my location… and could only imagine the response to this book by Alabamians. This was beautifully written and looking forward to what Alexis does next!

A Question For Alexis: What’s something recently…book, film, moment…that reminded you of hope?

Thank you Henry Holt and Co. & Macmillan Audio for the ALC

Follow me on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/Lyon.brit.Andthebookshelf/

"Blessings and Disasters" offers a sensitive, unflinching exploration of the complex realities faced by Indigenous and black communities in Alabama. As someone who’s spent their whole life in Alabama, I found Okeowo’s depiction to be impressively authentic. It captures both the hardships and the subtle moments of hope that mark daily life in the South.

Part memoir, part investigative report, Okeowo’s narrative is deeply rooted in the lived reality of Alabama’s marginalized communities. The audio format (which was how I read the book) amplifies these stories, as well, helping immerse the listener more fully in the struggles of real people.

The book seamlessly balances individual experiences with a broader understanding of history and systemic racial issues, making complex topics accessible and resonant. And I felt real accuracy in its representation. (Though I am a white woman, so I'm looking at that representation through an outside lens.) Knowing Alabama firsthand, though, I still feel it succeeds in illuminating stories that are too often left unheard.

There were a few minor drawbacks.

For example, the book’s focus occasionally shifts quickly between stories, which made it slightly hard to follow at times. Additionally, I felt some themes could have been explored a bit more deeply to offer even greater understanding.

A couple of sections feel slower, as well, especially in the audio format. However, the overall impact remains strong.

Overall, I felt the book delivered a much-needed look at injustice and resilience in Alabama, told with clarity and care, without neglecting some of the few really good things we have here. It’s a rewarding listen, especially for those seeking a nuanced perspective on race, identity, and community in the South. I highly recommend it. More people should hear these stories for themselves.

Being someone with family living in one Alabama city and friends in another, Blessings and Disasters was a must listen. Unlike some of the other reviews I’ve seen, my favorite parts of the book were the sections that dealt with the history of the state, including, among other really interesting topics, discussions of the slave ship Clotilda and the stories of the Poarch Band of Creek Indians. I also appreciated learning of the author’s own history of growing up in Montgomery. She did a great job in telling the good and the bad of both the state’s troubled history and its current challenges. I definitely learned things that I didn’t already know.

The parts that I didn’t enjoy as much related to the experiences of various other people she met along the way. Listening to these sections made me wish that there was more discussion of her own history. Fortunately, I never lost interest for long.

Aside from a small part narrated by Okeowo herself, this audiobook is narrated by Ariel Blake who did an excellent job. I appreciated the fact that, to the best of my knowledge, she correctly pronounced the various cities mentioned throughout. I listened at a 1.25 speed.

Thanks to Macmillan Audio and NetGalley for providing me the opportunity to listen to Blessings and Disasters. The above opinions are my own.

This book leaves me very torn. On the one hand, I wish it was longer. I enjoyed the narrator and the author's writing style, and I found the included stories to be interesting and compelling. Still, the book felt disjointed, as if the reported portions and the memoir-like portions were destined for separate books. At its best, the book attempts to evoke a place through its peoples' stories. Though the author succeeds in demonstrating how Alabama is complex, rife with internal contradictions, I'm not sure what the author wanted me to take away from it. Perhaps more on what Alabama "can be" would help, or even an epilogue that ties together the book with a clear message.

Thank you to NetGalley for an advanced copy of this book in exchange for my honest review.

3.5 stars

Okeowo, a _New Yorker_ writer and the daughter of Nigerian immigrants, grew up in Alabama. In these, uh...complicated? political and social times, Okeowo takes readers (and listeners!) into the south to realize that while many of our external biases and concerns ring true or are at least grounded in some pretty awful realities, there may be more hope than we initially imagined. At this stage, I'll take any hope in humanity I can get.

I really enjoyed reading about Okeowo's young life, experiences with her parents, and her growing understanding of her own identity, however riddled with challenges some of this is. At times, this really feels like memoir, and those were the parts of the read during which I was most engaged. There are other times when the focus reverts generally to the culture of Alabama - past and present - and those times were harder for me to read almost certainly because of what I can admit are my own biases. It's important to understand broader perspectives, I know, but I'm not sure how much personal bandwidth I have for understanding perspectives that I find to be clearly dehumanizing, degrading, racist, sexist, heterosexist, etc. Am I glad I got to know more? Yes. Is this the read I'm recommending to folks who are burned out by the gross narratives surrounding us right now? Nah. If you have the energy to hear about this, there are a lot of us who need you out fighting. Okeowo is going to fall where you want, if what I'm writing is ringing true for you, but her subjects won't. There's a lot of recounting of tough content over time. For some readers, IMO especially those who are sensitive to conversations about abuse and exploitation of women and children, parts of this are a lot.

On the upside, I'm leaving this listen feeling like I learned and enjoying Okeowo's writing style. I will absolutely read more from this author.

I enjoyed this exploration of the author's upbringing in Alabama. What I loved most is how the multigenerational storytelling connects the American South to the author's parents' origins in Nigeria, West Africa. I also appreciate the exploration of Native Americans experiences in Alabama.

Topics covered include racism, colorism, hate, inequality, hope, revisionist history, romanticization of the antebellum south, religious indoctrination and masking of oppression, and perseverance.

I'd recommend this for those looking to broaden their historical texts of the American South.