I was nervous because I thought her friends might make fun of her.

#4 I was invited to Layla’s house to watch her and her friends swim. I dont think there was a topic that was not touched in this deeply raw memoir. Behind a black-and-white picture of Grandmama, in one of the folds, was one of my old licenses. Kiese Laymon delves into many heavy topics - the struggle of living life as a man in a black body, his weight, abuse, sex, racism, gambling, education, friendships & family dynamics. I kept the two dollar bill Grandmama gave me for my birthday in it. #3 I was not allowed to leave the house without a license, so I borrowed my cousin's blue Jackson State University wallet with the tiger on it.

The next-to-last day I spent at Beulah Beauford’s house, the rule was simple: Layla had to go into Daryl’s room with all the big boys for fifteen minutes if she wanted to float in the deep end. #2 One week, the three of us had to make the older boys all the sweet Kool-Aid they could drink with perfectly chipped ice if we wanted to swim. I was supposed to write a report about two politicians named Benjamin Franklin Wade and Thaddeus Stevens, and then imitate Faulkner’s style when writing a short story about Jackson. His 2018 memoir, Heavy: An American Memoir, deals with his difficult relationship. The New York Times enjoyed the book, writing: ' Heavy is a gorgeous, gutting book that’s fueled by candor yet freighted with ambivalence' and called the book 'generous' and 'searching.' The novel won the 2019 Andrew Carnegie Medal for Excellence in Nonfiction. Sample Book Insights: #1 I was twelve years old, and three years younger than Layla, when I was assigned to steal the ID card of a fifteen-year-old black girl named Layla Weathersby. Kiese Laymon is a Black southern writer from Jackson, Mississippi. Please note: This is a companion version & not the original book.

Heavy by kiese laymon sparknotes