Reviews
"A sly satire and thriller rolled into one as it confronts race, competition and sincerity in the workplace." --BBC, "While the plot takes a darker turn into thriller territory, this read is ideal for anyone who has ever felt manipulated, threatened, or dismissed in the workplace." -- Fortune, Very, very sharp social commentary about racial tension and bias...my money's on it being the 'it' book of the summer., "A whip-smart and dynamic thriller and sly social commentary . . . will keep you on the edge of your seat until the very last twist." -- The Rumpus, I tore through Zakiya Dalila Harris's The Other Black Girl , a hilarious yet spine-chilling send-up of the whiteness of the publishing world, with my jaw on the floor. Its detailed dissection of the complex forces that curtail Black ambition is by turns tender and utterly lacerating, combining the nuance of a Kiley Reid with the twisted gut-punches of Bamboozled . It draws you in with a laugh and a smile, then shoves you into a nightmare you won't be able to shake off. A simply brilliant debut., This twisty thriller will resonate with anyone who has struggled to find her voice as the only Black woman in the room., "OMG, as the kids say. This is the funniest, wildest, deepest, most thought-provoking ride of a book. I have been Nella. Every black woman has been Nella. Zakiya Dalila Harris has pulled back the curtain on the publishing industry, but in doing so, she has also perfectly captured a social dynamic that exists in job cultures as varied as tech, finance, academia, even retail and fast food. Oh, beware of the 'OBGs'--Other Black Girls--y'all. As we should all be aware of the psychic cost to black women of making ourselves palatable to institutions that use our cultural cache for their own ends while disregarding any part of our hearts and minds that they either can't or won't understand." --ATTICA LOCKE, New York Times bestselling author of Heaven, My Home, "Riveting, fearless, and vividly original. This is an exciting debut." --EMILY ST. JOHN MANDEL, New York Times bestselling author of The Glass Hotel, "An intimate and specific look at the joys and pains of being a Black woman, especially one working in a majority-white industry... The Other Black Girl is hysterical, intimate, and warm--and bristling with dread. Every page pulls you deeper into the nightmare, coiling tighter and tighter until before you know it, there's no escape." -- ELISABETH THOMAS, author of Catherine House, [An] incisive debut novel [...] The author, herself a former assistant in publishing, delivers not just a critique of the industry's lack of diversity but an imaginative commentary on the personal and professional sacrifices that Black women make in order to fit into white-dominated spaces., The thriller of the summer, and quite possibly of the year [...] It's the smartest book I've read in years about the horrors of competition, old-fashioned gaslighting, and being in thrall to a murky past., [A] brilliant debut ...The novel takes some bold stylistic risks that pay off beautifully, leaving the reader longing for more of Harris's words and unique view on the world., "OMG, as the kids say. This is the funniest, wildest, deepest, most thought-provoking ride of a book. I have been Nella. Every black woman has been Nella. Zakiya Dalila Harris has pulled back the curtain on the publishing industry, but in doing so, she has also perfectly captured a social dynamic that exists in job cultures as varied as tech, finance, academia, or hell, even retail and fast food. Oh, beware of the "OBGs"--Other Black Girls--y'all. As we should all be aware of the psychic cost to black women of making ourselves palatable to institutions that use our cultural cache for their own ends while disregarding any part of our hearts and minds that they either can't or won't understand." --ATTICA LOCKE, New York Times bestselling author of Heaven, My Home, A debut novel that is the perfect mix of social commentary and fast-paced thriller. Poignant, daring, and darkly funny, The Other Black Girl will have you stressed and exhilarated in equal measure through the very last twist., "A brilliant, twisty, and highly relevant thriller... Perfect for fans of Alyssa Cole's When No One Is Watching , or Amina Akhtar's #FashionVictim ." -- Lit Hub, "Witty, inventive, and smart, The Other Black Girl goes deeper to take on class privilege, race, and gender in a narrative that slyly plays along the edges of convention. Zakiya Dalila Harris's debut is a brilliant combustion of suspense, horror, and social commentary that leaves no assumption unchallenged and no page unturned." --WALTER MOSLEY, internationally bestselling author of Devil in a Blue Dress, "Wise and funny and it does what the best books do--it opens up a whole world of two young Black women in the very white world of publishing, making the narrative both eye-opening social commentary and a delicious thriller. A mega-talented new author who deserves all the buzz building for her now--and every accolade she is surely going to get." -- CAROLINE LEAVITT, New York Times bestselling author of Pictures of You and With or Without You, " The Other Black Girl is unlike anything I've ever read before. Wholly original, powerful, and a gripping page turner. This is the kind of book that turns authors into stars and the readers into rabid fans. I cannot wait to see what Zakiya does next." --PHOEBE ROBINSON, bestselling author of You Can't Touch My Hair, In this deliciously scathing send-up of the blindingly white world of New York City book publishing, a big house hires their second Black editorial assistant, and chaos ensues., This book is the perfect mixture of edge-of-your-seat thrills and biting social commentary that will get readers talking., This book is the perfect mixture of of edge-of-your-seat thrills and biting social commentary that will get readers talking., Swerves beyond the conventions of the genre, into territory between psychological thriller and sci-fi [...] Harris reinvents the office novel., Funny and subversive, this debut about the trials of a Black assistant at a mostly white publishing house uses suspense, horror and satire to bring home the toll of workplace racism., Harris' Genre-Bending Evisceration of Workplace Privilege Is Set to Become the Debut of the Summer.
